its the most complicated job you can do on a sportrak in my opinion, however its simply a case of taking apart and putting back together.

secondarily you will have to find out what actually made the head gasket go, otherwise you could find yourself back at square one once you have got a new gasket set fitted.

the set itself isnt expensive, about £45 IIRC. You will have to remove the air filtration unit, the fuel injection system, the rocker cover, the cam (which will mean doing the timing once it is back together - not a great job) and all the gubbins.

once you get the head off, you will need to clean it all up. there is no need to remove all the valves, seats and springs unless you need to get the head skimmed. this means that if you have overheated the head so much, it will have warped.

if it is warped, and you put it back on it will still leak. so a skim is probabaly a good idea anyway, and costs between £20 and £50 and can be done usually by someone collecting it from your door. you will, however have to strip it down and clean it up first which involves removing all the valves, springs, seats and bolts etc which isnt a recommended job for someone who isnt that experienced.

say you get all that done, you have to align the gasket up perfectly, not rub it or move the head once it is seated on the gasket, and toque up the bolts using a proper torque wrench and proper settings. then you need to put everythng back together, including fuel system and do the timing.

once tHATS done you will need to bleed the fuel system, fill it back up with water and pray that whatever you thought caused the problem us fixed. it could be a split hose, a blockage, a knackered thermostat, no water, no oil, allsorts.

if you have the money i would go for it. you could have it done in a day and to be honest if you have to ask i wouldnt attept it yourself.

this way your car wont be off the road for ages whilst you get all the jobs done. your best bet would be a mobile mechanic, or someone local who needs a bit more money out of hours.

if thats not an option, shop around. ring every singe garage and ask for an exact price - it is something that can be easily estimated as the procedure is the same for 90% of all petrol cars.

if your near scotland i would have a go with you if you like but i cant guarantee a miracle or anything!

paul