head gasket cost

melbourne

Hi all, I have been getting the run around from a garage that I left my car into for work. It needed the head gasket done, usual others jobs such as skim the head and flush the water system. The engine had never overheated and my oil levels were fine, I just noticed the water going off in the water bottle and getting progressivly thicker so I left it in for work before any real damage was done. Garage is now telling me that the cost will be circa €1300. I will phone around on Monday for a head gasket ki price but going by whats available on line €90 should cover that , even with a days labour (8hrs) I'm struggling to see where the money is going. Oil and filter will be done also but still its crazy.
Car is a 93 Merc 1.8 190 e. Thanks.

peasant

Labour, that's where most of it goes.

It's not just a matter of taking the head off, put in the new gasket and tighten a few screws again.

Lots of bits have to be removed, everything has to be very clean and precise and skimming the head isn't exactly easy either ...and then there would be the issue of correct (engine) timing when putting it all together again.

I'm pretty sure that the labour rate would account for more than one person working on it.

YourCourier.ie

I just got a nixer done by a professional mechanic to replace the head (it was cracked) on a Pajero. Labour amounted to €600.00

If you want his phone number pm me.

mickdw

It shouldnt be that big a job in fairness. 600 to 700 should cover it really including kit & skimming. I dont think the merc engine bay would be the most awkward to work in either and being petrol, there is no injection pump timing to worry about either. I know someone who got a rover head gasket done including skimming for 450.

melbourne

I really thought my days of getting stung on cars were over. This guy did the checks and pulled the head off, we discussed money and he said that I owed him €470 if I wanted the car back, thats with nothing actually fixed. Now the going rate for the same job seems to be between €650 and €800. I have had to leave the car with him despite the fact that I'm getting ripped, as by the time I pay him his €470 and spend the time towing the car around then get somebody else to finish it I will be up to €1200 anyway. I am so fricken angry at the moment, he actually told me to my face that it was €500 for a gasket kit. I have to work so bloody hard for the few quid I get every week, I'll ask for the parts break down when I go back and see what things come in at in writing, thanks for the advice lads and the offer of a recommendation YourCourier.

dodzy

melbourne wrote: »

Garage is now telling me that the cost will be circa €1300

Too expensive. Get further quotes. As previously stated, circa €700 should suffice

melbourne wrote: »

but going by whats available on line €90 should cover that , even with a days labour (8hrs) I'm struggling to see where the money is going

No point in tearing your hair out over this one, the cost is in the labour here. You could apply similar rules to a timing belt quotation. Parts cost feck all, again labour accounts for the bulk of the cost in this situation also.

Mr.Diagnostic

The cost of this job will be very much dictated by the quality of the job.
It sounds like yours is mixing oil into the coolant so a crack test would be essential. Is it getting a full head rebuild, ie valves out, new stem seals, check and lap seats etc? Is it getting new bolts? Does the mechanic use quality gaskets sets or just a cheap head gasket only? If you don’t know the answer to all these questions then you are not in any position to judge the value.
Leaving all that aside, how much time is involved? 4 hours? 6 hours? 8 hours? Try 12 hours. In the real world, I can tell you as someone who has done this job a number of times, it will in reality take 12 hours from start to finish. On top of all this add the dreaded vat.

If its being done right then €1300 is not too expensive.

gofaster_s13

Remember that mercs have timing chains not belts which does make the job more awkward and he could be quoting fo chains tensioners guides etc.

Clone

Hi All,

I recently inherited a 92 Mercedes 190E 1.8 Automatic. I didn't want to sink too much money into the car but knew there were a few minor things that needed to be sorted out.

The car had been lying idle for a while so I left it in to a mechanic to get the minor issues sorted and get the mechanic to give the car a once over.
They came back saying that the Head Gasket is on its way out and that theres water in the oil or vice versa.

I'm waiting to get a quote for the part and work but was wondering what the outcome was for the OP Melbourne. How much did it cost in the end?

anon11

Price sounds about right:) Not the easiest of jobs when a timing chain is involved:)

PCPhoto

Clone wrote: »

Hi All,

I recently inherited a 92 Mercedes 190E 1.8 Automatic. I didn't want to sink too much money into the car but knew there were a few minor things that needed to be sorted out.

The car had been lying idle for a while so I left it in to a mechanic to get the minor issues sorted and get the mechanic to give the car a once over.
They came back saying that the Head Gasket is on its way out and that theres water in the oil or vice versa.

I'm waiting to get a quote for the part and work but was wondering what the outcome was for the OP Melbourne. How much did it cost in the end?

oil in the water could be a broken oil pump

quarryman

Clone wrote: »

Hi All,

I recently inherited a 92 Mercedes 190E 1.8 Automatic. I didn't want to sink too much money into the car but knew there were a few minor things that needed to be sorted out.

The car had been lying idle for a while so I left it in to a mechanic to get the minor issues sorted and get the mechanic to give the car a once over.
They came back saying that the Head Gasket is on its way out and that theres water in the oil or vice versa.

