How long can I go...

[Tim]

...with a blown head gasket?

I noticed 2 ominous signs in my new '93 today:

Oil in the coolant, and the hose from the top of the radiator to the thermostat is dry, which would explain the non-functioning temp gauge.

The car runs fine and I didn't notice any problems until I took the radiator off this evening.

So for those of you who have had blown head gaskets, how long did your motor hold up? I want to drive this car until it drops, then throw in a B6.


Regards,

Tim

[krustyguitar]

Head Gasket

My buddy from work with a 92 cavalier 2.2 has driven his car for 2 years with a blown head gasket. Its not a bad blow though he's just getting a little coolant in the combustion chambers so it runs rough for about 2 min and then cleans itself out. Mind you this guy is a very experienced mechanic who likes the thrill of driving a time bomb, he could probably change the gasket in about 2 hours but he chooses to live dangerously.... to each his own

[b3 madness]

Re: How long can I go...

I want to drive this car until it drops, then throw in a B6.


Regards,

Tim

Well if you continue to drive it with the bad head gasket, then you will be doing your B6 swap in no time at all!!

But seriously, you can pull the head and have it resurfaced and replace the head gasket if you are not ready to take the plunge in to the engine swap. It would not be to costly and can be done easily in a day.

Good luck,

Jim

[Tim]

Re: How long can I go...

Thanks for the suggestion.

I think the gasket was already blown when I bought the car, so who knows how long it's been like this.

I just sunk a chunk of change into this car (new body parts and windshield) and I don't really want to spend more money on it right now.

Plus it's my only running Festiva and my truck gets poor mileage around town.

So hopefully the engine will hold out until I get another Festy going, or I'll be back to driving the truck...


Regards,

Tim

I want to drive this car until it drops, then throw in a B6.


Regards,

Tim

Well if you continue to drive it with the bad head gasket, the you will be doing your B6 swap in no time at all!!

But seriously, you can pull the head and have it resurfaced and replace the head gasket if you are not ready to take the plunge in to the engine swap. It would not be to costly and can be done easily in a day.

Good luck,

Jim

[anomoly40]

Well the first one lasted about 2 months being driven highway only. It was FI.
The second one lasted about 3 weeks being driven around town. It was Carb'd and Not sure if fan worked right.

In other words, it's a gamble.

[dahodges]

I've put 40,000 miles on mine. Think the head gasket was bad then but don't know.
I'm like you. Engine has 200k plus. Want a rebuilt engine to do a weekend replacement before it dies. My truck only gets 16mph. And I drive a thousand miles a week.

[TRUCKtiva]

My truck only gets 16mph.

Ha Ha I thought this was funny!! I think Tim's truck only gets 16 MPH too!! Ha Ha!! J/K

[Tim]

Ha Ha I thought this was funny!! I think Tim's truck only gets 16 MPH too!! Ha Ha!! J/K

That's pretty funny... and accurate! :shock: :lol:

It's probably the slowest vehicle I've ever driven.

[Sho_tyme_psi]

Drove it over a month sounded like a desiel but still ran great.

[funky technician]

man, your fine, if you only knew how my engine is running right now, it baffels me considering that I know how much is wrong with it...... 8) ...............these motors can run with sand for oil.. :lol: ...don't actually do that....... :shock:

[25Horseplay]

There were headgasket gasket kits on Ebay that were really cheap. Might look into that.

[Tim]

There were headgasket gasket kits on Ebay that were really cheap. Might look into that.

Definately worth looking into.

I rebuilt a B3 a year ago and it cost me like $200 for everything.

[solatare]

if there wasnt any water in the oil id say drive it with an eye on the temp gauge and a jug of water, but bearings dont like coolant, so if it was me id surface the head an replace the gasket since its really inexpensive for a festy

[skeeters_keeper]

i got a FULL gasket set (seals, top and bottom end gaskets, valve stem seals, etc..) for the B6 for like $40, and the stuff seems to be of good qual, though i havn't installed it yet... i'm sure if your just getting a festy head gasket you can find something cheaper than that...

[Hot_Wheels]

on my car from cali that i have im not sure if it had a blown head gasket or the over heating caused to a warped head at any rate the car was going through water like crazy maybe it was leaking by the water pump im not sure i really didnt care because i was doing a b6t swap but anyways with just watching the gauge and adding water every time i drove it, it lasted a month. the final end of the car was very quiet it just lost power and when i cranked it, it spun freely im thinking the T belt snapped from it over heating so hot i had the engine but i never took it apart i still wonder what went on it.