Forum:
interested in a daihatsu sportrak that is up for sale at £200.
everything is in pretty good condition , bodywork , interior , gearbox and brakes however the headgasket went a few days ago according to seller. it comes with a new gasket but opinions on this would be great?
how hard is changing head gasket on these and anything else i should know?
he has the cylinder head removed at the moment
Rust
Afraid I can't help on the head gasket but I must tell you to search hard for rust. Look carefully at the rear wheel arches and have a look under the carpets inside the boot and behind the front seats which cover the arches. I bought a sportrak that looked clear of rust 6 months ago and have just had as good as a new wheel arch welded in.
At the end of the day thought £200 looks like a very good price if the condition is as good as you say it is.
i will search thoroughly
ok when i view it i will look properly for rust , and yeah the fact he has said it as good as it is makes £200 sound reasonable if its true but the headgasket is a niggling point for me
Worth it?
Sounds an OK deal, but one has to wonder why he's bought a gasket, taken the head off, and then decided not to go ahead with the repair.
I havn't any specific knowledge of that vehicle, other than driving a hire one for a week, but in general I'd be concerned that a blown head gasket could have caused damage, especially if the driver didn't stop at once.
Check the head very carefully for cracks, especially around the exhaust valves. Assuming its an alloy head, these are difficult to repair successfully.
I believe there are dyes that can help show up cracks, but I've never used them.
Less seriously, the head could have warped. I believe you can check this with a good straight edge and feeler guages, but again, I've never done it. A warped head can be machined flat but I dunno how much that costs.
I'd probably enquire on price and availability of a replacement (used) head.
Worst case, if the rest of the vehicle is OK, might still be worth it. Otherwise its a gamble, though the stakes aren't very high.
h.gasket
fairly common thing to go on a sporty after a certain age, common thing on alot of cars....depends on what caused the head to go in the first place.....you may find a major heating problem with the engine once fixed and then start to fight a loosing battle on keeping it cool.....theres always 'cheap' for a reason.
Full of ideas but no time to do them!!
www.bloodredoffroad.com
www.milneroffroad.com
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skimming
if it needs to be skimmed then do i have to change any other bits due to the fraction being skimmed off shortening the block
dont want to end up with any valves being bent! i know if it does need skimming that thing will prob depend on how much is taken off.
And where can i get new head bolts from
Rust and smoke.
Lift the rear carpet inside the rear door. Look for rust/holes
Look for rust corrosion around the rear wheel arches and especially around the suspension mounts
NB --- the above corrosion results in collapse of the rear suspension and then its a scrapper. Beware of fibreglass filler!
Look and smell along the rear seam of the petrol tank. They leak and MOT failure.
I assume you can't start the engine. Look for damp in the footwells either side of the radio. If damp then the heater matrix is leaking. This replacement is possibly but a lengthy diy job [Garage ££££'s]. Recore matrix is £100. A second hand matrix is a waste of time.
Cracked cylinder heads are common. Is it the gasket?
Change the thermostat if you do the head.
Get an insurance quote before you buy. The insurance could be eye watering.
as long as
yeah engine cant run as head is off , as long as things are ok with bodywork and as you say rust then it will all depend on the cylinder head.
he has bought the headgasket but where can i get headbolts from and are they expensive
thanks
If the cooling system was
If the cooling system was full of dirty brown water then be aware that the head may have an internal crack which cannot be seen, or it may be porous. When they are run without, or with insufficient anti-freeze they corrode internally and many assume its the head gasket, when in fact its a much more serious problem.
The only way to determine this is with a full pressure test at working temperature.