head gasket blown sell or rebuild

[BMWL7]

well ive come to the conclusion the head gasket is blown in my 1992 325i. today got pretty warm ,up to 55f drgrees and i still had vapor coming out of the exhaust until it the exhaust got hot. so the head gasket has to be blown right? anyways how much would a rebuild cost in parts not including labor and how many hours to do it? should i sell the car or redo the head gasket?

[motoracr22]

This is not how you diagnose a head gasket. To properly diagnose you need to conduct a leak down test.
Does the vapor smell sweet?
Does your car overheat?
Does it lack power?
Are you losing coolant?

Please do some research before condemning your motor. Sounds like you need to take it to a mechanic.

[skiboard06]

Yea have you had to refill your coolant resovoir several times?

[BMWL7]

the exhaust does smell sweet,it hasnt been over heating,ive only had the car for 2.5 weeks so i cant tell if its a loss of power,and i have had to refill the coolant but its been so cold that the radiator that i havent replaced yet cause i dont know if im keeping this car leaks out of the seam at startup for about 5 minutes then it expands and stops. but im pretty sure it has coolant leaking into a cylinder upon warm up and cool down.because when i start it up first thing in the morning upon driving there is massive cloud of vapor coming out of the back until the pipes get hot.sometime this takes about 15 minutes

[BMWL7]

and as far as research goes i have been researching this for 2 weeks now and that is coming to be my conclusion

[motoracr22]

You need to have a leak down test done. This will isolate where the leak. Pressure testing your cooling system will also help. My advice is to have this professionally done.

[BMWL7]

well what else could it possibly be causing these symptoms, believe me i hope its not a head gasket

[redlinedbimmer]

It's a good oportunity for an engine swap, but if you can't do the work yourself or pay someone like a frieind to do it for you, it's probably not worth it for you.

[kxl77]

You need to have a leak down test done. This will isolate where the leak. Pressure testing your cooling system will also help. My advice is to have this professionally done.

+1, if a leakdown test is too expensive, you can always go with a compression test. When you have the test done, if you have low compression between two adjacent cylinders, majority of the time that would indicate a bad headgasket.

[Bimuh007]

dude i am going through the SAME EXACT situation. I have a recent thread I started "I made my decision, I'm going to keep my baby" where I made my decision to replaced the head gasket. I would strongly recommend you replace your headgasket soon so that it won't lead to other expensive problems and also so that you can revive the ultimate driving experience without all the FKING symptoms that are present when you're driving with a blown head gasket.

Trust me, I know how frustrating it is when you're burning coolant, having white smoke, overheating (at different times), having moisture build up... etc. etc.

However, given the option of buying a different car (which would likely cost more than a head gasket replacement) or just fixing the headgasket... I'd go with fixing it for sure.

PS> I got my headgasket set from pelican parts ($200) and cylinder head bolt set (14.75) and will replace my headgasket this weekend. (I personally won't be doing it, a mechanic in my family will, I guess you can say i'm lucky cause i'm keeping the price down ).

[BMWL7]

dude i am going through the SAME EXACT situation. I have a recent thread I started "I made my decision, I'm going to keep my baby" where I made my decision to replaced the head gasket. I would strongly recommend you replace your headgasket soon so that it won't lead to other expensive problems and also so that you can revive the ultimate driving experience without all the FKING symptoms that are present when you're driving with a blown head gasket.

Trust me, I know how frustrating it is when you're burning coolant, having white smoke, overheating (at different times), having moisture build up... etc. etc.

However, given the option of buying a different car (which would likely cost more than a head gasket replacement) or just fixing the headgasket... I'd go with fixing it for sure.

PS> I got my headgasket set from pelican parts ($200) and cylinder head bolt set (14.75) and will replace my headgasket this weekend. (I personally won't be doing it, a mechanic in my family will, I guess you can say i'm lucky cause i'm keeping the price down ).

cool yea my brother is ase certified mechanic so hell hook me up on a real good price to do it.appreciate the heads up on pelican parts i havent priced any yet ill take it u found the best deal so far.so did u have the super vapor cloud following you until ur exhaust got hot?

[fun2drive]

If you are not loosing a lot of coolant and it is a very slow leak think about trying Bar's headgasket repair first. 10 bucks and I know of it working on a members M50 engine and also was tested on 2 Guys Garage as well.
You do have to follow the directions which means some draining and refilling and letting the fibers solidify by drying out after the stuff has done its work.
You have only time and 10 bucks to loose...

[Blanco]

You'll almost always see vapor when it's cold out, it just happens. You need to do the proper tests.

And holy schnikes, $200 for a head gasket?!