SWMBO's '03 Fabia 1.4 MPi Classic has a lot of milky 'fawn' sludge in the coolant tank and also a white residue inside the oil cap and just showing on dipstick as well.

I guess that this points to either a head gasket that has gone or cracked cylinder head?

Can anyone confirm that this is most likely the case and roughly how much it will cost to repair / replace?

It was serviced 6 months ago - should it have got obviously bad in that time period and has it been damaging the engine running it like it is?

I'm considering whether it is worth fixing it or replacing it with something else (another Fabia?) and cost is obviously an issue at the moment.

Thanks in advance.

Edited 31 December, 201114 yr by KBPhoto

Head gaskets are very common place but an easy DIY job.

See if it's got a modified gasket on it anyhow, identified by temac or a T written on the right hand front corner as you look at the engine on the gasket itself.

Will need a good flush if it's gone bad to remove oil deposits.

A few shots from when I did mine

I think genuine parts cost around the £100 mark give or take.

SWMBO's '03 Fabia 1.4 MPi Classic has a lot of milky 'fawn' sludge in the coolant tank and also a white residue inside the oil cap and just showing on dipstick as well.

I guess that this points to either a head gasket that has gone or cracked cylinder head?

Can anyone confirm that this is most likely the case and roughly how much it will cost to repair / replace?

It was serviced 6 months ago - should it have got obviously bad in that time period and has it been damaging the engine running it like it is?

I'm considering whether it is worth fixing it or replacing it with something else (another Fabia?) and cost is obviously an issue at the moment.

Thanks in advance.

My mates had a white sludge with a slight oily look in the expansion tank...thought the same as you........when I drained it though found out the coolant was hardly coloured and there was no (slight) oily sheen (drained into a white bucket)....so did a through flush and reverse flush of both the rad and the engine, cleaned the expansion tank and refilled the system with the proper G12plus+ VAG at 50% mix......he still reports no more white sludge or oilly sheen in the tank. Also think that the oilly sheen was because the rocker cover gasket was badly leaking with the oil running down onto the bottom coolant hose (metal to rubber join infront of rad) and that it soaked the hose and got into the system that way......since we cleaned that area and replaced the rocker gasket therre has been no problems!!!!

linky for engine flush etc.....

http://briskoda.net/forums/topic/208388-why-you-should-use-wynns-engine-flush/

There was a bulletin many moons ago for the cross contamination fault hence the modified gaskets.

Mine has the improved Temac gasket fitted. I had this symptom and flushed the cooling system twice, only for it to come back. I originally used Holts speedflush first, then Barrs cooling system flush (whatever you do don't use the barrs stuff). I more recently did it a third time with Normfest CC442 radiator cleaner (got it from Euro Car Parts for about £10 but no longer see it on their site) and that seemed to work much better. It has come back slightly though. I'm wondering if the headgasket is going slowly as coolant does down a bit over time. No mayo in oil cap any more though, despite infrequent journeys at present.

The original bulletin in full was to inspect for the modified gasket, if had original gasket replace with temac one, if had temac re torque the head bolts as they weren't done up tight enough. However with the time that has passed since these were made I would suspect it would need a gasket anyhow.

But with it being an OHV engine it's not a massive job by any means and easily done in a morning if on the driveway.

Mine was exacly the same! took to my mates garage and he flushed and reversed flushed and its been fine now for 6 months so maybe thats whats needed

Could well be, the contamination is very slow, took me three years before I bothered to do mine..lol

Just depends on how bad it's gone.

Thanks for the great info guys - and a Happy New Year.

See if it's got a modified gasket on it anyhow, identified by temac or a T written on the right hand front corner as you look at the engine on the gasket itself.

I'll check when she gets back from shopping, but waht difference does it make whether it is a modified one or not?

I think genuine parts cost around the £100 mark give or take.

Not too expensive then (if it's actually needed), but I guess labour will be a big part of the fee for this job even if no parts are required.

There was a bulletin many moons ago for the cross contamination fault hence the modified gaskets.

Was the modified gasket designed to fix the fault? Was it a recall from Skoda that (if I haven't had the 'upgrade' done) they would still honour?

But with it being an OHV engine it's not a massive job by any means and easily done in a morning if on the driveway.

