worth changing head gasket on a 1.8T on the cheap?

[damn_seagulls]

I have an Audi A4 1.8T avant.

Recently I noticed brown crap in the coolant, so I flushed and refilled, only for it to happen again. So, I bought a new oil cooler and switched it out, and flushed again. No change.

So, from what I have read, it looks like a blown head gasket. I whipped the spark plugs and did some compression tests today and surprisingly, the compression is OK, but there was brown gunky fluid on some of the plugs (same stuff as in the coolant tank - no surprise).

I was quoted £450 for a basic head gasket change at the local garage. He warned me that it'd basically be pointless if I could not also find the cause of the issue, check all hoses etc for blockages and so on. My first guess would be the dodgy heater matrix which I now know could have contributed to this.

My question now is where to go from here. The car is old and not worth spending big bucks. I am willing to try a DIY head gasket job if it is worth it but I am concerned it would be pointless without having the head checked for warping, etc. I am not sure I want to pay to have something like that re-built or skimmed (though I do not know what that would cost) for a car I paid less than 1K for. Is it worth it? Or do I just call it a day and sell for spares?

Any thoughts would be appreciated. Cheers.

[mumutley]

Always get the head skimmed and pressure checked, when doing this job

A good quality head gasket

It is a job a good diyer can do but take your time and clean and check everything

[damn_seagulls]

So, I went ahead and did the head gasket and timing belt. Water pump also changed just in case.

Got head stripped, re-welded and skimmed at an engineering place, so the cost has spiralled a bit but never mind. Did the head gasket job with my engineer dad by my side watching for mistakes, and did everything by the book, literally.

Sadly when it was put back together, we damaged a ground wire and couldn't get a spark, which left me stumped, so I towed it to the local mechanic who sorted it, checked the timing and refilled coolant as I was running on just water due to contamination and constant draining. He drove it around a bit and said it looked and sounded OK but to go easy for a while.

I drive 2 miles home and …. coolant is once again black with oil! If the mechanic just drove around the block it's completely consistent with what it was doing before the gasket change (looking ok for a mile or so until oil gets through the system), suggesting it isn't that nor the oil cooler which was also changed.

I will go back to him tomorrow and see what he thinks… but what else can I check? I've spent way too much to give up now.

[Doctle Odd]

Did you thoroughly flush out the engine and heater matrix? Is the header tank pressurising? Check the oil cooler wasn't tightened too much and cracked. You might also try the Daz and boiling water engine clean that I swear by. You could also have a sniff test done.

[damn_seagulls]

Did you thoroughly flush out the engine and heater matrix? Is the header tank pressurising? Check the oil cooler wasn't tightened too much and cracked. You might also try the Daz and boiling water engine clean that I swear by. You could also have a sniff test done.

thanks. The heater matrix is need of attention, but saying that it never worked correctly when the car ran fine. The engine itself has been flushed with daz so many times during this process the oil getting in the coolant is like black paint rather than chocolate milk, same as the oil in the oil tank ... my guess is it's fresh. (side note, oil in tank has no brown gunk / water traces at all).

However, Ive just had a poke around and noticed a drip coming from the (new) oil cooler, leaving watery oil on the floor. It wasnt happening before, but then I wasn't running the car anywhere. I will get the cooler off tomorrow morning and check for cracks but I tried to take it easy on it when I tightened it.

Assumably, if it's letting oil through AND dropping water, it's the cooler itself that is faulty or cracked, and it's not something silly like the o-ring?

[damn_seagulls]

also, I have a sniff test kit - will give it another go. It would now make sense as to why I wasn't getting anything the first time (pre-head gasket change) - I just didn't trust it completely, as a compression test I did was slightly off (plus there was coolant on the spark plugs) so I just went and did it. Live and learn, eh. I keep telling myself that.

[Doctle Odd]

I thought I was right once but I was mistaken so fear not young man! It could be an 'o' ring but I doubt it. The coolant and oil usually come together due to a faulty oil cooler. It's a cheap enough part to buy genuine keep us posted

[damn_seagulls]

I thought I was right once but I was mistaken so fear not young man! It could be an 'o' ring but I doubt it. The coolant and oil usually come together due to a faulty oil cooler. It's a cheap enough part to buy genuine keep us posted


The cooler was the first thing I did when this started, albeit non-OEM. It didn't fix the issue, which unfortunately then led me to assume doing a head gasket swap was all I had left. Its now its looking increasingly like I needn't have, and the oil cooler replacement was actually faulty / put on badly by myself. At least I now know what's happening in there I guess.

thanks for your help, I'll post an update!

[Doctle Odd]

If you replace it buy genuine!

[zollaf]

take cooler to engine rebuilding place. get them to pressure test it by pressurising to oil side of it to see if it leaks. then you will know for sure without more messing about.

[damn_seagulls]

Almost certainly the oil cooler, at least now. My local garage bypassed the cooler with a piece of pipe. I've been driving around for a few days and the oil / coolant situation isn't getting any worse. As soon as time allows I'll get it off and get it tested.

[Doctle Odd]

Sooner rather than later you don't want the oil too hot

[damn_seagulls]

Looks like the 'new' oil cooler was faulty. Managed to get it swapped for a Hella branded cooler and fitted it yesterday. Drove around a bit and the water in the cooling system is still oil-free. I'll drive it for a week and then flush the system and add new coolant.