Brown Colour on oil filler cap
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#905973
(In Topic #107125)
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Brown Colour on oil filler cap
see pic below
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Old Timer
Would be worth doing a compression check, as well as trying to work out if the engine is burning any oil or coolant, just to rule out head gasket failure.
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Local Hero
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Local Hero
a compression guage.
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How much am i looking at for repair to the gasket ?
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Old Timer
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the thing is the car runs fine - temperature sits at around the middle, heaters blow nice warm air, car runs fine
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Local Hero
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Local Hero
DubPartz
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would a garage charge a fortune to repair ?
is there a proven method for 100% knowing if its the head gasket ?
Kwik Tit would not change the oil while i was there, should i change the oil myslef and see if it goes back to the funny light brown colour ?
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Old Timer
There's no one test, but a combination of tests you can do. You need to do a compression test as mentioned, and it would be worth checking the coolant for exhaust gasses too.
If the head is warped, it will definitely need skimming, though it's probably sensible to do so anyway once it's off.
Take it to a small, independent garage that you know has been around for a while, they'll be much more up front that kwik tits and more willing to help you out. Tell them what the problem is, and ask them to do both of the above, then take it from there.
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Local Hero
if you can't find one of them it may (i say "may" because it is what i would do) be worth taking it to an independant garage (not quickpits) and just asking them to check it as you want to do the work "YOURSELF".
they are less likley to try and pull a fast one if they don't think they are getting anything else from it.
and as for the cost…..well…..get lots of QUOTES, NOT estimates.
could be anything from ?300 to ?600.
i was quoted about ?700 for the corsa but they also would replace the cam belt and kit as well as the water pump. etc.
i done it myself with all original vauxhall parts for ?400.
and i replaced everything i touched, including the battery (wasn't included in the price from the garage.)
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can the head warp so bad it can not be skimmed and needs replacing ?
also can the garage quote the work without taking the cylinder head off ?
and finally
can a garage do the work in a day ? really need the car
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Local Hero
gixxermenace said
can the head warp so bad it can not be skimmed and needs replacing ?
i suppose it can, but if the car is running fine i wouldn't have thought its that bad, it could be a cracked head to causing the leakage, but even that can be fixed.
they can quote for the work that they are going to do, they usually say it will be between ?X if it al goes well, or ?x ifwe get loads of stuck bolts etc.gixxermenace said
also can the garage quote the work without taking the cylinder head off ?
gixxermenace said
and finally
can a garage do the work in a day ? really need the car
a day shouldn't be that hard if they get ALL the bits berfore they start.
i think i would be able to do my own on my 1.8 8v carb in a day. thats by myself and i'm not a mechanic.
hope this helps
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Local Hero
gixxermenace said
sounds good, got a good local garage who has done lots of head gaskets. Dont mind paying if it keeps the little mk1 clipper on the road.
can the head warp so bad it can not be skimmed and needs replacing ?
also can the garage quote the work without taking the cylinder head off ?
and finally
can a garage do the work in a day ? really need the car
Unless the engine has severly overheated I don't see how the head can get warped and would have thought you could get away with just fitting a new gasket but I think garages often urr on the side of caution and get them skimmed anyway. If they do then a thicker gasket ought to be fitted, otherwise the compression will be greater.
I think most garages will have the skimming done by a specialist as they have the machines to do it
DubPartz
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