Hi guys, well i just got my car back from the garage and ive been told theres a problem with the head gasket and it needs to be replaced! The car is a 1.3 felicia with 80,000 on the clock. I was wondering if any of you well educated fellows out there knows how much it is going to cost to have it replaced?

The gasket and a set of head bolts would be under £30 IIRC, its the labour that hurts. The head may need to be skimmed adding around £60-£80 on top. I reckon on a 3 hr job, £100 effectively for parts, and £200 ish for labour.

Could probably done for £250 at an independant, or maybe find a friendly Briskodian to help...

How are you with a socket set and a Haynes... Its only a "3 spanner rated" job, so fairly easy for a competant DIY mechanic, but I reckon it would take you a weekend.

Thanks very much, that is a big help. Now i have braced myself for the costs i will be able to go to the garage without feeling to faint!

had one go in my old fav. £700!!!!

yes you read that right £700. the man said that the head cant be skimmed, and that if the gasget goes, the head WILL be warped..

mind you that dealer was very creative with his storys. in other words he was a bull $hitter.

I don't believe Felicia/Favorit heads can't be skimmed. Even Triumph Stag heads could be skimmed once and they had valves at such an angle it was nearly impossible not to expose them.

I stand to be corrected, but gasket failure is not unknown on these cars, but thats the first time I've heard that new heads were always required. Sounds VERY dodgy to me.

These days there can't be that many cars as easy to do a head gasket on, but the difficulty is checking the head for warping once you have the head off. You need a metal straight edge which is a precision tool none of us have to hand, but a quick trip to your local engineering firm with the head should get it checked OK..but ring them first to check they are able to check it properly. They can also crack test as well using dye or ultrasonics if they are good.

When i was young/poor/foolish I had an ancient Peugeot 204 and a 304 with alloy heads.I had head gaskets go on both and did them myself without getting the heads skimmed (couldn't afford it). I did the best check I could with a metal ruler and took a risk. Both were absolutely fine afterwards, so although there is a higher risk of an alloy head warping its not a dead cert that they all do by any means. It should be checked though ideally.

Alfie 168

What symptoms are present to suggest the head gasket is faulty?

If the head does need to come off then make sure the liner heights are checked before it's refitted.

My old Favorit blew its head gasket twice. The first time I just bunged in a new gasket and hoped for the best. It lasted 20000 miles before it blew again... the second time I had the head skimmed and the thing was still running beautifully when it got scrapped five years later - nothing to do with the engine, it was quite simply as rotten as a pear.

Hi - First post because I have a similar problem! I have a 1.3 LXi estate on a T plate with 70,000 miles. Thermo into the red and engines makes a bubbling noise like the kettle after 5-10 minute journey! Ouch, straight to garage who've had the car 2 days and have now said that it is the head gasket that has gone - does this sound right? I'm, as you can tell, not mechanically minded at all!

Cheers!

I think People get confused easily...

the Majority of Felicias I've seen (and i've seen and bought a few!) can be found with some light mayo under the oil cap, due to condensation from the owners only using them for short (sub 5 mile) journies)

I'd check that the coolant is running clear, and if so its highly unlikely that the headgasket has gone!

clean out tthe oil filler cap and run it for a week and check again.

try to do some full temp runs- short runs just dont help

Hi - First post because I have a similar problem! I have a 1.3 LXi estate on a T plate with 70,000 miles. Thermo into the red and engines makes a bubbling noise like the kettle after 5-10 minute journey! Ouch, straight to garage who've had the car 2 days and have now said that it is the head gasket that has gone - does this sound right? I'm, as you can tell, not mechanically minded at all!

Cheers!

this sounds like an overheating problem, could be blockage/airlock in cooling system.

do you have "mayo" in the expansion tank?

Hi

I know I risk getting laughed off the board for this. Twenty years age I owned a K20 Toyota Corolla (a rust bucket if ever there was one) the head gasket went I was told the head needed skimming. I doubled up on the gasket ie. put on two gaskets and over torqued the head slightly it held for another two years until I sold it to another poor student.

this sounds like an overheating problem, could be blockage/airlock in cooling system.

do you have "mayo" in the expansion tank?

I'm not sure, the bonnet cable stretched so I've not been able to get under the bonnet for 3 months! I'll have to go down to the garage and ask for a look, not that I know what I'm looking for. But I'll assume a blockage would be cheaper to fix than a head gasket replacement......just a poor University student at the moment so can't afford a few hundred quid!

