# Just wondering **URL:** \ **Category:** Maintenance/Repairs\ **Created:** [September 25, 2007, 2:26am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/just-wondering/5108 "2007-09-25T02:26:58Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![coloradokid888](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/coloradokid888/32/354_2.png) [@coloradokid888](https://community.cartalk.com/u/coloradokid888)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2007, 2:26am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/just-wondering/5108/1 "2007-09-25T02:26:58Z")
Can you drive with a cracked block or a blown head gasket? If so will it make it through the winter??? ---
**Author:** ![TJScott2012](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e68b1a/32.png) [@TJScott2012](https://community.cartalk.com/u/TJScott2012)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2007, 2:30am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/just-wondering/5108/2 "2007-09-25T02:30:44Z")
no! never try it, unless you wanna get your engine replaced in about a week, this will likely be an expensive fix. ---
**Author:** ![ok4450](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/e9bcb4/32.png) [@ok4450](https://community.cartalk.com/u/ok4450)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2007, 2:37am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/just-wondering/5108/3 "2007-09-25T02:37:52Z")
So what kind of car, how many miles, and exactly what are the symptoms? A cracked block is highly unlikely; the other is a maybe, depending. ---
**Author:** ![SteveF](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/stevef/32/2_2.png) [@SteveF](https://community.cartalk.com/u/SteveF)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2007, 12:27pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/just-wondering/5108/4 "2007-09-25T12:27:43Z")
A blown head gasket, if it is to be repaired at all, should be fixed promptly. A quick repair should enable you to avoid milling the head and/or engine block. You can often continue to drive when a head gasket first goes bad but you risk scoring the metal at the break. If this goes on for too long the surface may be grooved to the point the engine is no longer repairable. This information comes to you from someone who once made this very mistake. ---
**Author:** ![budd2049](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/77aa72/32.png) [@budd2049](https://community.cartalk.com/u/budd2049)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2007, 12:35pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/just-wondering/5108/5 "2007-09-25T12:35:19Z")
Unless the car is an absolute garbage beater and it’s on its last legs anyways, I wouldn’t try it. It’ll run poorly if at all, and think about how much fun it’d be to get stuck in a blizzard out there somewhere when it finally dies. Chances are it won’t last long anyways, since the internals will get washed with coolant and dilute the oil. That’ll be it for the bearings, so unless you want to eventually replace the engine or pay big bucks for a rebuild, get it fixed now.