head gasket

[papaw]

Hi, this is my first post. This is my situation. I bought a 1994 regular pickup last year for $800.00. It has a broken grille, bent hood, some dents and dings, and needs a windshield. The truck has 280,000 miles on it and it was running good until last week. The truck began to overheat on several different occasions. I could see no leaks. I replaced the thermostat and it did not help. The truck will not start now, so I pulled the 4 spark plugs and water blew from the second, third, and fourth cylinders. I guess I have a blown head gasket. I do not believe it ever got hot enough to hurt the head or did it. My question is that I received an estimate of $450.00 to replace the head gasket or if the head is cracked it will be about $850.00. Do I fix this truck with all the other problems it has or do I sell it for what I can get and put the money into another truck. All opinions will be greatly appreciated. Papaw

[texas12]

I just did my own head gasket 2 weeks ago.
Cost:
Gasket kit - $65
Hoses - $22
Oil - $12
Coolant - $8
Total = $107 (Priceless to me)

[burger]

yeah,anything else you might buy will have problems too-I'd fix it and then you know you don't have to worry about the head gasket for a long time.my 22re-364000km-I did my head gasket 10k ago and it runs perfect.

[Sidney]

Originally Posted by papaw

Hi, this is my first post. This is my situation. I bought a 1994 regular pickup last year for $800.00. It has a broken grille, bent hood, some dents and dings, and needs a windshield. The truck has 280,000 miles on it and it was running good until last week. The truck began to overheat on several different occasions. I could see no leaks. I replaced the thermostat and it did not help. The truck will not start now, so I pulled the 4 spark plugs and water blew from the second, third, and fourth cylinders. I guess I have a blown head gasket. I do not believe it ever got hot enough to hurt the head or did it. My question is that I received an estimate of $450.00 to replace the head gasket or if the head is cracked it will be about $850.00. Do I fix this truck with all the other problems it has or do I sell it for what I can get and put the money into another truck. All opinions will be greatly appreciated. Papaw

I would call your local community colleges/vocational schools and they will replace it for free if not find a friend,relative,neighbour or co-worker who like to repair cars on the side as a hobby or a favour or even trade services or buy them several cases of beer.
If that fails find a local off-road club and you will find severak people that own 4-Runners,pickups and landcruisers where those people have all of the experience and will replace your headgasket and check the cylinder head for warpage for around $300.
I suggest you keep your truck but check the back fenders and back frame for rust.

Sidney® ™
Repairs tv's,vcr's,home/car audio out of my home
E-mail:sidneybek@yahoo.com
Dartmouth,Nova Scotia
Canada
1985 Toyota 4-Runner,solid front straight axle,factory cruise control,sunroof,22R-E,W56,RN60LV-MSEK,rusted rear step/towing chrome bumper with 244 000 KM

[papaw]

Hi, Thank you for all your suggestions. I think I will try and fix my truck. Papaw