I am looking at my second head gasket replacement. I overheated and cracked it last year and then again this year. A valve seat popped open from the crack/heat issue. I had a radiator and water pump replaced and then during pressure testing, the head gasket was found to be compromised. My question is, do you think it is worth it to spend the $1100-1200 (at least) on this repair, or go with the cash for clunkers trade in option with a dealer?
Make sure the head and block surfaces are checked for flatness if you decide to do the replacement.
Without knowing the year, mileage, engine, maintenance history, overall condition, and functionality for your use of the vehicle it’s impossible to guess.
My knee-jerk response is to go for the cash for clunkers. But of I knew more about eth vehicle I might change my mind.
thank you to both responses. i did go ahead and order the new head cylinder from a jeep wrecker in sacramento. it is $250 with shipping. i found one in Pennsylvania for $150, but with shipping i figured the savings would be negligible. i also looked at used cars to lease. the cash for clunkers thing is just for new cars i think, which i can’t really afford. the mechanic will have it checked to make sure it is all flat. the car has 147,000 miles, its been used mainly for local driving, up to two hour drives, but it did start getting hot when taking it on 90 min. drives last year through lots of traffic commuting. then i had the first head cylinder job done, it cost quite a lot as i recall, around three thousand dollars. now i seem to have done it again. ok – thanks for your time.
Thanks for the follow up.
Keep us posted on how it goes.