Pierre Gillet Posted June 8, 2003 Share Posted June 8, 2003 I have to replace the gasket of the head of my 1.6 K , 1997, 30 000 km, and need the references of the spare parts to be ordered in England. Can somebody help? Also a Rover Maintenance Manual for K engines would be very helpful. Cheers, Pierre Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leadership Team SLR No.77 Posted June 8, 2003 Leadership Team Share Posted June 8, 2003 Contact DVA Power - Dave Andrews. He can supply a gasket and the info you need. http://www.dvapower.co.uk/ Stu. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pierre Gillet Posted June 9, 2003 Author Share Posted June 9, 2003 Thanks Stu. Does anyone know how many hours it takes to replace the gasket ? Pierre Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oilyhands Posted June 9, 2003 Share Posted June 9, 2003 To do a *proper* job of replacing the head gasket on a Caterham takes about 6-7 hours. You should check very carefully to ensure the head is completely flat and doesnt need skimming and also try to pinpoint the mode and position of failure. If you dont remedy the cause of the failure then it will most likely fail again. Oily Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sheds Moderator Posted June 10, 2003 Share Posted June 10, 2003 My limited experience (I have changed one) suggests that 6-7 hours is enough for an expert but if you DIY allow a weekend and/or a few evenings. I find it easier to do big jobs like this in small chunks of an hour or two. The head will almost certainly need a skim, unf. the cams and valves need to come out for this. It isn't expensive to get heads skimmed (UKP 30) and if you don't want to strip the head yourself (you need a special tool to lock the cam pulleys and no you can't easily make one that is tough enough to stand spanner pressures) then this costs c.2 hours labour. When I did mine I took the head off and delivered it to the engineering works, the bill was around (UKP) Gasket set 75 Cambelt 28 Skim 30 Head strip and rebuild 60 VAT for Gordon 30 Total UKP 230 app. Crack test if required (I took the risk) 35 New head bolts if reqd, 40 for the set. New cambelt tensioner if paranoid or the old one is rumbling. It is a big job, you will need a good toolkit, a lot of patience and a manual. The Haynes is actually OK and covers the main jobs with enough accuracy. It's a shame you aren't nearer Saumur, if you were I'd help. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sheds Moderator Posted June 10, 2003 Share Posted June 10, 2003 I am happy to post you the manual if you want to borrow it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pierre Gillet Posted June 10, 2003 Author Share Posted June 10, 2003 Thanks OldBlattered, Humm, I am a bit scarred now...but at the same time I parallel the 230 £ with the 1400 £ of the DVA 155 bhp kit (1.6 K) which includes a head fully ported, and I guess skimmed, on an exchange basis.This would mean getting the kit for circa 1200 £, a very good deal indeed (my car is not SS). Questions: - would a 30000 km motor be able to stand such power increase? - how is the exchange of heads performed time and moneywise ? - car is leaking coolant when hot, but there is no internal leak (no apparent pressure in the cooling system).Can I still use it safely? I appreciate very much your proposal regarding the manual, but I think I will buy it anyway because I will need it quite often.... Can you tell me which title is best suited? Really too bad that you are located not so close from Paris... Cheers, Pierre Edited by - Pierre Gillet on 10 Jun 2003 13:33:14 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter Carmichael Posted June 10, 2003 Share Posted June 10, 2003 The head gasket fails in one of two ways. Sounds like your compression rings are still intact... but they won't be if you use the car. The loss of coolant will introduce air pockets and reduced pressurisation will lead to more potential hot surface cavitation. The failure you have suffered has been fixed by a change in spec of the head gasket, although the Mike Satur gasket that DVA supplies is also immune to this mode of failure. There is an area of the water jacket retaining silicone bead that is compromised by an oil path that is under pressure. This promotes the start of coolant leakages at the head gasket. This sort of failure is relatively easy to fix, but as Oily says, close inspection is necessary to ensure ongoing reliability. DO NOT USE THE CAR. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sheds Moderator Posted June 10, 2003 Share Posted June 10, 2003 Scarred or scared? Scarred is what I am AFTER a job like this, I'm generally scared before... The Haynes manual for the Rover 214/414 is quite good, for a change, and very cheap. There may be a French eqvt. If you buy the DVA you will still have to buy a gasket, belts etc. so the saving is smaller than you think. Unless that price is fitted? Do stop using the car. It will not heal up and you risk wrecking the engine. As for being nearer Paris, no thanks. I visited at the weekend and at €5 for a demi and €250,000 for a small 2 bed flat in 5°arr I am better off here. Nice city though, good to visit, nice girls to look at. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pierre Gillet Posted June 10, 2003 Author Share Posted June 10, 2003 Thank you for correcting my broken English . I am so scared that the job will be done by Rover at St Germain. They have no idea of what a Caterham is ☹️ though, but I explained it will be easier to work on it than on an MGF By doing so, I am hoping to go to les Coupes de l'Age d'Or at Monthléry on June 28 with my Seven but without scars . Probably the last time the event will take place as the oval track might lose its licence. As for the DVA K03 kit it does include a heavy duty head gasket and even head bolts! Pierre Edited by - Pierre Gillet on 10 Jun 2003 20:17:57 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pierre Gillet Posted June 11, 2003 Author Share Posted June 11, 2003 A friend suggested that since the failure of the gasket is due to a faulty design, rover might consider to share the cost. Does it make sense in UK? Car is 1997 and 30000km Pierre Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter Carmichael Posted June 11, 2003 Share Posted June 11, 2003 Arf! What planet is your friend from? Rover engine? Yes, but in a Caterham installation, fitted with a Caterham shallow sump. i.e. not used as Rover intended. The shallow sump results in excessive oil temperatures which are hard work on the gasket. Either way, the engine survived the best part of 6 years which takes it entirely outside the only applicable warranty period (12 months from caterham). Also