Blown Head Gasket repair, Now Piston rings?

nanci27

 Blown Head Gasket Now Piston rings.

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Hi,
I hope this is the right place to post this. I am at a bit of a loss right now with my Honda FRV 2005 Petrol 1.7 which has done just over 100,000 miles. I bought it in July for £1970 (well my partner went to the garage and bought it) Turns out the garage where conmen and a month after buying it Ive now seen quite a few other people having bought dud cars. The garage has packed up and left. There is no way of getting our money back.

So my partner was driving the car and did not notice the temp on the motorway and blew the gasket. We took it to a garage and they offered to do the job, test the engine etc for cash which was a bit cheaper (around £675), having said it worth getting it done. My partner decided it was worth it and said yes. Having strung us a long for weeks they said they had looked at the cylinders and there was a problem so they were doing that too for not too much extra. Ok so now they said they had fixed the gasket but the car was still pumping out white smoke. They are saying that its now the pistons and we should buy a second hand engine which they will fit for £175 which is less than half of what they normally charge. A second hand engine if we can find one is around £300 apparently. Bearing in mind what we paid for it I am very skeptical to pour more money in the car.

I also feel that they may be trying it on with us as i have read that you should know about the pistons when you get the engine compression tested, which they said they did. Does this sound like a reasonable deal from the garage or should I try get the car from them and a second opinion? How much am I expected to pay for a repair that has not actually fixed my car?

We are on an extremely low budget so any advice or thoughts would be so helpful. Its been one bad thing after another and we only wanted a car to be able to escape with the kids and its turned into a total waste of time and money.

foxy-stoat

A compression test on an engine with a blown headgasket would of shown compression low on whatever cylinder more than likely due to headgasket, they would of assumed that the block/piston/piston rings are ok, there is no way of checking without doing a leak down test and even then not conclusive.

HG's normally go because of something else, a £10 thermostat that is stuck shut or a £5 plastic pipe with a split in can empty the coolant system of coolant and overheat and if you drive it long enough the HG is the first thing to let go and if you rush out and fill it up with cold water you can toast the engine, so I doubt the garage sold you the car with a faulty HG.

For me, as your partner drove an overheating engine on the motorway it maybe 50/50 if the engine is repairable without a full strip down, I wouldn't of assumed that replacing the HG will cure it.  Did they have the head and block checked and skimmed?

Odd that white smoke is still coming out as water doesn't come through the pistons, so the block may have a crack in it.

I would look at selling it as it is with the faults listed and try your luck with another car....at this level try and buy from a private seller who has owned and looked after it for a few years, rather than a garage selling a £1000 car for £2000.

nanci27

Thanks for your reply, they did skim the head and they have said there is a crack in the block which is why they have said to get a secondhand engine. 
I understand as first time car buyers we have made a mistake we will learn from! I feel reluctant to pour more money into the car but then paying £850 to the mechanic for a broken car and losing the initial £1950 feels painful beyond relief at this point. Family are saying take the risk but my gut says take the hit and move on.

missile

I would sell it spares or repair. Next time you (or your partner) buy, take someone with experience who can advise you.
"they offered to do the job, test the engine etc for cash"   Trustworthy garages do not offer discount for cash.

nanci27

missile said:

I would sell it spares or repair. Next time you (or your partner) buy, take someone with experience who can advise you.
"they offered to do the job, test the engine etc for cash"   Trustworthy garages do not offer discount for cash.

Yes and I felt this but its difficult for me as Im a non driver and my partner was handling it even with my reservations. I won't make this mistake again.