Head gasket estimated cost (968 Sport)

[SFIELDS]

I appreciate responses to this will vary depending on factors like location but has anyone had the head gasket replaced on a classic porsche, and if so how eye-watering was the bill? (And what else should I expect to potentially be picked up during the process?)

I purchased a 1994 968 Sport a few weeks ago and one morning after having had nothing but faultless drives, encountered overheating issues. Pulled over and let it cool down, then limped to the nearest specialist (thankfully pretty local) with heating on full blast to keep the gauge below the max.

I'm now waiting on the garage to give me a estimate for a new head gasket (they charge £144 ph labour) and approximate time frame (I'm guessing about 1-2 days work?)

Not the news I wanted on a Friday morning but hey, someone's got to keep these 30 year old cars on the road!

[swindler]

It's not too difficult a job, but are you sure the overheating is because of head gasket failure? You need to diagnose this eg with gas coolant tester. Overheating could be something really simple like stuck thermostat, fan wiring, etc.

[SFIELDS]

Unfortunately they've done 2+ hours diagnostics already and about 3 hrs labour on a coolant flush because the reservoir was frothing and coolant levels kept fluctuating.

Initially they thought the previous owner may have put screenwash in due to the number of air bubbles but that would've been a best case scenario! After the flush they left it overnight and next day it was below the minimum again (but definitely not leaking).

I didn't notice any milky residue in the oil or anything (perhaps a slight loss of power..) but the garage will confirm this week- they sounded pretty sure it pointed to the gasket but I'm a pessimist so may be jumping the gun a bit! (Also trying frantically to sell my old car to afford whatever's coming )

Edited by SFIELDS on Sunday 17th August 10:11

[Orangecurry]

SFIELDS said:

I'm now waiting on the garage to give me a estimate for a new head gasket (they charge £144 ph labour)

Just off the top of my head, knowing no details about anything else - take it somewhere else.

My Indy charges half of that.

[SFIELDS]

Orangecurry said:

Just off the top of my head, knowing no details about anything else - take it somewhere else.

My Indy charges half of that.

I'm tempted- recovering the car is another blow but the labour charge at this place does seem excessive. Can anyone recommend a specialist in Kent?

[Orangecurry]

If not already done, I would join specialist 968 forums - PH is great for arguing but other websites have better detailed knowledge and a more active following for the older cars.

YMMV.

[andrewcliffe]

On many cars, a head gasket failure is often a result of another problem, and until that problem is rectified, any replacement gasket may fail soon.

[SFIELDS]

andrewcliffe said:

On many cars, a head gasket failure is often a result of another problem, and until that problem is rectified, any replacement gasket may fail soon.

True. Will be interesting to know what has caused it, if the diagnosis is correct. She's done 150,000 miles but it might be more than wear and tear.

[LarJammer]

Quite common on the 968. The gaskets rots away and due to the open deck design, the rear cylinders get less cooling. Sometimes the cylinders are scored as a result. As the gaskets gets worse, it fails between the cooling jacket & cylinder (which sounds like your symptoms) and pressurises the cooling system. Inevitably the head will need a skim and it makes sense to do the cam chain, guides and belts whilst in there. Cams might be ok, but the gears on them do wear.
La Rose and Ptoject9 are specialists in Kent.

[SFIELDS]

Orangecurry said:

If not already done, I would join specialist 968 forums - PH is great for arguing but other websites have better detailed knowledge and a more active following for the older cars.

YMMV.

Good advice- I was going to join PorscheClubGB and explore their threads out of general interest, but now it's not exactly a financial priority Will have a dig about for more specific sites to prattle on

[SFIELDS]

LarJammer said:

Quite common on the 968. The gaskets rots away and due to the open deck design, the rear cylinders get less cooling. Sometimes the cylinders are scored as a result. As the gaskets gets worse, it fails between the cooling jacket & cylinder (which sounds like your symptoms) and pressurises the cooling system. Inevitably the head will need a skim and it makes sense to do the cam chain, guides and belts whilst in there. Cams might be ok, but the gears on them do wear.
La Rose and Ptoject9 are specialists in Kent.

Thanks, appreciate the intel! Sounds about right tbh. La Rose is who I ended up with- they have very good reviews but at a cost! I suspect any others in the area that do a decent job won't be miles off either, but will see what the other place suggest

[APJRN]

968UK.com
will give you access to a wealth of active users' knowledge & advice.

Antony

[maz8062]

SFIELDS said:

Unfortunately they've done 2+ hours diagnostics already and about 3 hrs labour on a coolant flush because the reservoir was frothing and coolant levels kept fluctuating.

Initially they thought the previous owner may have put screenwash in due to the number of air bubbles but that would've been a best case scenario! After the flush they left it overnight and next day it was below the minimum again (but definitely not leaking).

I didn't notice any milky residue in the oil or anything (perhaps a slight loss of power..) but the garage will confirm this week- they sounded pretty sure it pointed to the gasket but I'm a pessimist so may be jumping the gun a bit! (Also trying frantically to sell my old car to afford whatever's coming )

Edited by SFIELDS on Sunday 17th August 10:11

This is some crazy st, man. £144 per hour, 5 hours already, plus coolant, so you’re already in for £1k and the car isn’t fixed. If I were you I’d be drawing up a spreadsheet to see if it’s worth the expense or get shot, presumably what the previous owner did.

Or get the car back and do one of those chemical tests for head gasket failure. Sam Crac (YouTube) has a good video on a 997that he managed to fix with some chemicals.

I’ve always said that if you want to run one of these old Porsches and rely on a shop to fix things, it’ll bankrupt you. Good luck.

[SFIELDS]

maz8062 said:

This is some crazy st, man. £144 per hour, 5 hours already, plus coolant, so you’re already in for £1k and the car isn’t fixed. If I were you I’d be drawing up a spreadsheet to see if it’s worth the expense or get shot, presumably what the previous owner did.

Or get the car back and do one of those chemical tests for head gasket failure. Sam Crac (YouTube) has a good video on a 997that he managed to fix with some chemicals.

I’ve always said that if you want to run one of these old Porsches and rely on a shop to fix things, it’ll bankrupt you. Good luck.

Yup. Annoyingly I'd just purchased all the bits to do a coolant flush, oil change, filters, spark plugs etc myself when the need arose so it was frustrating to have to let the garage do it this time.

Just got an estimate through for 2.5k on the head gasket (inc. water pump & cam belt if required) - that's if the £190 borescopes check shows it is indeed the gasket that's gone.

To be fair I got the car in a PH auction for an absolute bargain so did have that niggling feeling of "it's too good to be true"- but even if I spend 2k or so on her the total price is still well under what they're going for privately sold.

I knew what I signed up for with an old high mileage car but just didnt expect things to go wrong quite so soon!

Samcrac is a great channel, I'll check that one out. Cheers!

Edited by SFIELDS on Monday 18th August 11:35

Edited by SFIELDS on Monday 18th August 14:10