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Is N Reg. Mondeo Turbo Diesel worth repairng after running with no coolant?

A friend has a 1.8 Turbo Diesel Mondeo which ran out of water on a trip. It was an hour or two before refilling so shouldn't have cracked anything. It will start and run but issues some smoke/steam/unburnt diesel. (he's not sure which and lives 150 miles away so I can't inspect). Fresh coolant is being contaminated with oil too by the sound of it.

Obviously the head gasket has gone and presumably the head might need skimming - but could more be wrong?

This car was quite reasonable before the mishap but he's not sure whether to spend several hundred pounds on a new banger or have the work done on the Mondeo.

What would be a guide price for fitting new head gasket, skimming the head plus a cam belt kit while it's down?

Many thanks for any responses.

Reply to
jukebore
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Not worth doing on something worth relatively little. And if it was run without coolant for an hour or two then it may well have cracked something. A few minutes he might have got away with, but not a couple of hours.

Reply to
AstraVanMan

I think the OP meant they left it for a couple of hours after it ran out before refilling, not drove it around for a couple of hours.

Reply to
malc

Maybe - all depends how much it heated up - and how long it spent in the red.

Reply to
AstraVanMan

Key issue here. An hour or two of running, or an hour or two after shut down and re-filling?

Okay.

Potentially, yes...

I guess the key question, regardless of if its a Mondeo or not, is what else can the repair money get?

Lots. :-p

Reply to
DervMan

If he likes it that much, you can pick up 1.8 engines less ancillaries for silly cheap. Probably much less hassle and a greater chance of reviving the car, TBH.

Reply to
Sandy Nuts

Another key question - when he refilled the coolant, did he fill with cold water or from a boiled kettle? Refilling a hot engine with cold water is not the best idea.

Reply to
Tom Robinson

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