I need advice on head gasket replacement please
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I need advice on head gasket replacement please
I recently bought a 2002 honda civic ex with 180k. I've had this car for one month and blew a head gasket. Immediately pulled over when it happened so I did not run it with high Temps or anything to prevent more damage being done. Pulled into a shop and they are telling me to put in a new engine. They are saying by replacing parts in the top of the engine it will put too much strain on the bottom part of the engine and car won't last long. However I am reading that some people replace head gaskets in cars with high mileage and everything works fine. Should I take it to someone willing to just replace the blown gasket? Because this shop is telling me they won't even do it since that's not wise and they say I should buy a different car. I have no knowledge on these issues and I don't have thousands of dollars laying around. I need advice please.
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Re: I need advice on head gasket replacement please
Does car burn oil?
Any unusual noises when the engine is running?
As long as the engine was healthy before the head gasket failed, I would take it to a different shop for repair.
Get the head inspected for warping/damage. Depending on when the timing belt + water pump were done last it may be a good idea to get them changed as well. Timing belt needs to come off to remove the head anyways. Use Honda parts because some people have had issues with aftermarket parts failing prematurely.
If you were to drop in a new(used) engine you'd want to replace the head gasket, timing belt, and water pump before putting it in the car anyways.
Any unusual noises when the engine is running?
As long as the engine was healthy before the head gasket failed, I would take it to a different shop for repair.
Get the head inspected for warping/damage. Depending on when the timing belt + water pump were done last it may be a good idea to get them changed as well. Timing belt needs to come off to remove the head anyways. Use Honda parts because some people have had issues with aftermarket parts failing prematurely.
If you were to drop in a new(used) engine you'd want to replace the head gasket, timing belt, and water pump before putting it in the car anyways.
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[QUOTE=Colin42;4742488]Does car burn oil?
Any unusual noises when the engine is running?
The car did not burn oil until the moment I blew the gasket. Once that happened while I was stopped at a red light, I noticed white smoke coming out of engine so I stopped driving. Other than at that point no burned oil.
there are no unusal noises in the car, although ive only had it for a month, I've been commuting 40 miles to and from work everyday just fine. No noises, no leaks, no overheating.
I have called a couple other shops and one said that it would be a gamble for me to fix it. Might last 5 years, might last one week. He said fix it and sell it. Another shop I called said there should be no problems with fixing it and I should fix it and drive it.
Any unusual noises when the engine is running?
The car did not burn oil until the moment I blew the gasket. Once that happened while I was stopped at a red light, I noticed white smoke coming out of engine so I stopped driving. Other than at that point no burned oil.
there are no unusal noises in the car, although ive only had it for a month, I've been commuting 40 miles to and from work everyday just fine. No noises, no leaks, no overheating.
I have called a couple other shops and one said that it would be a gamble for me to fix it. Might last 5 years, might last one week. He said fix it and sell it. Another shop I called said there should be no problems with fixing it and I should fix it and drive it.
"Marge, anyone could miss Canada! All tucked away down there."
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there are no unusal noises in the car, although ive only had it for a month, I've been commuting 40 miles to and from work everyday just fine. No noises, no leaks, no overheating.
I have called a couple other shops and one said that it would be a gamble for me to fix it. Might last 5 years, might last one week. He said fix it and sell it. Another shop I called said there should be no problems with fixing it and I should fix it and drive it.
I have called a couple other shops and one said that it would be a gamble for me to fix it. Might last 5 years, might last one week. He said fix it and sell it. Another shop I called said there should be no problems with fixing it and I should fix it and drive it.
If you think a good mechanic is expensive, try hiring a bad one
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From: Midwest. Aiming about mid-chest
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Figure that a used engine is going to need a head gasket too. What now?
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Shop telling you to replace the engine vs repair sounds crazy but I can see their point.
Sure these engines burn through the head gasket after many many heat/cool cycles.
Once the hot compression gases start leaking through, they displace the coolant and once coolant get low enough air pockets create flash steam spots and then radiators get melted and heads warp. So you need to figure out just how bad this is.
As a FYI the head gasket leak can start out small enough the previous owner knew about it as the final reason they sold the car and it took this long to displace enough coolant for you to start over heating again.
Replacing the head gasket will not crank up the horsepower so that is a farce statement to say it will make the bottom end fail.
As a DYI this is one of those jobs that can really save you some big money as it has a long labor time, but if your like me you will spend almost as much in replacing every gasket, hose, seal, and bandaids.
Dont forget, what proof do you have it’s actually the head gasket? Compressor test is the best.
Sure these engines burn through the head gasket after many many heat/cool cycles.
Once the hot compression gases start leaking through, they displace the coolant and once coolant get low enough air pockets create flash steam spots and then radiators get melted and heads warp. So you need to figure out just how bad this is.
As a FYI the head gasket leak can start out small enough the previous owner knew about it as the final reason they sold the car and it took this long to displace enough coolant for you to start over heating again.
Replacing the head gasket will not crank up the horsepower so that is a farce statement to say it will make the bottom end fail.
As a DYI this is one of those jobs that can really save you some big money as it has a long labor time, but if your like me you will spend almost as much in replacing every gasket, hose, seal, and bandaids.
Dont forget, what proof do you have it’s actually the head gasket? Compressor test is the best.
If you think a good mechanic is expensive, try hiring a bad one
Joined: Dec 2011
Posts: 32,017
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From: Midwest. Aiming about mid-chest
Rep Power: 517 
If you think a good mechanic is expensive, try hiring a bad one
Joined: Dec 2011
Posts: 32,017
Likes: 256
From: Midwest. Aiming about mid-chest
Rep Power: 517 Re: I need advice on head gasket replacement please
What was paid for the car?
It already has 180k on it.....How much longer does OP expect the car to last? How long does he plan to keep it? Does he have lots of money to throw at the car?
He probably hasn't had it long enough to figure out if it consumes oil or not, but at that mileage I'd kinda expect it to use oil......Is it worth doing a rering now if the head is taken off??
If a low mileage used engine is dropped in, what all will be done BEFORE that engine is installed? T-belt/tensioner/pump/head gasket, etc.?
Will it crap the transmission next? Has that already been recently replaced?
It already has 180k on it.....How much longer does OP expect the car to last? How long does he plan to keep it? Does he have lots of money to throw at the car?
He probably hasn't had it long enough to figure out if it consumes oil or not, but at that mileage I'd kinda expect it to use oil......Is it worth doing a rering now if the head is taken off??
If a low mileage used engine is dropped in, what all will be done BEFORE that engine is installed? T-belt/tensioner/pump/head gasket, etc.?
Will it crap the transmission next? Has that already been recently replaced?
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but that’s replacing all sorts of other goodies: T belt, tensioner, h20 pump, all the seals and o rings, etc
Sad Sactocivic.
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