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We were told it would cost $1,500 to repair. We have already spent over $500 in repairs since December on this car, which has 200,000 miles and is no longer worth the $500 my son's in-laws paid for it. To be blunt--we are tapped out.
My comment wasn't specific to your situation. However, I can well see that the cost of the repair does not make sense for you. With any car, there is an economic decision to be made when major repairs are required.
I have blown head gaskets twice in my driving life. In both cases, the car would start and was drivable. In both cases, it overheated rapidly and in both cases when you took off the oil filler cap there was white froth to be seen. In neither case did I need a new engine.
I've blown three.. Every one of them was between a water jacket and outside of the engine.
Now, my uncle blew one on a Ford truck that was between 2 cylinders and a water jacket with a V-6 and just decided to drive it the 5 miles back home.. He made it.. But his engine WAS junk by that time.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Gerrygal
We were told it would cost $1,500 to repair. We have already spent over $500 in repairs since December on this car, which has 200,000 miles and is no longer worth the $500 my son's in-laws paid for it. To be blunt--we are tapped out.
$1500 is fairly average for a head gasket. I can certainly see not wanting to pour more money into it at this point or at that age. But, the engine isn't 'junk'.. It's just more than you want to pay to repair it. "Junk" pretty much means pull the engine and put a replacement in and I doubt yours would be at that point. You could probably get the $500 back by selling it to someone who could do the head gasket replacement themselves. Oh wait.. You've got the 17 year old Malibu.. Hmm.. The '04 Accord might pull $500 with a blown head gasket.. Not sure about the Malibu..
I'll even accept 'junk' as a broken timing belt that bends the valves. While the lower half of the engine is (likely) still fine.. The cost to do all the other work usually makes it cheaper to replace the engine with a rebuild. Of course, something bent the valves, which is usually the piston.. So that doesn't guarantee that the bottom half is OK.
My comment wasn't specific to your situation. However, I can well see that the cost of the repair does not make sense for you. With any car, there is an economic decision to be made when major repairs are required.
No, it doesn't. Our mechanic, who is very competent and has always been on the up-and-up with us agreed that the car was not worth the cost. It would have been very easy for him to pressure us into having the repairs done, as he owns a small repair shop and stood to make a lot of money from this job. Instead, he was up front with us, which is greatly appreciated.
Sounds like it is toast then. But on the flip side... can you buy another car for $1,500? As in, is it cheaper to fix this car than to replace?
The deal is--we can't fix or buy anything right now. We spent most of what little disposable money we had on new tires, a battery and a broken spark plug wire over the winter, to keep it on the road---and now this. A friend of ours, who owned an auto parts shop told us that the car had probably been a "ticking time bomb" for some time--and there were no guarantees that mechanic was not going to find something else catastrophic when he tore down the engine. We would still be without a car, in addition to all that money.
It's like my DIL said---the car was free and at least we got a year out of it.
No, it doesn't. Our mechanic, who is very competent and has always been on the up-and-up with us agreed that the car was not worth the cost. It would have been very easy for him to pressure us into having the repairs done, as he owns a small repair shop and stood to make a lot of money from this job. Instead, he was up front with us, which is greatly appreciated.
And by being honest and ethical has a good chance of getting your business going forward and getting you to recommend him to friends and acquaintances.
And by being honest and ethical has a good chance of getting your business going forward and getting you to recommend him to friends and acquaintances.
And---since he is the only mechanic around here, he would run an equally good chance of being run out of town if he wasn't. Believe me, I have had my share of bad experiences with mechanics and dealerships who were rotten to the core. My very first car (a '73 Malibu), broke down on me on two weeks after I bought it and multiple trips to the dealership, pleading with them to investigate why the headlights kept dimming every time I stopped (it had a bad alternator). Another time, a dealership took my earnest money and refused to give it back on a car I had traded in for a new one, claiming they needed it to "replace the battery". They lost on that one, after I reported the owner to GM's Regional Offices and threatened to call Detroit if they did nothing. The worst experience I had was on a '91 Lumina Eurosport, which blew a head gasket at 13,000 miles (the warranty ran out at 12,000 miles). Not only did I get soaked for 2K, but the owner of the dealership, a real smart-aleck, made it clear from the getgo he did not want anything to do with my car, since I did not buy it from him (I purchased the car in another state and his dealership was right around the corner from where I worked). He messed around with that car for six weeks, and when I reported him to GM, too, he got a major attitude because I had "messed up his ratings". We were standing underneath my car which was up on a rack, dripping oil. He smirked and said arrogantly: "Ain't nothin' wrong with this car". I ran my finger on the oil pan, stuck it in his face and informed him very coldly: "If you don't want me messing around with your ratings, then fix my car." That got his attention. "Uh, somebody get this lady a paper towel". He fixed it.
Obviously you have no mechanical experience nor have responded to any questions regarding this vehicle.
With that said,
google reviews before searching for mechanics,or anything on that matter.
BBB is also a great source as the best(usually) will be on there.
As far as the head gasket,
unlikely.
Like others said,click represents starter.
Mechanics full of sh**t . There was another thread on here representing the same situation. Timing belt wouldn't click either,you would hear a strain on the engine .
Google the reviews!!!!!!!
I have a 04' Honda Accord that I bought new and has always ran great. I have never overheated, do regular oil changes, etc.... My boyfriend drove to a friends and when he went to leave the car made a "clink" sound and wouldn't start. My local mechanic told me earlier today that I need a head gasket (which cant afford and freaking out) and said he would call around for a price. He calls back and tells me that I need a new engine, although he can't tell me what might be wrong with it, but says that there may be engine damage and replacing the gasket with engine damage would even cost me more. He quoted me $3100.00. OMG!!!!! WTH does this sound right to anyone???? PLEASE ADVISE ASAP!!!!!!!
Please start all over again and have the car towed to a shop that is capable of diagnosis.
The deal is--we can't fix or buy anything right now. We spent most of what little disposable money we had on new tires, a battery and a broken spark plug wire over the winter, to keep it on the road---and now this.
Salvage yards will pay a few hundred for this car. Call ahead and tell them you want to keep your new tires and battery. You can sell these separately or use for your next car.
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