Head gasket blown?

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ta24z

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Hello,

I'm a french guy living in Joburg since 8 months so apologies for english mistakes....

Last month, I bought a Hyundai Tucson 2.0 GLS from 2005 with 190.000km. The car was fine, I drove 3000 km with it. Last week i went from Joburg to CPT, through the Karoo with no problem.

I'm now in Cape Town, and I'd like to drive back to Joburg tomorrow.

But since yesterday my car is overheating, losing water (EDIT: it's not leaking, just the water tank is emptying quickly), and there are air bubbles in the cooling circuit.
I'm afraid that the head gasket is blown...


I go tomorrow to the Hyundai workshop in Paarden Eiland to see what they think about that. But I'm afraid they would overcharge me...

So here are my questions:

-What else can it be if not a head gasket? (fan? thermostat? radiator?)
-What is a decent cost for a head gasket fixing or replacing?
- How long does it take? Can i hope to drive back to Joburg on tuesday?
- do you have a good and trustworthy mechanic in CPT where I should go if Hyundai quote is too expensive?

Sorry for all those questions... I hope you'd be able to help me

Pierre
 
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Check if you have milky white brown residue on your oil filler cap and dipstick.

Anything that resembles mayonaisse in either the oil or water circuit will confirm your fears of headgasket or evenworse, cracked cylinderhead.

It could possibly be the waterpump. In my 04 Renault the pump seals went and it sucked air/leaked water and the bearing started failing, making the pump inefficient. This caused overheating an further boiling which will leave you with a melted motor if driven unattended.

It sounds like you caught it in time.
 
Thanks for your quick answer. I don't have mayonnaise and no white smoke from the exhaust pipe.

but do you have an idea of the cost of a reasonable quote if it was a head gasket blown? Someone told me R5k/R6k. Is it too much, or fair?

Thanks anyway :)
 
R3500 or so to do my Corsa two years ago.

Wasn't at a dealership though.

I would imagine it's your waterpump or even just the thermostat though.

That will be R3500 - R5500 as it will go hand in hand with a cambelt change.
 
SauRoNZA said:
R3500 or so to do my Corsa two years ago.

Wasn't at a dealership though.

I would imagine it's your waterpump or even just the thermostat though.

That will be R3500 - R5500 as it will go hand in hand with a cambelt change.
Click to expand...

He is losing water.

Thermostat wont cause that. Just the overheating. Bar of course he ran it so hot that it over pressurised and pushed out by the over flow.
 
boxerulez said:
He is losing water.

Thermostat wont cause that. Just the overheating. Bar of course he ran it so hot that it over pressurised and pushed out by the over flow.
Click to expand...

Oh I didn't spot that detail.

But as you say if it ran that hot for long enough and boiled over it would explain the water loss.
 
You should also check if your radiator has a slow leak that activates only when the engine is turned on.

A blown head gasket would normally cause a "miss" when you are starting the car besides the white smoke and milky residue in the oil cap.
 
have you checked that all the rubber pipes are intact?

9 years is old for those rubber pipes.

if it is the pipes, you can buy that at most spares places. park the car over sand or news paper. Fill the water tank and see if there is water on the sand or newspaper. If there is water under the car, start checking all the pipes attached to the car's cooling system.

but also, with that vehicle, I would rather fill it with coolant after repairing rather than just water.
 
Welcome to South Africa mate.

Is your coolant oily or brown?

If yes HG is gone.

Overheating due to loss of water could be a leak in the radiator or a faulty water pump.

I would suggest having the vehicle loaded on a train and brought back to your main area of residence (JHB) for repair.

If you have it fixed in CT and something happens on your way back you're stuffed especially if its a HG which takes up to a week to repair.

"Foreigners" in the wrong city of a wrong country are easy bait for unscrupulous mechs looking to scam you.

Have it repaired in Jhb so if something goes wrong you can easily take it back for compensation.

If its a water pump or radiator have it done and drive back.
 
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I didn't check that. But it doesn't seem that it's leaking under the vehicle. I'll put coolant after repairing for sure.

Tomorrow, I'll ask them to check radiator and water pump and everything possible before head gasket... Just hope that it's not an expensive (and long) repair... I need to drive back to Joburg asap ...

If Hyundai quote is too expensive, which mech in CT should i call? I read that Driveway Motors was a good one? Any other idea?

Thanks guys for your help anyway.
 
ta24z said:
No, it's just normal. My only symptom of a HG would be the overheating and the bubbles/boiling in the coolant circuit.
Click to expand...

To me, that's head gasket - if he's lucky.
If he's unlucky he is looking at a cracked head.
 
Just a word of warning to the OP if he is still in CT.

Please don't fool yourself that you can get away with a cheap job, and then expect to hop in the car and drive through the Karroo to JHB.

Trying to save on something like overheating is very foolish, and can only cost you more money in the long run.
 
ta24z said:
If Hyundai quote is too expensive, which mech in CT should i call? I read that Driveway Motors was a good one? Any other idea?
Click to expand...

Very good, but they are in the Southern Suburbs and you do seem a bit more north.
 
You can try silverton in maitland, the guys there are pretty clued up and will pressure test the system.I've had good service from them in the past.
 
Visit Silverton Radiators some day and ask for a test (i forgot the technical term), they put a dye in a tube and place it over the radiator and if it changes colour the head gasket is gone.
 
Fazda said:
Please don't fool yourself that you can get away with a cheap job, and then expect to hop in the car and drive through the Karroo to JHB.

Trying to save on something like overheating is very foolish, and can only cost you more money in the long run.
Click to expand...

Never said that! I left the car in Hyundai - Paarden Eiland, they're supposed to do a quote this morning. I guess it will be way more exepensive than a garage, but they give a guarantee of a year on the fixing...
 
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