Hi Guys,

The wifey has a 2001 Fabia. It's the one with the 8V MPi engine (Camchain).

Upshot is that the Head gasket has gone (Mayonnaise inside oil cap) but still runs OK so I'm looking at options as to what to do.

HG replacement by the garage up the road is £400, which whilst reasonable is more than I really want to pay, and I'm worried about escalating prices once work starts...

The other alternative is to get a second hand engine fitted. labour would cost £200 which I think is great. I could justify £150-£200 for an engine and £200 for fitting. This would probably be my preferred solution as I'd trust a working 'non fiddled with' engine over a repaired one.

Trouble is I can't find any engines in the Southampton area! (Has anyone got one??)

Third option is to DIY the head gasket. It all looks simple and straightforward, however, has anyone done it and are there any gotchas? Any special tools needed or inaccessible bolts? Am I going to be opening a can of worms? Would the Haynes manual give all the necessary clearances?

Lastly, there's conflicting information whether the head bolts are stretch bolts or not. Some say the aren't and they are re-usable, some say they are and should be replaced. I have also been told that you can file the end off to make stretch bolts slightly shorter and re-use them. Others say they can be re-used once before being discarded! Any ideas, guys?

Edited 6 April, 201313 yr by Calmore

Wrong section mate, post again in the fabia section or ask for it to be moved there.

It's already in the correct Fabia Forum.

DB

Thanks for moving the post!!

Edited 6 April, 201313 yr by Calmore

mayo in oil cap might not be head gasket failure does it do short journeys engines create condensation if only used for short trips doesnt get warm to burn off water vapor and then mixes with oil at top engine and you get that gunk stuff if unsure get a garage to do a sniff test or pressure test of coolant system before rushing in and spending £400 plus

100% certain the HG has gone and the mayo isn't just down to condensation

Edited 6 April, 201313 yr by Schern

Hi,

Well, it's never suffered from 'mayonnaise' before.

The wife was on a 10 mile journey, noticed the temperature gauge go off the scale, pulled over and refilled the expansion bottle. It was upon returning home that the sludge was discovered.

The fact that it's not done it before suggests that it's a new fault. However, it's always slowly lost fluid which I always put down to a leaky heater matrix.

Question is, do I bite the bullet and pay the £400? Hold out and hope a decent engine pops up over the next couple of days? DIY?

Edited 6 April, 201313 yr by Calmore

why second hand engine preferred you dont know the condition of the new engine and could be in the same situation again or maybe worse ? if you know the rest of your engine is sound then get it repaired ....

stretch bolts hence the name ... they stretch which is why you shouldnt re use them ..... it is likely they will snap if you re use them which would only end up costing you more as you will have to remove the old bolt without damaging anything.

As for £400 to change a mpi head gasket that sounds a little high for me i would shop around before committing the car to a garage

This is the manual:

http://www.zsygab.com/skoda-fabia-instructions-and-owners-workshop-manual-haynes/

The head gasket is 30p on ebay and you can reuse the bolt because they are not stretch bolts.

Read this before you do it:

http://www.briskoda.net/forums/topic/139552-changing-a-head-gasket-what-i-did-with-pics/

Have fun

£400 includes having the head skimmed; if it's not warped the bill would be lower. How much do MPI gaskets typically cost to replace? (One quote we had was £700+!!)

What worries me is that soon as the head is taken off all manner of things could be discovered, such as a cracked head or whatever, then the bills start to add up.

With a 'guaranteed' engine I'd sort of know what I'd be paying.

100% certain the HG has gone and the mayo isn't just down to condensation :wonder:

sorry never said mayo in oil cap was just down to condensation which is why i asked if it did short journeys but from op last post it indicates temp gauge off the scale after ten miles and losing coolant probably is head gasket

One other silly question, where do I find the engine code?

time for a 1.8t conversion? lol

time for a 1.8t conversion? lol

Well, if you know someone locally who can do it for £400....!

Well, if you know someone locally who can do it for £400....!

All what you need is basic tools, torque wrench, and about 8 hours.

So hang on, rather than investigate basic coolant loss you ignored it till it became a more expensive issue and now think that rather than doing minor (all be it labour intensive) repair work you'd rather roll the dice on an unknown engine and you're going to get someone else to fit it? Unless your service history is as diligent as your investigation of the coolant loss that's not the best plan and here's why.

A replacement engine with warranty will be from a breaker, you'll pay a premium for that warranty. At most they'll run the car for a bit before breaking it, they don't care about the service history or actual condition as they are only liable for supply not fitting so at worst they loose the delivery costs. They sell you the engine and give it a 90 day warranty. If something goes wrong in 90 days then you have had to pay for the engine and fitting/removal, you'll get the cost of the engine back but not the fitting or removal and you still have to find a replacement so seriously consider this before you go any further. Also if the HG goes on it after 90 days you're in the same position and a new (old) engine every time the HG needs doing could get expensive. Also how do you know the engine you get hasn't had the head done before hand?

