engine and drivetrain blowing head gaskets

[boldtu]

IO spoke with a BMW mechanic yesterday and he told me that the 2000 cc engine has head gasket problems, they blow them, when I asked him if there was a way to prevent this he didn't know of a way. does anyone know anything about this. Is that a problem with the s14 motor or had they solved that problem by then?

chester

[Mike Self]

it's not allowed to overheat. My '73's finally blew at 203,922 miles and 33 years on the original gasket, so I can't complain.

Blown gaskets, regardless of the car (esp with iron block and aluminum head) are usually the result of

1. overheating

2. previous problem resulting in an unrepaired, warped head being re-fitted

3. cheap-ass gasket

4. real high compression ratio (stock is 8-9.5:1 depending on model)

5. corrosion around exhaust port water passages from not changing coolant often enough or using the wrong stuff.

Some may disagree, but the M10 doesn't have a head gasket problem in general...

mike

[scestes]

IO spoke with a BMW mechanic yesterday and he told me that the 2000 cc engine has head gasket problems, they blow them, when I asked him if there was a way to prevent this he didn't know of a way. does anyone know anything about this. Is that a problem with the s14 motor or had they solved that problem by then?

I think this is a blanket statement that doesn't really take into account the conditions under which these failures occur. An original gasket failing after 35+ years of being on the car is pretty damned good service record in my opinion. The number of ways the previous owners of our cars have tortured them is probably too numerous to list. Overheating (as stated before) is probably the biggest problem, and if you live in California (or other warm states) and are in stop and go traffic, if you're not watching the temp, you're probably going to have to pull that head sooner or later. If the work is done right though, you keep an eye on the temp gauge, and you're an average driver, I don't see any reason why a head gasket shouldn't last another 35+years.

It probably goes without saying that doesn't matter if it's a 2002, or a brand new Prius, if you don't pay attention to the temp gauge, and you overheat the car and continue to drive, you're going to be pulling that head, or worse, the whole engine.

[PatAllen]

i run a lot of boost on a stock head gasket.

they do NOT blow like your mech. said, pretty lousy statement.

check for:

-pre-ignition or pinging (timing, carbon build-up, improper octane, carb settings,..)

-proper mating surfaces (straight and proper surface rms)

-proper torquing of the head bolts.

[boldtu]

thanks a lot, that makes sense. is there an enlarged radiator that you know of that would help this problem? thanks again for the quick response.

chester

[scestes]

thanks a lot, that makes sense. is there an enlarged radiator that you know of that would help this problem? thanks again for the quick response.

Yes and no. For me, I have an Ireland Engineering radiator, and if I'm in the car on a very hot day where it's horrible stop and go traffic, even this oversized radiator doesn't help. I think it's a great radiator, but if I'm riding in hot air, and I have the hot air off the car in front of me going into my radiator, it doesn't help. I think this is going to greatly depend on the car configuration (I'm running dual Weber 45's tuned for max HP, not street driving) as well as the region of the country you live in. It gets into the 90's here in the summer very regularly, and sometimes will creep into the 100's. Your mileage may vary. Hope that helps.

[Guest Anonymous]

Maybe your BMW mechanic is on to something. Maybe the 2 liter engines are prone to headgasket failure when HE works on them. Since he raised the issue, could you please ask him what he bases his opinion on? Does he reuse the headgaskets? Make his own? I doubt he ever heard of the Tii gaskets with the cutting rings. (Search the archives)

Certainly the combination of an aluminum alloy head and cast iron block lend themselves to headgasket failure - if overheated. But I have found the engine will need a valve job usually before any headgasket gives up.

Search the archives. See if anyone else questions premature headgasket failure.

hth

[jgerock]

The conditions any engine has to endure can lead to head gasket failure. My parents 81 VW Diesel Rabbit had a bad head gasket at about 50K miles- the VW dealer blamed it on the head bolts. Many 6 cylinder Ford engines have had head gasket issues. Even newer V8 engines can have failures.

Another factor is how the engine was originally designed and altered thru the life cycle of the product line. As racing history has proven, the BMW M10 design is tough enough to withstand high HP applications - the external cooling seems to be the weakpoint.

When "rebuilding" any engine, one must be careful to check tolerances and purchase the best replacement parts available. Anyone can rebuild an engine - the experienced builder can assemble one that will last.