Is it worth fixing?

mcbobbyb

Hi. My sister in law has an opel astra 2006. Last week it overheated and now the head gasket gone. She must have warped it when it overheated. She has someone charging 1000 to fix the head and change timing belt. She wants to know is it worth fixing. He'll guarantee the head for 6 months. Any thoughts. Could end up being a money pit.

Hal1

That sounds like a lot for a head gasket repair. All the garage is doing is removing the head and sending it away to a machinist to skim it. Have you tried any other garages? It might work out cheaper to replace the engine.

mcbobbyb

Hal1 wrote:

That sounds like a lot for a head gasket repair. All the garage is doing is removing the head and sending it away to a machinist to skim it. Have you tried any other garages? It might work out cheaper to replace the engine.

No it's my sister in laws car. She's asking what I think. What would the going rate be for a head gasket on an open Astra 1.6 petrol

Toyotafanboi

Hal1 wrote: »

That sounds like a lot for a head gasket repair. All the garage is doing is removing the head and sending it away to a machinist to skim it.

You make it sound very simplistic.

They've already invested time diagnosing the fault, they will have to remove the head which takes a number of hours, they will have to organise getting it machined etc, while the head is off they will have to verify that the block is intact, strip and flush the cooling system and remove oil residue, flush and drain engine oil also, fit a new timing kit, reassemble all of above.

You wouldn't see 7-8 working hours going into it, if a reasonable indy chages €50 per hour, thats €400. Before you buy new coolant and water pump, thermostat, engine oil and oil filter, timing chain kit, head gasket, head bolts and ancillaries, there's another €3-400 there.

And that's before the machine shop want a few quid for the skim and pressure testing etc.

OP, if the car has been good to you it may be no harm spending €1k on it as it will ensure the car is good for another few years to come. You could just as easily buy another money pit if you are only looking at spending a couple of thousand on a replacement.

737max

https://www.clickmechanic.com/price-estimates/vauxhall-opel/astra-h/head-gasket-replacement

UK site but time estimate of 5 hours for an Astra H

timing belt change adds practically no additional time as you have the head off anyhow so timing would have to be redone.
16v engine timing belt change requires some more parts.

€1000 sounds a bit high but it isn't a 400 euro job either.

With those jobs done then the repair is an investment in a car which will probably have another good four to five years in it(assuming no other big jobs are looming).

mcbobbyb

Yeah like I said its my sister in law's car. She was told it would take three days to get it back as it had to go off to be tested. I told her that for a 1000 at least she knows the car. Buying one for a couple of grand is pot luck.
It's got around 150,000 on the clock. Hopefully it won't need the clutch replaced anytime soon.

biko

Timing belt itself is a few hundred so getting that done and car back on the road for a grand is a good deal.
Have mech change brittle hoses and other small things while he is in there and car should be good for many more years, provided the head holds.

colm_mcm

Presume this is diesel. The petrol has a chain AFAIK. Might a tad high as the belt will be off for the head gasket repair anyway.

737max

no. toothed belt according to wikipedia

mcbobbyb

It's a 1.6 petrol

brembo26

1.4 of that era is chain to my knowledge

mcbobbyb

I'm not sure maybe it's a 1.4