The shop that wants $1200 is not a dealer, it’s a local shop with a great reputation. We will be asking friends and neighbors for other recommendations for shops and will be asking those questions of them. We hadn’t actually thought of replacing the engine, but we will look into that, too. How muchshould we expect to pay for the head gasket replacement if we decide to do it? Any ideas on the cost of a good used engine? How do we know that the engine will be good - is there some way to check for cracks before we buy it?