I'm not the most mechanically mined person in the world, but might be tempted to give it a go if I knew what was where on the engine and had all the right tools available.

Will have to weigh that one up...

The head gasket was a bulletin not a recall, so they have nothing to honour.

Thanks for the clarification.

I guess recalls only ever happen if there's a safety implication.

Tech1e - How did you clean the bits inside? An impressive transformation on the cylinder head.

I cleaned the surface of the head with a flat block and some wet and dry, cleaned the combustion areas with a wire brush on a drill.

Is it safe to wire brush the faces of the valves or is it best to remove first?

Yeah it's safe as long as you don't go bonkers. And with them in the head you won't be touching the valve seat. You could take the valves out and re lap in for a full job but I did mine in a lunch break so didn't have much time to spare.

I did mine in a lunch break so didn't have much time to spare.

Ha! Think it's going to take me a lot longer than that...

Been having a look today - no sign of a 'T' , but if it is on the gasket then I'd have to take the head off to see it I presume? (You are now getting the idea that I am not really knowledgeable about these things...)

It looks like oil is leaking down the cylinder head from the gasket on the right hand side (stood in front of car) towards the front of vehicle. So, I think I'm going to go for it.

Wish me luck!

Would this be a complete check list of things that I'd need to get (between my dad and I we already have the right tools unless any Skoda specific tools are required):

Oil: 5w30?

Oil filter: An oil filter is an oil filter, isn't it?

Coolant: How much of this stuff do I need? I have no idea how big it is.

Engine Flush: Is this enough to do one engine flush?

Gasket set: Would a cheaper complete set off the bay be a good move or would I just need the head gasket?

Is there anything else I'd need? (Apart from a mechanic to do it for me - or a Haynes manual).

It looks like oil is leaking down the cylinder head from the gasket on the right hand side (stood in front of car) towards the front of vehicle. So, I think I'm going to go for it.

Wish me luck!

Would this be a complete check list of things that I'd need to get (between my dad and I we already have the right tools unless any Skoda specific tools are required):

Oil: 5w30?

Oil filter: An oil filter is an oil filter, isn't it?

Coolant: How much of this stuff do I need? I have no idea how big it is.

Engine Flush: Is this enough to do one engine flush?

Gasket set: Would a cheaper complete set off the bay be a good move or would I just need the head gasket?

Is there anything else I'd need? (Apart from a mechanic to do it for me - or a Haynes manual).

The rocker cover gasket fails and needs replacing causing oil to leak down front of engine....so 1x gasket and 2x grommets fro the roker cover studs/nuts.....

Could well be, the contamination is very slow, took me three years before I bothered to do mine..lol

Just depends on how bad it's gone.

Worth noting what you said re the improved gasket etc......

......will keep an eye on my mates car incase it developes it again as then defo the gasket "gone"!!!

Looks like a good coolant flush etc will get rid of most of the problem......but main failure of gasket if original will happen sooner or later with the unavoidable job!!! :S

Ha! Think it's going to take me a lot longer than that...

Been having a look today - no sign of a 'T' , but if it is on the gasket then I'd have to take the head off to see it I presume? (You are now getting the idea that I am not really knowledgeable about these things...)

It looks like oil is leaking down the cylinder head from the gasket on the right hand side (stood in front of car) towards the front of vehicle. So, I think I'm going to go for it.

Wish me luck!

Would this be a complete check list of things that I'd need to get (between my dad and I we already have the right tools unless any Skoda specific tools are required):

Oil: 5w30?

Oil filter: An oil filter is an oil filter, isn't it?

Coolant: How much of this stuff do I need? I have no idea how big it is.

Engine Flush: Is this enough to do one engine flush?

Gasket set: Would a cheaper complete set off the bay be a good move or would I just need the head gasket?

Is there anything else I'd need? (Apart from a mechanic to do it for me - or a Haynes manual).

Your not a million miles away from me. Just a thought.

I'd stick with genuine parts personally.

10w40 oil will be just fine.

