98 Ford Taurus, cracked head, $1000 repair- help?

S

savmcardle

New member
Number one, should it cost that much to repair this problem?
Number two, is it even worth it? The car is paid off, but I need one that won't screw up on me again and again.
Number three, I'm dirt poor anyway. I don't have anything close to $1000
Help!
 
1. Yep. That's pretty reasonable. Normal prices I've seen are around $1500 for head repair.
2. Your car is barely worth more than $1000, whether it's worth the repair or not, is up to you.
3. Yeah, and? Welcome to the same economy that everyone else is in.

As a side note, you don't buy a car that doesn't screw up. All you're doing is buying a car. How well YOU maintain it, repair it, etc, will ultimately show how reliable the car is. Don't maintain it properly, and a brand new car can break down on you within a year.

Maintain it well, and it'll last to 300,000 like two of my cars have.
 
$1000 sounds like a good deal for that repair! The good news is, it sounds like you have an honest mechanic. The bad news is the repair is worth more than the value of the car. I'd sell the car for parts and find a better car rather then shell out the grand for the repair.
 
If this car has a 3.8 V6 engine this is a common problem. So common that Ford was forced to address this along with blown head gaskets on these engines. Contact a local dealer or Ford regional rep. they can make arrangements to fix it at a Ford dealer. May not be free but reduced cost
 
Cracked head? usually the head gasket goes before the whole head cracks...

Anywho... yeah, any kind of repairs involving a head or a head gasket can easily get into four digit costs of repair. A head gasket is a cheap part, and a new head is maybe a little over $200, but it takes a ton of labor to put either of them in, and labor is expensive.

Is it worth it to that kind of money into it? Depends on how much you really want the car. Have you fixed anything else on it already? The taurus wasn't very reliable to begin with, and if you haven't fixed much on the car already, you're probably going to soon.

Dollars and cents, you're probably better off ditching that car for what you can get for it, and putting $1000 towards something else. Unless that car belonged to your dead grandma, and it's all you have left to remember her by, and the sentimental attachment to that car is worth more than any amount of dollars can express... your probably just reaching the beginnings of a money pit
 
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