Had to sorn my golf

Hi guys ive had to sorn my golf today after having none stop problems with it for the last few months .ive put nearly a £1000 pounds in it over the last few months and now the cylinder head gasket has gone again?? It was done with a full head skim new head bolts full gasket set etc etc 13k ago.what am i doing wrong ? Its my daily driver and only vehicle. So it works for a living, ive done 16k in it in 2 years. As i bought it in 2018 april. The guy wanted £3500 but i got it for £3000. It is a 1990 1.8 carburettor version cabriolet automatic. It came with 121k on the clock and full sportline interior with door cards and everything. Original bbs 15inch ra wheels looked the business. I was more than happy to hand over 3k as id wanted one since i was 17 .when i got rid of my tin top .since the purchase in 2018 ive put another 4k in it on parts etc .apart from a respray theres no stone ive left unturned. So what am i doing wrong?
Its had
Stainless steel manifold
Stainless steel full group n exhaust
Head gasket done
Head skimmed
New head bolts
New gaskets
Powder coated rocker cover with gasket
New plugs
New competition leads
New distributor
New cap
New rotor arm
New coil
New engine wiring
New starter motor
New alternator
New water pump
New hoses
Powder coated radiator cowl
New uprated 250w fan
New thermostat
New weber 32/34dtml carburettor
New flanges
New manual choke
Fully dynod to 106bhp
New ramair filter
New oil every 2k
New fuel filter every 3 months
New cam belt
New v belt
New radiator and temp sensor
Timing checked and set
New omp upper strut bar
New wheel bearings x 4
New stub axles rear
New goodridge stainless steel brake hoses
New hydraulic bonnet struts
New copper break pipes
New front crossed drilled and ventilated discs
New front calipers
New rear drum set including all new fittings
New ebc brake pads and shoes
New front wishbones including all new fittings rubbers and ball joints
New stainless steel braided fuel hoses throughout
New meyle fuel pump
New transmission fluid
New coolant bottle and lid
New coolant
New 9inch mk2 golf brake servo
New meyle 22mm master cylinder
Meticulously looked after and valeted ????
There is loads of little bits ive missed out .new stereo speakers etc
New chrome window winders
New scraper seals all round £80
Even vw chrome dust caps lol.
But you get the general picture ive basically replaced everything that i could for new quality parts .
Guys im no expert but what am i doing wrong here ? I have now put 4k in it in 2 years and simply cannot justify having the head done again. The garage who did it ive used for 25 years. They said if i want i could get the engine and head independently checked and if theve done it wrong they'll fix it for free. Problem is they said it woukd not have done 13k if they would have done the head wrong ?? Guys i need opinions here .my pride and joy is in my garage on sorn .??




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Here she is

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What's wrong with the head gasket?
Is there water in the oil…. if so it could be the oil cooler and not the head gasket.

Hi mark thanks for your reply always appreciated. Theres mayonnaise in the filler cap .no compression losing tons of water and blowing plumes out of the exhaust. And wont tick over .theres no oil cooler on it mark ???

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Oh that does not sound good….

I guess the gasket has blown by one of the head water feeds and it's getting into the cyinder…

Gutted for you fella, cars can be very annoying sometimes.. As you have put a lot of time and money into, save up and get it fixed, it will be worth it in the long run as the prices of these cars can only go up.

 

Well im not making any rash decisions on it mark ive a lovely warm garage where it can live under a sheet until i decide what to do with it .it will cost me nothing to keep it .and as you say they can only go up.im actually thinking in time about an engine swap ? Maybe something newer and more reliable. As that engine just seems to have had enough ?

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Not a pretty sight

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Can you see anything if you shine a torch down the spark plug hole?

I haven't actually done that mark .i just limped it home and put it away i was depressed lol

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If you've got a nice warm garage to work in, why not take the head off yourself at your leisure, then you will see for yourself where the gasket may have failed.  It's not actually that big a job and there are lots of helpful people on the forum to get you through it.

It's a lovely looking Mk1, definitely worth keeping and repairing.