Had a new fan switch 6 months ago so that is working, problem is I can't take the car on a long journey because it is seriously overheating - won't this just do more damage? Car is mostly used for 40+ mile journies but have 4/5 miles thermostat is in the red and engine making very odd noises!

I'm not sure, the bonnet cable stretched so I've not been able to get under the bonnet for 3 months! I'll have to go down to the garage and ask for a look, not that I know what I'm looking for. But I'll assume a blockage would be cheaper to fix than a head gasket replacement......just a poor University student at the moment so can't afford a few hundred quid!

Had a new fan switch 6 months ago so that is working, problem is I can't take the car on a long journey because it is seriously overheating - won't this just do more damage? Car is mostly used for 40+ mile journies but have 4/5 miles thermostat is in the red and engine making very odd noises!

you certainly aint doing the lump any favours hammering it like that.

To get under the bonnet, get a mate to pull the cable whilst you push down on the bonnet- should pop eventually

To get under the bonnet, get a mate to pull the cable whilst you push down on the bonnet- should pop eventually

We did that for 10 minutes and got bored, do you reckon longer?

Wife and I are just having the debate whether it is worth fixing, we are such a tight budget. Might just spend the money on a banger that has 12 months MOT on it all ready and sell the Skoda for spares/repair. Leave Uni in June so will be working from August/September after a month holiday, so will be getting a new car.

If its been overheating repeatedly, spending lots of time in the red, then I reckon the head will be warped. A new head is not a lot of money though, have a look at garage equipment, skoda parts, leister hot air tools, workshop equipment, ravaglioli

A new head was only £150ish IIRC when I had my favorit.

EDIT: Just had a look. A set of head bolts is £16. The head gasket is £19.99. Coolant would be £7.40, and circa £20 for an oil and filter change. Skimming the head would be around £60-£80 depending where you go, or if needed, a replacement complete head (simple to change) is £209, or a bare head using existing valves would be £149. So best case scenario, £64 plus the price of a Haynes, worst case scenario under £500 for a new head including labour. Surely, depending on the condition of the car, its got to be worth having a go yourself at least!!!

Hope this helps.

We did that for 10 minutes and got bored, do you reckon longer?

Wife and I are just having the debate whether it is worth fixing, we are such a tight budget. Might just spend the money on a banger that has 12 months MOT on it all ready and sell the Skoda for spares/repair. Leave Uni in June so will be working from August/September after a month holiday, so will be getting a new car.

Its all in the bounce:rofl:

getting another car may be a better option if you're pushed for time to investigate-

Head job on this is really easy as there is no camshaft in the way and very little to report. Will be satisfying to do it yourself anyway. One thing i would check though is the rare possibility that the thermostat has broken in a closed position, or that it has disintergated and blocked up the system.

Get head off and take to an engineering outfit then strike a deal check valves look ok and whack it back on. Easy, just make sure you are in a dry area and check all breather hoses aren't blocked and change the oil afterwards.

Well the garage failed to ring me as promised so I chased them up. They maintain the head gasket has gone. They've quoted minimum

Sorry for hijacking this thread! Cheers for all your help, boy now I wish I knew what I was doing under a bonnet but I really incompetant at this kind of stuff.

Where abouts in the country are you?

I once was from a place called Mepal, going by your profile you might know it - near Ely. But now I'm in Oxford. Going to get the bonnet cable fixed then have a go at tackling it, maybe, or whack it on eBay.

I once was from a place called Mepal, going by your profile you might know it - near Ely. But now I'm in Oxford. Going to get the bonnet cable fixed then have a go at tackling it, maybe, or whack it on eBay.

Mepal is in my area!!! I'm responsible for the roads! Shame you aren't still that local, we'd soon whip that head off for you mate.

Small world ain't it?!

I've just picked the car up, not bothering to get the cable fixed at the moment but got them to leave the bonnet open. So here comes my first stupid question, where is the head gasket?

Haynes manual here I come I think........

the skoda heads can be skimmed, you'd be safe taking upto about 0.5mm off of them(which is a lot!!) beyond that it would require the valve seats re-cutting

Sounds like you may have knackered your engine by not getting it attended to quicker. As soon as you get overheating on the dial it needs looking into pronto. Ask for a price to fix, and if its too much scrap it. Not worth the hassle. You can buy a perfectly good felicia for

On the contrary, it went in 2 days after it first overheated (not used in those 2 days either). There was an overheating problem in standing traffic 8 months ago which was put down to the fan switch, replaced and the problem got better.

Think I'm going to give up on the Skoda brand for now and spend my