NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

[Adammcf]

Just called the work shop and they have just finished testing the head from my 325 Sport.

Result - Its porous! Basically its scrap now.

Now Ive got to try and find another good head from somewhere that isnt going to break the bank.

Oh well, theres my week ruined.

[JAMZ]

Sry to hear that ad..

BTW..what does that mean exactly? guessing the head is all farked up inside the casing? rough metal etc etc

Carl

[Adammcf]

Basically the inside of the head has got little holes now which is letting the water into the oil.
Im just checking a few places for parts and Euro Car Parts do heads.
The only wierd thing is though that one is Ԛ£706 and the other is Ԛ£156.
See below:

303110140 E30,E34 M20 BARE CYL HEAD S/S TO 303110141
Ԛ£706.39
AMC n/a 303110141 CYL.HEAD-BARE E30/34**352i/525i M20
Ԛ£156.76


Any ideas why the big difference?

[Davenotouring]

Sorry to hear that mate.

Like I say, there's one round my way for sale still I think. I'm going there for the head to be put on mine this Friday, so I'll see if they still have it.

Still got the exhaust manifold and inlet manifold on too. Might wanna get it pressure tested and refaced. Obviously you don't wanna spend out on it if it's not sweet, so I'll see if I can sort something. If you're interested, drop me a PM.

[Adammcf]

Ive just had a look on the website and part numbers which end in 0 are Original, 1 are alternative quality.

Cheers, I'll let you know the score.

[Adammcf]

Now the question is:
AMC n/a 303110141 CYL.HEAD-BARE E30/34**352i/525i M20

This part is made by AMC and is less than Ԛ£200. Has anyone heard of them before? Are they a reliable brand?

Any info is welcome. Cheers.

[Jos]

Check what those ** mean too, normally refers to a core swap, ie they get your old head. So they could be refurb efforts.

[Adammcf]

Would a recon head be ok or should I stay clear of those too?

[Jhonno]

doh!! sorry to hear it dude! bet you thought you got away from that when you left the xe

[TOURINGDADDY]

It's a sad day

[Sjoerd320i]

sorry to hear that mate
hope you can get it all sorted dude for resonable money

[320Touring]

Dude.....

here's hoping that you can get another head fairly cheaply and get it sorted!

if you need anything, gimme a bell and I'll see what I can 'source'

[Simon13]

c3 in south london might be able to help. it's luck of the draw on the 2.5 engine some cars do 250,000k and some do 50k

[Jos]

Would a recon head be ok or should I stay clear of those too?

Looking at ECP's website I would say for sure they are recon heads. Basically they get your other head back and refund you the surcharge if it is in refurbishable condition.. which yours isn't. There are 2 surcharges listed, I would guess it is the Ԛ£170.21 one for the head. You won't get that back so infact the price would be Ԛ£385 for the bare head.

I think your best bet might be to look round breakers and see if you can get a head, otherwise it will be big money. Guessing Ԛ£500+ for a new/recon head. I think a recon head would probably be ok, I don't think they could sell heads that didn't meet manufacturers specs although I would imagine that theses heads are skimmed and you might need to up the gasket size to compensate.


http://www.motormec.co.uk/engine.html Ԛ£550 for a complete head.

hmm, OT but they also do a camshaft kit for the M40 that cures the noisy tappet issue for Ԛ£200

[Ant]

Dont buy a head off ECP or GSF, they all come from FAB anyways with a major markup.........

buy direct, still no bargain but why line someones pocket un-neccesarily ? (sp)

[placey]

m20 heads and blocks are known for becoming porous. it's essential to renew coolant every 2 years for a long life.

paul

[Adammcf]

Ant - who are FAB? Never heard of them? Cheers.

Bloody cars!

[320Touring]

Bloody cars!

you know you love it dude

sometimes cars get 'headaches' too.....

plus it could have been worse (e.g johnmsn or gwenlynm10 )

new head and all will be right again-zooming up backroads at the speed limit

[Simon13]

FAB are a breakers basically

01594 827333 or www.fabdirect.com

they're in Cinderford, Gloucestershire

HTH

[A1BMW325iSport]

i`ve used FAB a few times in the past and they are pretty good

[Adammcf]

Just got a call back from this place as I sent an enquiry about 20 mins ago.
http://www.linwar.com/

They have fully reconditioned heads with everything re-machined and tested in stock for 295+vat on exchange and also do delivery as well.

They also have a 6 month warranty on the heads. Sounds good.

[Simon13]

yeah but u want bigger valves, shrick cam, and ported and gas flowed as well while your there!!

[325icab]

hi mate i was having trouble finding a head as well, it not easy. but there is a breaker in huddesfield that has got recon heads for Ԛ£190 that is including delivery. and they have 6 months gaurantee, hope this helps

[325icab]

forgot to giv you the number. it is 08454081640

[Jos]

Just got a call back from this place as I sent an enquiry about 20 mins ago.
http://www.linwar.com/

They have fully reconditioned heads with everything re-machined and tested in stock for 295+vat on exchange and also do delivery as well.

They also have a 6 month warranty on the heads. Sounds good.

Will they take a porus head on exchange?

[Jhonno]

yeah dude - why u got the head off its deffo time for some nice additions...

[Adammcf]

Just got a call back from this place as I sent an enquiry about 20 mins ago.
http://www.linwar.com/

They have fully reconditioned heads with everything re-machined and tested in stock for 295+vat on exchange and also do delivery as well.

They also have a 6 month warranty on the heads. Sounds good.

Will they take a porus head on exchange?

He didnt seem to mind. I said it was porous but he didnt say anything. Its only a Ԛ£75 surcharge if its no good so Im not too worried.


325icab - Cheers for that. Must give them a bell too. Did you get one from them? If so was it any good?

[PeteE30Tourer]

Sorry to hear your news Adam. As i've said before, i'm facing the same problem, but rather than pay out for a pressure test, i'm going to cut my losses and fit a replacement head. Virtually everyone i've spoken to about this problem has said it's the head that cracks or becomes porous.

I'm buying a head from a bloke on this forum - hope to get it in the next few days. I am seriously considering an uprated cam whilst i'm at it - Ԛ£200 for the DBilas cam plus another Ԛ£100 for the uprated springs (some say you need them, some say you dont). Seems like an ideal opportunity to beef things up a little whilst the head is off.

[Adammcf]

Im not going to bother with anything else when Im changing the head. These engines dont really give any worthwile gains for the money it takes.
I'd rather spend some money on the bodywork fitting new suspension parts.

[rare]

what a bugger mate!! Hope you manage to get it sorted on the somewhat cheap side

[H35-IAN]

personally id find a mint low milage second hand head m8 ,,,, on the understanding that u can take it back if its no good!!

u will get one for next to fuk all if u keep ur eyes open! unless ur building a new engine i dont see the point in going brand new on the head just my advice!

sorry to here that m8..

[krazypaul]

I was gonna make a jibe about 325s and their dodgy heads and generally fragile mechanics but I thought it isn't really a laughing matter....

kp

[Adammcf]

I dont mind Krazypaul, I think theyre crap engines to be honest. Not even close to the engines in my last couple of cars - Honda Vtec and Astra GSI. Then again though, these 325 engines were designed at least 20 years ago when most cars fell apart after 100k miles.