Your other option is have the HG replaced on your engine, in comparison it's a very minor job on an engine you know the history of and will come with warranty on the parts/work done, it's also cheaper.

I know what I'd choose.

So, how much is a realistic price to pay to get a garage to replace the gasket?

You could get a mobile mechanic to do the job, it's probably one of the easiest and cheapest head gasket jobs out there. The head should ALWAYS be skimmed to guarantee truth, what worries me is why it blew it in the first place, that will need fixing first. I guess thermostat or water pump, I would replace both to be on the safe side.

So hang on, rather than investigate basic coolant loss you ignored it

No. I investigated it and never found it.

It was a very minor loss of coolant, probably needed topping up every two weeks but appeared worse in the winter, so assumed it was something to do with the heater circuit.

Anyon know what thread the head botls are? Need some bolts/washers to hold the cylinders down. (Someone said they were M10 but they aren't.)

No. I investigated it and never found it.

It was a very minor loss of coolant, probably needed topping up every two weeks but appeared worse in the winter, so assumed it was something to do with the heater circuit.

You're serious? You want to deliberate to context I used the word ignore in? You may have looked but you chose to ignore it and not do further investigation till you found the issue, ergo you ignored it.

Anyon know what thread the head botls are? Need some bolts/washers to hold the cylinders down. (Someone said they were M10 but they aren't.)

Good luck with that

Back on topic...

There are a few threads on here from when I did this to SWMBO's '03 1.4mpi 8v such as this one about the bolts: http://www.briskoda.net/forums/topic/247657-14-mpi-cylinder-head-bolts/#entry3221811

I had quotes from £300-£500 to 'fix' the problem, most were quoting for a worst case scenario (i.e. head cracked or at best warped and in need of skimming).

I replaced all the gaskets for about £40-50 from the dealer and also the bolts. I bought them not sure whether I would use them or not, but once the old ones were out there was corrosion on quite a few threads so I decided to use the new ones.

The cause if the problem on ours was put down to the thermostat clip breaking and circulating plastic particles around the coolant (it's a known and common problem on this engine, so factor in an additional cost as you have to buy the whole thermostat & housing).

As I managed to pick up a new cylinder head for £30 (thanks Chris) I put that straight on and didn't need to worry about skimming the old head or whether it was cracked/warped/etc.

I also replaced the coolant tank as it was a mess (but brake cleaner works very well on degrading the gunk).

While I was at it I changed the oil & filter, thoroughly flushed the radiator & coolant system and replaced everything with new.

All in, and about £160-180 later and nearly a year on, no more mayo (despite a moderately high percentage of short - 3 mile - journeys), a very slight improvement in MPG but no increase in power.

If you have questions, feel free to PM if you wish.

ive just done mine mate its not too hard.

hardest part was from the ****in dealer screwing up!!!!

they put me timing belt a tooth out and threaded the sump plug in and ****** all the threads and remember this is the main dealer!!!

so if your knowledgeable defnitly worth doing as it wasnt that hard tbh

DIY if you're good with a spanner!

http://www.briskoda.net/forums/topic/258618-possible-headgasket-how-hard-to-change/#entry3043610

Very simple engine to work on.

Thanks for all the useful advice so far. Much appreciated!

The head is now at Saunders being skimmed and should be back in a few days. I thought I'd update the thread with a few things I have discovered along the way in case someone searches for info. Hopefully, it'll make the job easier for others.

The rocker cover was a pig to remove. I thought it was due to the gasket sticking but it was actually the two little rubber seals under the nuts. Remove these with a twisting motion and they'll follow the threads and come off.

Connectors can be awkward to remove; ensure the locking tab is pushed fully in and they should come apart easily.

Before removing the head make sure the pistons aren't at TDC. I did this by removing the plugs and poking the dipstick into each hole *gently* to see where each piston is.

Don't leave the dipstick in the dipstick tube, despite advice to the contrary; it is very easy to lean on it and snap it...!

If bolting down the cylinder liners, be advised that the thread is not M10! It's not M12 either, so I assume it's M11, which is almost impossible to get hold of. Instead, use a couple of lengths of metal pipe, two plate washers and a couple of head bolts.

All told it has taken about 2 1/5 hours to get the head off; another 30 mins to remove the manifolds ready for skimming.

After undoing all the bolts/valvegear rock the head back and forth to break the seal. Don't hit it with a large lump of wood as suggested elsewhere as there are a few studs poking out the block and through the head!!

If the head won't come off check you have removed the bolts holding the two stabiliser bars to the manifold!!

Another update when it's all back together!!