dragonbut69

I just got back from a repair shop and they tell me I may have a blown head gasket. They did a compression check on the radiator and it failed. They said it would cost as much to replace the head gasket as it would cost to put in a used engine because they have to pull the engine to replace. Do you really have to pull the engine to replace the head gasket? How much should the repair cost me? I don't have oil in the coolant and I don't have coolant going in the oil. They said the coolant is burning and going through the exhaust.

Josio0323

Do you know if you blown one side or both gaskets?
also My 98 v6 3.8 blew the driver side gasket
and its not hard its just time consuming and for the rocker arm bolts you cant just take off any bolt you want you have to go in a specific order to not break or crack the head so what i heard and you got to put them back in the reverse order or same order its confusign but ill be glad to explain all i know.
When i did my gasket i had to remove exhaust manifold/sensors,alternator fuel rail upper and lower manifold egr valve and a bunch other stuff...plus you may have a cracked head . Its a big job but if you know how to do it it can be done.
I got somone to do it with me i paid 200 and i paid for the parts, but in all i paid about 400-500 including labor and parts and thats because i didnt know how to do it myself and i got lucky enough to find somone who was needing money to help. How much did the shop charge to change it?
Shops will tell you anything to get money.
just make sure if you do it with another person make sure they know what theyre doing.
is there any way you could possibly take a picture of your engine if its the 3.8 v6 3800 series 2 a good close up of it. hagood luck

dragonbut69

Just a couple of other notes. My engine has never overheated. I have been adding a half gallon of coolant about every month for about two years now. No smoke out the tailpipes. I do not drive alot about 500 miles a month. I was not told which side was blown. What should I be looking out for when the head gasket is really bad?

Josio0323

Loss of power, vibrating more than usually, And it overheats
Look in the oil cap to see foaming or white stuff under the oil cap thats one sign.
Does it have Same Acceleration as it did before?
what specific problems do you have with the car?
Might be an intake gasket

Evolution223

hell, if they are suggesting you replace the whole engine now you might as well just takes your chances and drive it until it blows up and then replace the engine. if it's just a litttle goin into the exhaust it doesnt sound like a big deal, half a gallon of coolant will just cost you like $5 a month and it's just getting burnt up so it's not really hurting the enviroment any. I say let it go, you might be able to drive that car forever like that and it's good to check your fluids atleast once a month anyway and if it ends up costing you a tow I'd say it;s worth taking that chance, buy yourself a $50 membership of AAA to cover towing or get towing on your insurance.

dragonbut69

Does the engine have to pulled out to replace the head gasket? I do have foam where you add oil to the car. I change the oil every 2000 miles. I bought some coolant seal that is suppose to seal the block and gaskets. Maybe this will help. I don't really have any problems with the car other than adding coolant. Acceleration is very strong. I pretty much baby my car.