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okay then , the story so far,
car overheating,
looked into it, suspected water pump(alleg common prob)
changed water pump, timing belt and tensioner - £170 bucks Lovely!
NOW the feckin thing is still over heating and using every bit of water it gets! temp gauge rises fast! DAM fast!
garage says prob head gasket! Cost £250+ (my est)
what you all think?

COST OF FIXING - Vs - COST OF 16V ENGINE

Go Mr Rankin, 16V it!!

please note i am not taking in any consideration for the cost I jst no how much he wants a 16v!

Well.. took me 2 1/2 hours and £7.50 to change the headgasket on my mk2.. let's say it takes you twice as long as that and maybe double the money as you have to fumble around with the mk4's slightly more complex engine.. that gives you and afternoon's work and £15 spent
If you'd rather not tackle it yourself, I'd suggest at least getting a firm quote from the garage, see how much they'd want. If it's more than a 16v engine would cost, go for it

its okay, the garage was no match for ythe years of experience that all the guys in this site and porka have!

i checked the thermostat,
it semmed to be, em how u say? FUKED!
replaced that (£18.33),
that seems to have solved the problemo!
top and bottom pipes are hot and the thing sits perfecly at 90 degrees C!
magic!
only 1 prob is the wee red temp lite on dash has come on once,
switched the engine off back on and it was away!
guess there wasn't enough collent in it!
there is now btw!

Have you checked for mayo?

A white creamy substance on your oil filler cap or in your coolant?

If you have this, your head gasket has gone.

So bin the 8V and fit a 16V

all that and they never looked into the thermostat?

didn't even put a hand on the radiator to see if that was remaining stony cold whilst the engine boiled?

damn

tell me about it mate!
I am the dick of all dicks!

think yer garage needs a slappin for that anyway!

like the dicks that did my first service - couldnt figure out what the persistent misfire was that developed after i'd taken it in, changed the spark plugs twice (whilst i sat there 2 hours, with my car full of all my uni gear) .... a couple weeks later it transpiring it was the crappy budget leads they'd swapped my originals for.

needless to say, i havent been back.
well, did try them for a quote on sorting my gearbox and fuel tank out, just to see what they'd say. not impressed either time.