Head Gasket or Water Pump?

Mar 03, 2004 2 Replies
M

I have a 95 XLT with 128K miles and have been experiencing two problems:



  1. a noise from the front end that sounds like tire noise (thumping).
  2. a slow leak of antifreeze.

There is no antifreeze in the oil, which helped me to think that this was probably a bad water pump (info I found online).



I just brought this into a shop and they are telling me that it's the head gasket and they want $2600 to replace it, and that's without new heads, just resurfacing the existing ones. First, that seems really high to me, especially without new heads. Second, I question this diagnosis since when I asked what symptoms are pointing them towards the head gasket, they simply think it is that just due to age.



Thoughts?



Matt


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A

I'd have someone else take a look at it. You could be loosing AF from the radiator side tanks, those crimp on tanks often leak/seep a little, especially when cold. Could also be the water pump. Could be a hose. If you have a heater hose shut off valve, that could be leaking. I would not pay anyone $2600 to replace a head gasket. It's at most a one day job. 8 hours x 70 $/hr is $560 labor. Add $100 for all the parts and another $300 for head work (if you need it) and you are only up to $960.

-- Elbridge Gerry, of Massachusetts:

"What, sir, is the use of militia? It is to prevent the establishment of a standing army, the bane of liberty. . . Whenever Government means to invade the rights and liberties of the people, they always attempt to destroy the militia, in order to raise a standing army upon its ruins." -- Debate, U.S. House of Representatives, August 17, 1789

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