Can I say , yes it was very very common for the head gaskets to fail on these

I did the warranty claims for a Skoda dealer for years , started in 2000 , when the Fabia came out

The claim numbers and labour codes.....could write them in a Christmas card if needed

Tech1e is not called that because he works with computers , this guy works at dealers , and has been for years

If I needed ANYTHING from a dealer , advice or technical , THIS is the guy I would trust

If you need anything , THIS is the guy to help

If your not a million miles away , why not see if he could do the job for you

Just a thought??????

sarah

Sarah your making me blush

Sarah your making me blush

again ha ha

But to be honest , that is so true

I must admit , it is so easy to bury your head in the sand

At the end of the day , with that engine.....it will be the head gasket

the same as the MAF`s , clean them??????? Just putting off the inevitable

Same as clean the prongs on the expansion tank????? at the end of the day , you are just putting off what it needs

So if I text with an issue , its cos YOU are DA man

Take care

Sarah

I'd stick with genuine parts personally.

Sound advice - I've found a VAG set for £24.99 at Jorily on the net.

10w40 oil will be just fine.

My mistake - I had the oil for my car in my head at the time!

If I needed ANYTHING from a dealer , advice or technical , THIS is the guy I would trust

It is not a trust issue (although with some dealers I have been to in the past it might be!). Just looking at Tech1e's pictures and reading his comments, it is obvious that he knows what he is doing.

If I did go to see him, I'm afraid he might want his front seats back!

I must admit , it is so easy to bury your head in the sand

That's what I don't want to be doing any longer. I'm the sort of guy who likes to know what is what, but am a complete beginner (at the age of 40) when it comes to cars. I used to 'help' my dad fix our cars, but 'help' always meant passing the bigger spanner, making the tea or holding the end of something so it didn't bend / break.

the same as the MAF`s , clean them??????? Just putting off the inevitable

Same as clean the prongs on the expansion tank????? at the end of the day , you are just putting off what it needs

This car needs quite a bit of TLC (which is didn't get last service 6 months ago) and, thanks to people on this forum, I'm beginning to take more of an interest in cars (especially Skoda's) and trying to understand things so that I can see what needs to be done (or in some cases can be done to them.

Being part time & self-employed (neither of which are showing brilliant financial prospects, I'd like to be able to save a bit of money in the long run by getting my hands dirty - for example, there is a lot of oil down the front of the engine which I'd like to clean off while I'm at it. I couldn't ask anyone to do it for me or stand and watch while I did it.

Going to a dealer or to Tech1e is certainly the easy option, but what would I learn by doing that?

Oil: 5w30?

Coolant: How much of this stuff do I need? I have no idea how big it is.

Engine Flush: Is this enough to do one engine flush?

The most extreme I would go with the oil is 5w-40. 10w-40 is probably better for this climate though.

Only use an engine oil flush if oil changes have previously been neglected IMO. If you want to use an oil flush, it's better to buy a can of proper flushing oil IMO, rather than an additive to the existing oil. My usual procedure would be drain existing oil and remove filter and drain that too (obviously refitting it). Fill with flushing oil and run engine for as long as suggested on bottle. Drain that. Put in the cheapest 10w-40 oil you can find, repeat same procedure as for flushing oil and drain that (to remove flushing oil, this step probably not necessary but I like to think there's no flushing oil left). Then new oil filter and top up with good stuff.

The cooling system is most likely to need a good flush. I would recommend the Normfest radiator cleaner I mentioned previously. There's apparently a forte one which is good for post headgasket failure, but is usually sold only to garages, and quite expensive on ebay. Here's a quick and lazy guide with pics I knocked together. http://briskoda.net/forums/topic/207323-14mpi-changing-thermostat-and-flushing-coolant-system/

Coolant, you need 6 litres in total and it dilutes 50/50 so you need 3 litres. Well that's the official figure, but basically you need more than 4, and less than 6. The stuff you link to on ebay is quite expensive when postage is taken into account. You can get it from Skoda dealers or GSF.

You state - [My usual procedure would be drain existing oil and remove filter and drain that too. Fill with flushing oil and run engine for as long as suggested on bottle. Drain that. Put in the cheapest 10w-40 oil you can find, repeat same procedure as for flushing oil and drain that (to remove flushing oil, this step probably not necessary but I like to think there's no flushing oil left). Then new oil filter and top up with good stuff.] -

Is this correct running the engine without an oil filter when using both the Flushing Oil & cheapo 10w-40 Oil?

I am sure I would not chance it.

I think it needs a re-edit PDQ.

DB.