I'd be banging a 20vt in it. 



I converted an auto mk2 golf 1.6 to 20vt in 5 weeks for under 2k. 

Thanks pistol thats pretty much what im thinking .think its just lack of confidence to do the head mate. But as you say theres lots of help around .i shouldn't need the head skimming again should i after only 13k ??? Thanks for your reply always appreciated

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Thanks roach ive heard and read a lot about that engine .i assumed it transformed the car ?

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To skim or not to re-skim that is the question.

A head gasket Failure can be a issue with the head being warped again now, or not.  The only turely way to be sure is to have it checked, and that would mean taking it off and running it to a shop of you don't have the means to do it yourself.

I would also check the Cylinder walls after cleaning with magna-see to verify that there aren't any cracks as well as having the head looked at for a passage crack.

I had a 81 Diesel that would blow through head gaskets every 6 months after about 130K.  I had ti checked for warpage the first two times and the head wasn't warped at all….  

Speed forward about 10 years and with the advent of the interweb I found that I had the loss of bite on the head bolts.  

I had to sell the ride, but I regretted it, one owner 330K on engine and tranny….but I found that if I had stopped using new bolts and switched to the ARP racing studs that have a longer bite, and locktite on the studs…I wouldn't of had that issue again as the ARP are re-usable, and that after 500 miles all I had to do was to re-tighten or Check-Torque the head….with but the cost of a new valve cover gasket… but as a side note I got really really good at replacing head gaskets on a Diesel and it usually only took me 3 hours to do it from start to finish…. I did re-check torque on them after about 1000 miles, but alas it would blow again a few months later.

So I would remove the head and have it checked for warpage…. If it isn't warped, then using a straight edge I would verify that your block isn't the issue, then use a ARP stud kit and be done with it.  Cleaning up the mess is usually the hardest part.

Thanks for your reply briano always appreciated. I trusted the engineering shop last time to check the whole head and they did .pressure tested it skimmed it etc ??? I do intend to pull the head off when i get chance and take lots of photos .and put them on here for you guys to give a verdict. Im sorry briano .i dont know what arp bolts are mate ??? Il need all the advice i can get when i do the head mate ..
In the meantime ive been on the lookout for a little runaround
Got a little honda civic 03 plate been well looked after 76k on the clock £600 no glamour but hopefully it will be reliable???

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Deano777 said

Thanks for your reply briano always appreciated. I trusted the engineering shop last time to check the whole head and they did .pressure tested it skimmed it etc ??? I do intend to pull the head off when i get chance and take lots of photos .and put them on here for you guys to give a verdict. Im sorry briano .i dont know what arp bolts are mate ??? Il need all the advice i can get when i do the head mate ..
In the meantime ive been on the lookout for a little runaround
Got a little honda civic 03 plate been well looked after 76k on the clock £600 no glamour but hopefully it will be reliable???

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If its a Honda it should run like a watch…  and at £600 it sounds like you have got your head on all right (but not the Golf's head - no pun intended ha ha) So take your time and don't dispare as your cabby
is lovely, and it shouldn't be too hard to fix.
Marcus.

Thanks for your reply marcus .yes it runs great .will give me some breathing space to work on my cabby .im sulking at the mk1 right now .but i dont want to give up on it .ive put so much time and effort not to mention money into it,, seems wrong to sell it .or leave it to go to rack and ruin.  Ive covered it up with a breathable car cover. And its staying warm in the garage until i motivate myself to tackle it….

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Hi Deano777, sorry to hear about ur car it is a very nice looking car. You have mentioned that you had a new water pump put on it. Did the new water pump have plastic fins on it as they wear out and cause problems with water circulation.

Hi 0337 sorry I don't know your name. It was a meyle full waterpump with a 100000 mile guarantee? So i doubt it mate ??? What do you think???Regards Dean

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I would just take the head off complete with manifolds, check there is no corrosion, clean it all thoroughly and put it back together with a new gasket.
Most importantly do it yourself and take your time, you know it's done well then.