My Car is a '53 MG ZR 1.4 petrol with 75000 miles.
last year the head gasket was replaced as the car was overheating. In the last couple of months I have noticed that the car is loosing approx. 1/2 inch of coolant / week - I have taken the car back to the same garage who undertook the head gasket repair who now say that the liners are faulty and it will cost nearly the price of replacing the whole engine and it's not worth it either to replace the engine or the liners.
I have taken the car to another garage for a second opinion on this and they reckon that the liners were not sealed when the head gasket was done last year and this is the cause of the fault - they can repair this for £500, but will cost £1000 as the car needs a new radiator and exhaust heat shield plus a 75000 mile service and 2 new tyres. However they cannot guarantee this price until they have the engine in pieces so they can see exactly what the fault is so it could be more than £1000 (but he doubts this).
My question is this - my gut feeling is that the first garage had not sealed the liners when the head gasket was done last year and this is the problem, but equally the k - series engine on the car was never a good design, so even if it is repaired properly I could have more hassle further down the line - does anyone agree with this?
Is it worth spending £1000 - £1250 to have the car repaired (the second garage put a 12 month warranty on the repair that they carry out) - the part ex value of the car is roughly £2500?
The first garage say it is pointless spending £1500 on doing the liners as it will be an unreliable repair (my gut feeling is he has put the price up to put me off having it done in case it comes to light that his head gasket repair last year is proved as a bad repair).
I am being fobbed off by one of the garages and I'm not sure which one is fobbing me off (possibly the first garage?).
Please can anyone recommend a good garage for the MG ZR in the Southport area?
Please can anyone advise me the best thing to do - is the MG ZR worth being repaired and if so will it be a reliable repair?
Thank you for your time.
Slight alteration to subject line-PU
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Hi
So where is the water going? into the oil? is it on the dip stick? You say you need a new radiator why is it leaking hence your water loss? The garage that did your head gasket would not have touched the liners or the sealing of them.
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On the k series engine the liners are compressed between the head and the crankshaft ladder, the bolts run from the top to the bottom of the engine, they shouldn't have to be sealed while the headgasket is done unless they have removed them for any reason.
However if the head bolts were not tightened to the correct torque setting this would not have made the tightest seal between the head and block. If this was the case you would certainly have water in your oil. Im not sure how they came to the conclusion that the cylinder liners needed sealing, if your rad is leaking, i would get this replaced and any other cooling leaks done this could be what your real problem is.
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Hi,
Can you tell us if the head was skimmed when the gasket was replaced? If not, this is the most likely cause of water loss. Why does the radiator need replacing - is it leaking?
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These are the views of Robin the Technician with 35 years in the trade. I fix, therefore I am...
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If you drive a MG with a duff radiator, you are almost certainly going to get cyclinder head problems.
I'm sorry but you are driving a car with a badly designed engine with a marginal colling system... and have a faulty radiator.
End result is inevitable imo.
madf
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Curious how they have diagnosed the fault without dismantling engine but it is entirely possible the liners were disturbed when head gasket was done (if crankshaft was turned without liners compressed in place) but wouldhave expected the fault to be virtually immediate if so.
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On this wonderful engine, if the liners are not held in position when the head is lifted, crud will fall into the space in which the lower liner seal is located - causing a leak. This will often happen as soon as the head is moved, before these liner clamps can be fitted.
Throw it away.
659.
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I don't know, the invoice just says that the cylinder head was tested and refaced.
The radiator is corroded, but it does not leak.
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When it says refaced, this usally means it was skimmed. I think you need to have a pressure check done on the cooling ststem to accurately establish where the water is going. you could even have a slow leaking water pump and not notice the leak.
You could just put some Barrs leak (the stuff that looks like a dog turd - any factor will do it) and then sell it. Despite what people may say, Barrs worked for a colleague of mine. His engine had a similar problem and his car continued for a further 3 years before failing its MOT and went to the scrappies.
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These are the views of Robin the Technician with 35 years in the trade. I fix, therefore I am...
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