NOsMAN 10 1 Cars Posted February 28, 2006 O.K. I'm thinking about buying a 1.9 cheap but the headgasket has gone and want to know which option most people would take to put the car back on the road..? I have very limited experience under the bonnet, but i have changed a headgasket before on a old FIAT panda before[about 15 years ago since then i haven't done more than replace a radiator on the 205 mi16].. The car is a 205 K plate using a cat engine. If i had to take the engine out to put a replacement in i'll need to hire an engine crane (was wondering if its possible for me to lift the old block out and drop in the new one within a day WITHOUT connecting the hoses and wires on ) cos i dont want to pay for more than 1 days hire... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
maturin23 10 Posted February 28, 2006 (edited) It's not such an easy question to answer. To repair the existing engine it would make sense to have the head skimmed by an engineering firm. Whilst it's off it would make sense to regrind the valve seats (easy if a little boring DIY job) and replace the valve seats. You'll need to buy a head gasket set too. Also worth considering doing a cambelt and waterpump change whilst you're at it. Once it's back together (and assuming you don't snap any of the head bolts) you'll have a nicely refreshed head. It might be a cheaper option initially to drop a new engine in, maybe 50 - 75 squid for the engine and 25 to hire a crane for the day. If you have the original engine ready to lift out (hoses, wiring, driveshafts, downpipe bolts, throttle cable, clutch cable and gear linkages all disconnected and engine mount bolts cracked off and ready to remove) BEFORE you pick up the crane you could hoist the engine out and drop the new one in iand return the crane to the hireshop in well under an hour with two people on the job. Having said that, the 'new' engine might not be so healthy - worn stem seals etc dodgy bottom end and you may have to do more work once it's in. Then there's the cost of tools you may need to buy for either job. MY view - unless I was confident that I was fitting a recently reconned engine, I'd repair what I had. Edited to say - my post is not very helpful if you don't know the condition of the original engine. Anyway - what I'd REALLY do is drop an mi16 in. Edited February 28, 2006 by maturin23 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
gti_al 1 Posted February 28, 2006 I was in exactly the same situation last year. I chose to try and fix the engine in the car, but once i got the head off i realised it was pretty sick. I didn't really want to just put it back together and hope for the best, (i don't really trust my mechanical abilities either) so i picked up another engine. While the wiring is a pain in the butt, i felt more confident doing this as it is fairly straightforward. Even with no mechanical knowledge i got the new engine in, and didn't stuff it up at all. Plus you don't have to stress about skimming or fitting the cambelt in that stupidly small space. I would just drop another engine in... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Alastairh 47 Posted February 28, 2006 If i had the choice, and you say its a K plate car, so something special being a late one. I would do the head gasket, unless your going Mi etc route. Reasons why, A, keep it original, your head will be like new, and all new seals etc. Where as a second hand engine could sound nice now, but in 5,000 miles, may produce the same problem. Dropping in a new engine is probably easier, but i would do it properly first time. Alastair Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ellisg 0 Posted February 28, 2006 Cat engines aren't easy to find, they are lower compression for the emissions. Better to fix what you have or put a 1.9 Mi in and you can remove the cat as well. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
notamondayfan 44 Posted February 28, 2006 i was in the same situation about 2 yrs ago, and my gti engine was smoking, and going thro oil like petrol! anyway i decided 2 change the engine for budget reasons. i knew a friend had crashed his gti, so i bought the engine off him. borrowed an engine hoist, and set to! took longer than i thought, few days, but thats maybe cause it was my 1st engine swap. the most expensive part was the rolling road, getting it to run right. havent had any probs with it yet, touch wood. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ferret-head 0 Posted March 1, 2006 -i would just drop in another engine and make sure its from the same year!! i'v done it, but from a different year! it was hard work,things in different places. but in the end it worked fine AND iv got an engine full of spares, OR iv an engine to be worked on while using the motor!!! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jack biscuit 0 Posted March 1, 2006 head gasket, the gasket is cheap enough, and you can do other things while you're at it as maturin23 said.. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
DaveW 6 Posted March 2, 2006 are the citroen zx 1.9 engines the same? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest bernieslaven Posted March 6, 2006 O.K. I'm thinking about buying a 1.9 cheap but the headgasket has gone and want to know which option most people would take to put the car back on the road..?I have very limited experience under the bonnet, but i have changed a headgasket before on a old FIAT panda before[about 15 years ago since then i haven't done more than replace a radiator on the 205 mi16].. The car is a 205 K plate using a cat engine. If i had to take the engine out to put a replacement in i'll need to hire an engine crane (was wondering if its possible for me to lift the old block out and drop in the new one within a day WITHOUT connecting the hoses and wires on ) cos i dont want to pay for more than 1 days hire... Mate, I had the same thing happen to my CTi, and was on a super tight budget of doom, but my decision was made a little easier by the fact that i didnt want to repair the CTi - so i guess my 2 pennies worth here is that it depends what you want to do with the car. I ended up selling my shell/interior as-is (or as-was...) and using the money towards a new 1.9GTi, cos the CTi just didnt cut it - great for a summer time buzz, but that was it, well for me anyway... If i could have carried out the gasket work myself then i would have given that a go at least, with nothing to lose, and once fixed, you know your own engine, and all its other little quirks - only thing missing then i suppose would be the service history entry stating new head gasket skim and seals - but if you aint selling, then its no bother anyway! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jeremy 70 Posted March 6, 2006 Personnally I would keep the same engine, and do the head gasket. I have done two so far, and on both occasions I have just labbelled everything up and used bank bags to put all the nuts and bolts in etc. It also helps as I have 2 GTIs so always have one for reference purposes. If you decide to take the engine out you are creating more work in my opinion, and yes you can remove an engine from underneath the car, but you will need an engine hoist to help lift the engine into position, believe me I tried for well over an hour with trolley jacks etc with no joy, but it only took five minutes with an engine hoist, so well woth the £20. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
