head gasket

[Anonymous]

when i left work yesteray it was pising down with rain and i started my gsi huge clouds of whte smoke coming out the back. thought thats nt good after warmed up it was ok went out later that night and saw steam coming from the engine opened the bonnet no water??? hasnt smoked since and i put water in it but i opened the oil filler cap lots of white creamy sludge. so i assumet the head gasket is fucked. any ideas what elseit could be if not and what should i pay to get the head gasket changed i been quoted ?170 by novatech in slough is this a good price or expensive????help me please i need the car fixed asap.

[Anonymous]

DIY mate. much better. wont cost more than ?100 if you do it. its not that hard either

BEng Hons Automotive Electronics Engineering :) worship my electronics skills :D

[Anonymous]

i can get the head gasket for ?12 do i need to use new head bolts? but im worried after i taken cam belt everything off il still need to get that set u properly wont i?do u think it is the head gasket?

[Anonymous]

but dont i need to get the head skimmed of the old gasket?

[Anonymous]

Easiest thing to do mate, is go to a local parts supplier and ask for a "Head Gasket Kit". This will have all the gaskets and seal you need (e.g. Exhaust, inlet, etc). While youre there get some new head bolt too, (about ?15 ish).
Ive never changed a head gasket on an injection car, only carbed ones, but i assume the principle is the same.

Easiest way to do it is to rotate the engine until the timing marks are aligned, then start removing stuff as described in the Haynes manual.
The old head gasket will normally come off in one piece, but use a blunt scraper and a green scowering pad to remove any traces from the head and block.
Normally you dont need to get the head skimmed, but because of what you've written above (i.e. driving home), it would probably be a good idea to get an engineering company to check it.
Then all you have to do is put it all back together! :D

Hope this helps ;)

Ben

[Anonymous]

hold up !!!

Don't go to Novatech !! Bernie will rip you off, its not worth the money. Where abouts are you mate coz I live in langley ?

Get a gasket kit, and replace all of them, also get the new head bolts as well, because you shouldn't re use the old ones. Its not hard to change the gaskets, get the workshop manual out an follow it through. Also get a new cam belt because again you shouldn't refit one once you have taken it off. when you have done all that take it to a garage and get the cam belt lined up and the timing set properly. it only costs about ?30 and is well worth it. My brother was changing his cam belt on his 2.0l 16v and when he put the new one on he lined it up and went to start it, there was a loud bang and some smoke. nearly ?600 later he had to have the inlet valves and valve guides replaced and reset, new gaskets and head bolts etc. (very expensive mistake, which is why you should pay a small amount and get a pro to do it, for peace of mind)

If you want me to explain further then e-mail me and I will sort it out.

Damian

If sex is a pain in the arse....your doing it wrong !

[Anonymous]

i live in hillingdon go to colege in langley do you know any1 else around that will be able to do it?

[Anonymous]

Hmmmmmm, i think a skim is always in order, no matter what the situation, even if the head gasket aint gone, but u change it anyway, still skim it, its not worth the risk, and its only 20 notes.

ALWAYS change the head bolts, i didnt last time & i am paying the price, one has started to leak, yes the bolt is leaking oil!

Bummer, not that it matters tho, cos new head is going on, woo hoo.

So, the moral of the story is:

If u do the head gasket, change every gasket that u remove, get the head skimmed, change the bolts & get it set up proper.

sorted.

[Anonymous]

just confirmed that Mark is correct, when the head gasket goes the head normally warps when you take the head bolts out, so a skim is in order.

scotte check your e-mail mate

If sex is a pain in the arse....your doing it wrong !

[Anonymous]

Do as peeps have suggested, and do it your self. I did mine in about an hour, though I didn't have to have it skimmed, 'cos I was fitting a new head anyway. All you need as said above, is a head gasket kit, and new head bolts. You need new bolts because they are stretch-bolts, and once used, they don't tighten properly as they do when new....not good.
The total cost to do mine was about ?35 (?17 for gasket kit, ?18 for bolts), Follow the Haynes, and you can't go wrong.

Always a good thing to do, is turn the engine over by hand first, so you don't destroy any valves in case you have put the timing belt back on wrong! It's dead easy to get it right on a single cam engine anyway...never done a valver.
Just make sure everything is lined up before you start to strip the engine, then re-fit.

You shouldn't need to get it tuned afterwards, as everything should be back as it was....timing etc, but always worth doing to be sure.

MKII Nova Brochure scans to be added to www.novabug.co.uk soon!