Cracked Head!

[Steve C.]

Hello, just looking for an opinion here. My 1991 Alltrac manual van with 220k has a cracked head. This was determined by two different mechanics, one who works exclusively on Previa's in the Seattle area. He will repair it for $1600 which is much less than other quotes. My question is this: the van shows no signs of running badly, losing oil, losing coolant or any symptoms associated with a cracked head. In fact, it is quite likely that I have been driving it like this for the last two years-and on many long trips I should add. Should I just keep driving this van keeping an eye on colony and oil levels or buckle down and do the repair? Thanks.

[timsrv]

If you were unaware of any issues, why did you take it in? If it's not consuming antifreeze, there's no oil in antifreeze, no coolant in the oil, and/or no other indication of any problem, then somebody is trying to sell you something you don't need. What exactly did they tell you? Did they offer any other explanations?

[Steve C.]

The van was actually leaking oil-a larger leak than I am comfortable with. Turns out this had nothing to do with the head gasket though, it was some other seals causing the leak. So my buddy Ryan who owns a shop started digging around in there and did a "chemical analysis" that determined that the head gasket was starting to fail. However, he does not work on Previa's much. So I then went over to see Sami who only works on Previas and he thought it was a cracked head since it was not draining coolant, etc. He works exclusively on Previa's and I trust his opinion, he is a good guy and tries to save his customers money when he can. So that's where I am. The van itself drives just fine and I am not seeing any coolant loss yet. I should note that after going to interior BC at the end of Feb on a work trip I arrived home to Seattle with NO coolant in the van whatsoever after driving 1200 miles and cranking over mountain passes with 5 people in the van. So it's all a bit weird.

[timsrv]

Yeah, so weird in fact that I don't know what to say or recommend. If you trust Sami, I'd just do what he recommends. Tim

PS: Since you're so close, I'd also suggest giving the foreign engine exchange in Lynnwood a call. Might be worth considering a low mileage JDM engine (if available).