I'm waiting to get a quote for the part and work but was wondering what the outcome was for the OP Melbourne. How much did it cost in the end?

I'd be interested to know the outcome also. The words 'Head Gasket' send shivers down my spine and will try to never buy a car (again) that is prone to its failure.

For a 92 Merc with a few things needing done a HG repair will far outweigh the value of the car. Might be worth breaking it.

Gumbo

just to give an idea on price, my mechanic mate is doing a peogeot 307 this week. head gasket replacement and while the head etc is off he is changing the timing belt and water pump for 470e.

head doesnt need skimming though.

Clone

quarryman wrote: »

For a 92 Merc with a few things needing done a HG repair will far outweigh the value of the car. Might be worth breaking it.

I got a quote back.
All the work needed to get it running reliably including head gasket is coming in at about half the value of the car e600 approx. For a car I got for free I'm happy enough to pay that to get it on the road.

I believe the car is solid and I should get some mileage out of this repair. (fingers crossed) Anybody have experience running old Mercs?? maybe a topic for a different thread.

Mr Benevolent

Out of curiousity, why is the HG one of the most common things to go on an engine? Bad OEM gaskets? Inherent weaknesses in the engine?

trad

I ran a Merc non franchise repair shop in the mid 90's. Then to do a cylinder head properly (head skimmed, valves done, new water pump, possibly timing chain, oil, filters etc) was about £700, thats pounds 10 years ago, so while it sounds a lot, it's probably barely in line with inflation

quarryman

Clone wrote: »

I got a quote back.
All the work needed to get it running reliably including head gasket is coming in at about half the value of the car e600 approx. For a car I got for free I'm happy enough to pay that to get it on the road.

I believe the car is solid and I should get some mileage out of this repair. (fingers crossed) Anybody have experience running old Mercs?? maybe a topic for a different thread.

€600 all in is a great price. definately worth hanging onto it.

mondeo

Confab wrote: »

Out of curiousity, why is the HG one of the most common things to go on an engine? Bad OEM gaskets? Inherent weaknesses in the engine?

Most cars will do well over 120k miles before a head gasket will give up. Several years of heat and continued use will eventually wear out the gasket and create a leak, if a car has had a driver who drove the stones out of it most of its life then the gasket will go quicker. I had a Mazda 323 before with 65k on the clock and the hg went and I was very surprised as their ultra reliable cars. I currently have a lancer with 143k on the clock and it still has the original gasket, also a 520i with 134k on it's original gasket aswell.

The only cars I am aware of that have common hg failures are Rovers, Fiats & Alfas. A friend of mine ran a small garage in 2004 and the Fiats were very common with this sort of thing.

Sounds a reasonable price seeing as a timing chain is involved makes the job more difficult. Mercedes are not the easiest to work on

Mycroft H

PCPhoto wrote: »

oil in the water could be a broken oil pump

I'm fairly sure the 190 has a oil pressure gauge beside the speedo.


A failed oil pump would show up as low oil pressure

anon11

Id love to know how a broken oil pump would cause oil to get in the coolant:rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes:

sogood

mickdw wrote: »

It shouldnt be that big a job in fairness. 600 to 700 should cover it really including kit & skimming. I dont think the merc engine bay would be the most awkward to work in either and being petrol, there is no injection pump timing to worry about either. I know someone who got a rover head gasket done including skimming for 450.

That wasnt done in Ballyduff by any chance?

essdee

Hi there,

I just left a 00 Opel Astra (hatchback) in for a service with an authorised dealer - 88,000 miles. Garage got back to me to say that the HG is gone and that it will take €1,300 to repair. Not worth even servicing the car, they said, unless getting it done.

Does anyone know if there is a HG problem generally with Astras?

The car was driven carefully, mostly by me -I was the only owner.

Is it worth bringing to an unauthorised garage to repair or is it time to say Adios and head to the Credit union?

tommy1979

350 euro to get the head gaskit done on a 02 clio

Mr Benevolent

essdee wrote: »

Hi there,

I just left a 00 Opel Astra (hatchback) in for a service with an authorised dealer - 88,000 miles. Garage got back to me to say that the HG is gone and that it will take €1,300 to repair. Not worth even servicing the car, they said, unless getting it done.

Does anyone know if there is a HG problem generally with Astras?

The car was driven carefully, mostly by me -I was the only owner.

Is it worth bringing to an unauthorised garage to repair or is it time to say Adios and head to the Credit union?

No way. Opel garages are a ripoff - my dad was charged €285 for a service on a Meriva the other day. They took the rear pads off and cleaned them - and now the brakes squeal every time he touches them. It's an old Astra, you'll get an independent garage to do it for half that.

Clone

Definately get a few quotes, Independants will generally be able to give you a lower quote.

The only reason youd want to stay with a dealer is to keep the dealer service history but not sure if that is worth it depending on the car.

Slidey

PCPhoto wrote: »

oil in the water could be a broken oil pump

Really???

And pray tell, how a broken oil pump would manage to get oil into the water jacket then?