Should a head gasket fail twice?

tbz_ck

tbz_ck

tbz_ck

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The missus' mk2 Punto (spit) has blown a head gasket AGAIN. The low oil warning light came on suddenly and the car began to judder and lose power. Instead of stopping immediately the missus drives for 10 mins trying to reach home (and fails). The engine is not seized thankfully but I'm not optimistic.

Our usual mechanic (who is very good normally) always sends the head off to be skimmed and then takes the job on from when it arrives back.

Now I'm under the impression that once its been replaced it shouldn't go again if it has been done properly. So who do I shout at, the mechanic or the monkey that skimmed the head?

Note to self......NEVER EVER BUY A PUNTO EVER AGAIN :mad:

That said the RAC are excellent. Bought the full monty package and the missus has a nice new Ford Focus for three days free of charge..... :)
 
It could be one or the other really. It might be worth taking the head off and checking if the surface is true, if it is then I'd start pointing fingers at the mechanic. Maybe he needs a new torque wrench.
 
my wifes punto went twice even after the head was skimmed after 1st time :/
 
Hard to say who to blame really. I would ask the mechanic how thorough his job was. Did he fit new head studs for starters, How did the block look ? Did it seem like the job went well ? Did you re torque the head studs after 1k miles ? Is the rest of your cooling system working properly ? Is it leaking oil making the lump run hot ?
Lots to consider really but as a person that thinks he knows motors i Never keep a car that has had a Head gasket gone/done, Especially a Derv, I know yours is not a derv.
 
He did retorque after 1k miles. I noticed it began leaking a small amount of oil and asked him to tighten it.

The rest of the cooling system seemed fine. It wasn't leaking water, but had started leaking oil again over the last 5k or so.

I have NEVER taken a head off and don't intend to in all honestly. I pay a mechanic to look at all that so I shouldn't need to. I do routinely check fluid levels and brakes etc so I'm not a complete "MechMuppet" (tm) ;) .......
 
As said Puntos' are known for it, I have a mate that makes a point of buying cheap Puntos with blown Headgaskets for a quick & regular money spinner.
Get your mechanic to do it again & sell it on sharpish.
 
tbz_ck said:
Instead of stopping immediately the missus drives for 10 mins trying to reach home (and fails).
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made me lol! :)

Same with my mum. Phones to tell me the water/heat warning light came on "and it feels like it has just died" in the Range Rover V8. I tell her to pull over and wait for help, as I wouldn't like to run that for too long without water/gaskets. But no, she's too scared to stop on the motorway so makes it another whopping 1200 yards. :rolleyes:

women! :p
 
I have to laugh at this!

Before i opend i thought "yes....if it's a fiat or a rover".

Unfortunately my mate has a punto....56k on it and it's going to need it's 3rd HG :(

I think the newer Fiats are ok - but the olders not with a bargepole!
 
Had an S reg that had it's HG done at 60k, last I heard it was still on that HG at 100k.

TBH I suspect it's the quality of the workmanship when it's replaced - with such cheap old cars it's not surprising the job doesn't get done properly all the time.

I've no idea if the mechanic or engineer is at fault but I presume you paid the garage, not the guy who skimmed the head? So your contract is with the garage only.

how many miles has it done since the last failure anyway?
 
To the older Punto owners, how many of you have had sumps replaced? We sell loads at work, I would say the punto HG is the 2nd best seller after the K-series head gasket.
 
It depends where it failed the first time. The normal cause of HG failure on these engines is through idiot owners, not a design flaw ala K series themostat.

If you do not use anti freeze in the cooling system, and don't change it when the manual says that you shuold then it corrodes the water ways in the head. I've seen a fair few that have gone between the waterways and fire ring on number 1.

If this is why and where it blew the first time, and where it has gone again - then it's dodgy work. It shouldn't have had just the gasket done, it should've had the head repaired (or more realistically binned and replaced with a second hand one ~£35).

He should've used new head bolts as they are stretch bolts, however - they are not required - can re-use them once and still be fine with them.

These engines do not need re-torqueing after 1k miles. Also if it you saw it leaking oil, i suspect that would've been the cam cover (very top cover on the engine) gasket not the head gasket.

Oh, and the oil warning light means low oil pressure (not level).. which means dip the clutch and turn the bloody engine off. Make the missus understand that one.
 
should it fail twice - no.

Could it fail twice & many more times, quite possible depending on a whole host of circumstances. :)
 
I agree with everything GEX has said...also about the oil....nowhere to leak from as regards to HGasket...but could have be Cam cover or cam oil seals neither would cause head failure in long or short term.

How many miles have you driven on the last HGasket and what kind of driving.
 
Telescopi said:
TBH I suspect it's the quality of the workmanship when it's replaced
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Exactly. If the original cause of the failure and any consequential damage has not been identified and corrected then quite plainly the fault will recur. Anyone with a socket set can slap a new head gasket on, it takes a bit more experience and skill to do the job properly.
 
Telescopi said:
Had an S reg that had it's HG done at 60k, last I heard it was still on that HG at 100k.

TBH I suspect it's the quality of the workmanship when it's replaced - with such cheap old cars it's not surprising the job doesn't get done properly all the time.

I've no idea if the mechanic or engineer is at fault but I presume you paid the garage, not the guy who skimmed the head? So your contract is with the garage only.

how many miles has it done since the last failure anyway?
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I'm trying to find the old receipt. At a guess I would say between 12k and 15k miles.

How does the missus drive?......next question :rolleyes:

It gets serviced on time every time to be honest and there has been plenty of antifreeze in the coolant system. **** car that it is I've diligently made sure it has been looked after during our ownership of it, not least because I don't want to endanger the missus! We've just had some seriously bad luck with this one:

HGF (now twice)
Brake failure when the brake line ruptured
Battery died
New hubs and bolts for wheels (some egit probably at kwik fit or the like crossthreaded practically all of the wheel bolts)
Water pump (started to sing like a canary when cold....)
A million headlight bulbs (I kid you not..... :rolleyes:)

etc
etc

It gets fixed, it gets sold, we move onwards and upwards.....C'est la vie :p
 
*Moangroan* said:
I agree with everything GEX has said...also about the oil....nowhere to leak from as regards to HGasket...but could have be Cam cover or cam oil seals neither would cause head failure in long or short term.

How many miles have you driven on the last HGasket and what kind of driving.
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Answered above. You are right about where the leak was thinking about it.

I've looked long and hard to find a decent trustworthy mechanic after loads of them tried to take the mick and play me for a fool. Mike the mechanic (stop sniggering at the back ;)) is a decent bloke that knows his stuff. If he made a **** up then I'm prepared to accept that given his decent track record with all of our cars to now.
 
They should not FAIL twice like that. I'd find a new mechanic.


Also worth noting, it is possible to fit a gasket on the wrong way round, doing so will block an oil channel.
Edit: Actually that's not worth mentioning at all, not the symptom you mentioned.
 
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