Blown Head Gasket?

Question

I asked yesterday if I should use Bar's Leak for my blown head gasket on my '95 Ford Mustang V6, and most people said "no", and I should just sell the car. I'm a college student, and selling my only means of transportation is not an option at this time. The dealership wanted to charge me $1450 to get it fixed, and I talked them down to $1000 and told them I would think about it. I"ve called one other place and they said they would change ALL the gaskets while the engine's out for that price, and maybe even cut down the labor costs a bit. I HAVE to get this repair done, or I"m going to be Chevro-legging it. I can't afford a new car. What is a fair price to find for this repair? Any mechanics or people who know lots about head gasket repairs and costs would be greatly appreciated. Thanks

Answer 1

Both places would have to change out ALL the gaskets. You really can't get to a head gasket unless you change out all the gaskets. Only a really bad mechanic would even attempt re-using an intake or exhaust manifold gasket. And if one head gasket has blown, it's best to replace both head gaskets.

There is a lot of work involved in changing out head gaskets. It's not a short or easy task, and $1000 is reasonable for the task at hand.

Make sure you get some sort of guarantee with the repair work too in terms of a minimum of how long the gaskets will survive. 3-6 months should be typical, a head gasket replacement is a major task and the first few months are typically the most critical.

I'm sure you don't want to hear this, but typically with a head gasket, job be sure:
1. They do a full oil change including filter.
2. They remove all the radiator fluid and do a full replacement.
3. I would advise you get the thermostat changed at this time. It shouldn't be more than a few dollars more (less than $20, and insurance against your engine possibly overheating).
4. I would advise changing out the water pump, this may add $50-$100, but it will save you grief in the long run because when you get that far into the engine, the water pump is not much more. They should pretty much only charge you for the part's cost.

Answer 2

In Missouri, I charge around 900 but that is with the time allowed for changing the gaskets and all, close to a metro area..
The motor does NOT need to be removed and as far as gaskets. The head gaskets and the intake and exhaust manifolds are the only major gaskets to be replaced.
Do some more shopping. Actually get up the courage to call a dealer get their price, A library may have a bok called the motors manual. it will tell you how much time is allowed for the replacemnt....then ask around, instructors and professors may know an able college student who moonlights and does this. I could have, or their shop where they take their cars. If you are in MO let me know. I always try to give college kids a good break.

Answer 3

first , i wish u gave the symptoms of what the car is having , but 1450 is a ridiculus price . also second mechanic talked about taking motor out? why? u dont need to pull motor for a head gasket, it shouldnt be much more than a three hour job which i would think shouldnt cost more than 6 to 8 hundred at the most. what u should do is get on the phone ( if your sure its a head gasket ) and get prices from many garages, but stay away from dealers unless u want to pay way more

Answer 4

You have a cracked head or a blown head gasket. Oil in the coolant comes from the passages ni the head seperating oil gallies from coolant gallies. If your rings where bad it would be sucking tons of oil into your cylinder and burning a lot of blue smoke and then fouling out your plugs quickly. So you will need to determine which head is faulty. Even if it just a head gasket blown, you have the head off and it is proactive to have the head pressure tested and look at valve facings while you have it off. Simply pulling plugs will not always work. Because the crack or the blown head gasket mainly cross over from gally to gally and do not leak into the cylinder. If it was leaking into a cylinder you would be getting white smoke which is indicative of coolant being burnt in the engine.

Answer 5

i own a repair shop,in Tennessee,and a good fair price for this would be around 750 to change the head gaskets ,and flush the engine out real good,this would include all parts and labor also,,i think a 1000 is a little too high for that job,,and there right about the bars leak,,its not good to add it in,it only hides the problem and usually not for long either,,but you should be able to get this done for 750 somewhere ,good luck with it,i hope this helps,,have a good x-mas.

Answer 6

You also need to find out why the head gasket started to leak.Probably because the engine over heated.Its also a good idea to have the head checked to see if its warped.Some times if the head gasket is blown you will get water in the oil,pull out the dip stick & see if the oil looks white.The price they want seems high to me, find a independant mechanic.

Answer 7

I had a head gasket on a 1992 Plymouth replaced for $800 about three years ago, so $800-$1000 sounds about right.

Sorry about your car.

Answer 8

That head gasket is going to blow every year, ford dealership wanted to charge me $2000 on my v6 head gasket, Did it my self for under $100/gaskets/bolts and nearly all day working on it, you have to buy head bolts too, cause they are made to be used only once, they stretch like crazy when being torqued. good luck. them fords are engineered to break down, thats how the economy keeps moving

Answer 9

the cheapest way is to find a good mechanic who does moonlighting - you can look up the flat rate in a chiltons book for the amount of hours to do the job then x the $ rate. $1400 sounds high dealership moonlighter labor is about one half of dealership.