Do I sell or repair? Range Rover 1999 4.0 V8 SE

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garydavidson123

New Member
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113
Ok I bought this car about 8 weeks ago and it broke down on my journey home sadly.. it has an overheating problem.. it has caused me so much stress and heartache, it has nearly caused my relationship to end..lol

Its currently in a garage, Fortune 4x4 in Laindon and they have confirmed its the Head Gaskets and the estimate is £1138 (inc heatshields, labour etc.. I have a copy of the estimate if interested).

Problem is though.. If it is just the HG's then I'll be happy...but once they start the job they have prepared me incase (worse case scenario) it could possibly be a slipped liner or cracked head then thats where I'll be stuffed, I just wont be able to afford to get it repaired and then I'd still have to pay them near on a grand just to put it back together and it will be worth nothing..

The car is lovely.. leather is in in amazing condition, private plate, nudge bar, nearly brand new wheels, receipt from this year...

It used to belong to the police too, towing a riot barrier, not a marked police car so theres no holes anywhere..

UK Emergency Vehicles > Police > Police 19 (its the 4th one from the bottom)

MOT'd till March I think..

The cars worth about £3500 if it was working.. and I've thought it over and if I could sell it for £1500 i'd be happy.. i just know if they pull the engine apart and IF it is bad news then there gonna want £3500 for a new block and i'd lose so much.. at least if i sell it for £1500 i'd only be losing 2k instead of 3.5k

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lI thought there was a for sale section on here? but cant find it...

Do you think someone out there would buy it for £1500 as it stands? I've seen worse go for a grand on ebay..

Obviously it would need towing away...
 
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its a nice rangie that lookin at the pic like, be a shame if you had to get rid, i'm also quite sure you could get a new or even re-con block for much cheaper than 3500 tho, altho i'm not really upto scratch on the v8's just yet sorry, sure you'll get a few more better replies than mine too

Steve
 
You might be lucky to get a grand but maybe less. It all depends on the condition and wether someone thinks its worth putting in another engine. Labour alone for engine swap can be as much as a grand if you cant do it yourself.

If you cant afford another engine then maybe you could sell the bits, air compressor, air bags ect ect ect. You could get quite decent money selling the parts but only if good nick.

Your decision, I had similar problem, I sourced another engine and together with labour cost me £4000.00. In all honesty it was not worth it but I did it all the same now I have very tidy low mileage vehicle.

But.... dont jump the gun, it could and might be head Gaskets, if not then there is the ironite solution, pour it in and off you go. J the range used this solution but states that after 8 months he had to give in and buy a new engine, its not a permanant fix.

Good luck , sorry to be a messenger of doom but its hand in the pocket or get rid
 
Get the O Rings Checked first. Its a simple fix, they alone can cause overheating if leaking. dont give up yet
 
Seriously though. get the garage to check all avenues before they jump to the conclusion of slipped liner cracked block. Search the Forum on the subject of Overheating and see what other members have done to solve the problems. One member recently feared the worse with overheating but after thorough investigation it came down to duff water pump. Have they done a pressure test on the vehicle, needs to be done over a 24hr period or more, have they done a sniff test to see if there are exhaust gasses in the coolant, these questions need to be answered , when all avenues have been checked then you can make an informed decision
 
It may not be slipped liner or block problems, but once the heads are off and if there are any other problems then I cannot afford the repairs... so its a bit of a gamble, sell for £1500 and buy another cheap car, or pay the garage to put it back together costing £1500 and coming away with a broken car still...
 
Hamster97 said:
£1500 in labour to strip and refit sounds extortionate.
Take it somewhere else and get it fixed.
Click to expand...

Figure quoted was actually £1138, but that still seems extortionate to me. I assume it's not something you would feel confident doing yourself?

There was a chap on here a year or so ago that had the same problem. He fixed it himself with lots of help from members on here and he had no previous experience. Mind you, everything else broke then so he got rid.

As mentioned earlier, it may not be the head gaskets at all, so do all the checks suggested previously and ask the right questions. Some garages are complete to***s. My sister used to have a Supra which started to overheat and the main dealer was happy to try stiffing her for over £2k to replace the head gasket, having performed no investigative work whatsoever. It was only when I got involved that they agreed to do a sniff test, pressure test etc. Turned out to be a clogged radiator in the end - £150.

Don't trust em!

It certainly looks too good to break. I really would try and get a second opinion and/or a list of precisely why they think it's the head gaskets.

Guy
 
Gotta agree with Kooky. If it hasn't been sniffed or compression tested, its a pointless diagnosis and the car should be taken to someone who knows what they're doing, might even be cheaper.
Both head gaskets can be replaced in one day, thats 8 hours. Assume £50 per hour from an expensive indy and you're still only at £400 in labour.
Get a 2nd opinion!!!!
 
No, it has been professionaly diagnosed as HG.. Fortune 4x4 definately know what there doing.. there also part of 'the good garage scheme'. there quote inc all new heatshields, head skimming, all new gaskets, bolts, coolant and oil.. labour only comes to £500...
 
Why do you need new heatshields?

I had my heads skimmed for about £80 last time I did it, although that was some time ago.

They may well know what they're doing, but it still sounds VERY expensive. That sounds like a main dealer price. There really isn't all that much involved in taking the heads off and replacing them.

Which? did an interesting article on these garage schemes last month. Pretty much all of the garages tested missed things that needed doing regardless of whether they were in a scheme or not.

I assume you've got no comeback on the seller?
 
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