head gasket????

[ritz93]

i think i blew my head gasket today.
1. coolant was low added some. did not notice white smoke from tailpipe ,but could have been.
2. driving on the highway temp. gauge shot way up around 240+.
3. put on the heat full blast, ice cold started to pull over and she died.
4. popped the hood steam coming from the throttle body, air filter, hard to see any where else.
5. coolant in the throttle body, and on the oil dipstick.
oil looked good that morning and the heat work fine as well.

any suggestions on changing head gaskets yourself, or any help at all.
downed blazer owner, not having fun.

114 thousand miles 1996 s10 4.3

[BlazerLT]

Buy a Haynes or a Chilton repair manual and get ready for some fun and two days worth of work if you want to do it yourself.

[ritz93]

whats up blazer Lt,

yeah it looks like its gonna be great. let me ask you, is it necessary to have my heads machined, if i'm taking everything out any way?

[wolfox]

Well, before you take them off to the shop to be machined, do a basic check for warpage. The technique for doing so is in your Chilton's book. (Who'd of thought?) Good luck - this is a job that if done yourself will save you at least $800.

[ritz93]

i talked to a guy today, he was saying that i may be better off putting in a new (used 90 thousand miles) engine, 2200.00 with the tow, tax, and life time warranty.
the head gasket job i got quotes around 1000.00 and 1250.00. i think i might go for the engine. what do you guys think?????????????

[BlazerLT]

It is up to you but I think the head gasket job is better than yanking the whole motor.

Have the heads checked by two different shops just to keep them honest.

One might bullshit you to convince you on the motor replacement.

[ritz93]

yeah i was thinking that too, but this guy was saying the bottom end of the engine could go real soon , never know? is what he was getting at. i dont know man if its worth it at all to fix, maybe get somthing else. real disgusted with chevy right now. i would do the motor, but what if the tranny goes in a month? blazer Lt, i'm standing here besides myself. i would have the heads checked by two different shops, thats a good idea thanks.

[molehole]

I wouldn't change an engine with 114,000 miles for one with 90,000 miles. There is no guarantee with something like that will work perfectly even with a warranty. 4.3 motors are soild as a rock and as long as you maintain them, they will last indefinately. I think it would be better just to fix the engine that is in there because you never know what problems you could run into with another engine and how everything hooks up. Just my 2 cents- molehole

[BlazerLT]

Exactly, 20,000miles difference and he is saying your engine is about to pack it in and the new one he is putting in isn't just as bad or even worse?

Stick with your engine and flop the head gaskets on it.

I would have it done somewhere else bro, this guy seems really shady and I would not put it past him to fuck something purposefully up to back his claim.

[quaddriver]

A *new* from GM engine with 3 yr 75K warranty is about 1600-1700, labor for a blahzer is about 400-500. You will need about $200 in accoutrements.

[ritz93]

i'm thinking about it.

its driving me nuts, i'm gonna talk to another mehcanic, dont trust that other guy like blazer Lt said. i'll let you all know whats up in a few days.

[TuBlaz]

I say go for the head job. What do you have to loose but a little time, and a few bucks vs an engine swap, which = more time & $$$.

My first head job was about three years ago. It was on my my 1988
Buick LeSabre T-Type (3800 motor). My friend and I did it within 3 to 4 hours. Never replaced the heads, as it wasn't needed. If you plan on keeping the truck, going for the head job will be my first choice.

-TuBlaz