you have a history of fitting the incorrect coolant against advice given, with the resulting coolant leaks giving the possibility of hotspots and other cooling related issues. All told it is not surprising the poor little gasket failed. Save your time and just get the car fixed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pierre Gillet Posted June 11, 2003 Author Share Posted June 11, 2003 Peter, you are confirming what I also found evident. But sometimes one has to get comforted . As I said to my friend, the point was really to have Rover accepting to work on a ..."what did you say ? A cat...what? " Pierre Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sheds Moderator Posted June 12, 2003 Share Posted June 12, 2003 Does it have to be a Rover dealer? Any *decent* mechanic can change a head gasket properly if he sets his mind to it. Mind you, maybe it is true what they say about French engineers: In Heaven, the police are English, the cooks are French, the engineers German, the lovers Italian and everything is organised by the Swiss. In Hell, everything is exactly the same, except that... The English are the cooks The engineers are all French The police are all German The lovers are the Swiss And the whole bloody shambles is organised by the Italians! 😬 Good luck Pierre, when you get it sorted we will have to meet up somewhere in the middle, maybe near Chartres, for a blat Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pierre Gillet Posted June 12, 2003 Author Share Posted June 12, 2003 Well , Oldbattered, I thought that Rover might better know the K Series engines than other mechanics given the fact that this type of engines is not that common in France. It seems that K series engines are a bit "exotic" By the way, are you talking about a mechanic or an engineer? In my case I just need a mechanic 😬. Till now, I have always performed the maintenance of my cars by myself, and thus do not have a mechanic that I would trust. All right, will see. Relative to the coolant issue raised by Peter who knows the energy I have spent to follow his recommendations for the right coolant spec. without being successful,this Rover concessionnaire is using exclusively Castrol products. Does anybody know if their coolants are suitable for K series motors? Pierre Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slipper man Posted June 12, 2003 Share Posted June 12, 2003 Pierre - don't be too scared. I did my engine this Winter, and the part involved with changing the head gasket is very easy, and no more than about 5 hours work. The only special tool needed was a camshaft locking tool which cost £3. The head gasket is the real weakness of the K series. the rubber comes away from the metal part and so they leak when hot. A mechanic told me they go every 50k miles in the Rover/Landrover application. PC obviously knows what he is talking about with these things, but you may well find that the head etc is just fine, and you can just put it all back together again 2 months after I finished my engine, my wife's Freelander blew its head gasket showing exactly the symptoms you describe. Took me 5 hours, and it is a much bigger job on a Freelander because you have to remove quite a lot of the car to get at the engine. And I am not soemone with any eperience of working on engines until last Winter. Parts came to £110. The Haynes manual for the Freelander was excellent by the way - it worked just fine for the R500 rebuild Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Powderpuff Posted June 12, 2003 Share Posted June 12, 2003 Keith, paint by Lada....engine rebuild by LandRover / Haynes.....whatever next....footwear by M&S Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sheds Moderator Posted June 13, 2003 Share Posted June 13, 2003 5 hours for a head gasket is impressive, and you reckon you aren't a mechanic? It took me longer, albeit spread over a few days. To second this though, it isn't too bad a job, just long and it seems like EVERYTHING is coming off. Pierre, if you already do your maintenance and you have the time, especially if you have a pal who can help, get a decent manual, buy the tools you need, and go for it. Tu t'en sortiras! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pierre Gillet Posted June 13, 2003 Author Share Posted June 13, 2003 Thanks very much for your kind support. I am just back from Le Mans where I was able to chat with Fat Arnie and others. All these Sevens made me miss mine. Sadly, I had to use my Defender TD5 110 SW to travel on the autoroute, but finally found it OK at 130 km/h on the speedo. People now in France are so scared to loose their driving licence that they seldom speed at more than 140 km/h it seemed to me. Pierre Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pierre Gillet Posted June 18, 2003 Author Share Posted June 18, 2003 The Rover man called to say that the coolant leak is due to the inlet collector gasket. So they did not change the head gasket ☹️. I was so much hoping to get rid of the gasket this time ... Pierre Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pierre Gillet Posted June 18, 2003 Author Share Posted June 18, 2003 Sorry, double posting 😳 Edited by - Pierre Gillet on 18 Jun 2003 18:31:06 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sheds Moderator Posted June 19, 2003 Share Posted June 19, 2003 You lucky sod. Why especially did you WANT to change it? If it ain't broke, don't fix it. It's a big job and costs more than you would like in any case. Yes, I know your coolant history etc but if it is OK now it could be OK for another 3 years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pierre Gillet Posted June 19, 2003 Author Share Posted June 19, 2003 I thought it would have been better than a gasket failure while travelling or during a track day. Next track days with the Club Lotus of France is on August 23 and 24 ( Circuits de Fay et Lohéac). Cheers, Pierre Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pierre Gillet Posted June 20, 2003 Author Share Posted June 20, 2003 After the brilliant change of the induction collector gasket by a Rover concessionnaire, the leak is always there I found the Team Durville which races Caterham(s) at the French Caterham challenge. Jérome durville, a very nice guy has agreed to take care of my Seven for the head gasket removal. Pierre Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris W Posted June 21, 2003 Share Posted June 21, 2003 Pierre I trust you'll now go and get your Euros back from the Rover place as their diagnostics and work turned out to be wasted time and money. Chris 1.8K SV 140hp see it here Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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