16FujiDisco
Full Access Member
You said they gave you the head at their cost, I’m guessing that’s $5-600? If so, that seems marginally more expensive than all the work involved in transporting it to somewhere to weld it
Well, that sucks. The show must go on...(long story)
- Thread starter Daveykid
- Start date
Disclaimer: Links on this page pointing to Amazon, eBay and other sites may include affiliate code. If you click them and make a purchase, we may earn a small commission.
Correct. The head is more than that but still it's worth it. Used heads are going for $800-$1,000 and a used head is just that...used. Was it warped and shaved down? Was it cracked and repaired? Too many variables and dealers don't care to deal with that. My dealer just won't deal with used parts or parts that are repaired by independent shops, then put back in the car. I'm not always in favor of dealers but I do understand where they are coming from on this. And the bigger problem I have is how many times they will be tearing down the front end and putting it back together.
avslash
Full Access Member
What is the dealers plan for the stripped tensioner bolt? Just tap it oversize, helicoil it, or something else.
I understand the dealer having you over a barrel, but it is absolutely possible to weld on these engines. I had a waterpump bolt shear off on mine and neither myself nor my indie had any luck through any means of getting that damned thing out. I had it towed to a fab shop I occasionally use and they drilled it, filled it and redrilled and tapped it. It has since been good for thousands of miles.
Does the dealer already have the head off the block? If so, I would go pick that thing up (it is yours, afterall) and take it to an automotive fab shop that welds and have them verifiably tell me if it is repairable or not.
If the head is still on the block, it basically comes down to what the dealer is charging you for a new head. I would love to know this if you are willing to share. Also, is the new head dressed from the factory, or would the dealer be swapping over the cams, valves, springs, etc.? At dealer rates, it wouldn't take too much make a flatbed tow to a fab shop worth the money. I would probably go so far as to pay my fab guy for his time to go by the dealer and eyeball it if you don't want to flatbed it.
I understand the dealer having you over a barrel, but it is absolutely possible to weld on these engines. I had a waterpump bolt shear off on mine and neither myself nor my indie had any luck through any means of getting that damned thing out. I had it towed to a fab shop I occasionally use and they drilled it, filled it and redrilled and tapped it. It has since been good for thousands of miles.
Does the dealer already have the head off the block? If so, I would go pick that thing up (it is yours, afterall) and take it to an automotive fab shop that welds and have them verifiably tell me if it is repairable or not.
If the head is still on the block, it basically comes down to what the dealer is charging you for a new head. I would love to know this if you are willing to share. Also, is the new head dressed from the factory, or would the dealer be swapping over the cams, valves, springs, etc.? At dealer rates, it wouldn't take too much make a flatbed tow to a fab shop worth the money. I would probably go so far as to pay my fab guy for his time to go by the dealer and eyeball it if you don't want to flatbed it.
Let's see if I can answer some of this without screwing up the answers too much
:Helicoil on the stripped bolt. He said it will have to be slightly over-drilled in order to get the broken bolt out, but not by much.
I know it can be welded but they're saying they won't do it, not that it can't be done. They also said they wouldn't install the repaired head done by someone else. With the engine all apart I'd have to pay for the labor twice (what the dealer has already done and what an indy shop would have to do to tear it all down again.). And on top of all that, I don't know if there is any other damage to that head considering it's already cracked.
The head is not off the block as they were waiting for me to decide what to do. When it does come off though, I'm keeping it.
Used heads (undressed) are anywhere from $1,000-$1,500 (I thought they were cheaper but I was wrong) with an unknown history. Am I getting one that's been welded? Is it warped and the seller has no way of knowing that or is he intentionally hiding that fact from me? Don't know. New with valves is $2K roughly. So even if we assume there's a $1,000 difference, that will get eaten up fast in new labor charges and possibly transport costs and I'm still looking at a used head. Even if the head was already off the truck I'd have to pay the labor for the work performed to date at the dealer and start a new round of labor charges at an indy shop and of course transport charges to get the truck out of the dealer.
In the end I don't feel like waiting another couple weeks, putting back in a used head with unknown history and/or incurring additional labor charges at this point. I intend to keep the vehicle and yeah, I knew of these potential issues prior to ownership so I'm not really crying in my milk, just sharing a story for everyone else. Instead, I think I'll go cry in my bourbon now!
