The head gasket failure problem with these engines is well documented
but I wondered if anyone is willing to put a percentage figure on the
likelihood of one of these engines blowing its head gasket at some stage
in its life.

A friend of mine recently bought a W plate 214 when her Xantia expired
and she needed a replacement car in a hurry. I'd hate to see her
lumbered with a big repair bill and I'd like to know if she should get
rid of it sooner rather than later.

--
Paul Giverin

British Jet Engine Website http://www.britjet.co.uk

On Wed, 02 Mar 2005 17:29:16 GMT, "Scott" <no@thanks.com> wrote:

>

>
>
>I had two headgaskets go inside 15K. First one failed after 27k, then
>second 15k later
>
Was the head skimmed before replacing the first one? False economy not
to.
--
Regards, Chris (Please take out my car to reply by email)
----1961 Austin A40 Farina----1966 Triumph Herald Estate---
---1967 Riley Elf---1965 Hillman Minx---1969 Morris Minor--
-1972 Mini Clubman estate--1957 Standard 8--1979 Ford Capri
********** Please don't email in HTML! **********

> There was a document written by somebody who I gather knows about engine
> design and has a connection with Rover, and he suggested it was the liners
> that caused the head gasket to blow, something about them needing to
> protrude above the deck by a certain amount. But either way, the engines
> still regularly blow their gaskets and whatever the cause, it still costs
> £100's to fix.

It's true - the liners do protrude above the top of the cylinder block (the
head gasket fits around them). Not sure why that would make the gasket more
likely to fail though, unless the liners themselves move when they shouldn't
(the cylinder head clamps them down onto their lower seals).

Darren

"Rushing7" <null@ntlworld.com> wrote in message
news:v0rVd.3785$Yq6.159@newsfe4-gui.ntli.net...
> "neutron" <neutron(not real)@a.b.c.co.uk> wrote in message
> news:d013ro$fn8$1@sparta.btinternet.com...
> > Ignorance is bliss mate. I've had 5 cars with K-series engines, covered
> over
> > 100k miles in them, and never had a head gasket problem. It's not as
much
> of
> > a problem as some people make out, and ignorant people like you just
> > scaremonger.
>
> Have a look on www.blatchat.com, full of Caterhams with head gasket probs
on
> K's. Most of those cars are pampered, oil change every 3000 miles etc and
> are warmed up/cooled down properly. The Caterham is also about a third
the
> weight of a Rover car so the engine is in fact doing far less work most of
> the time. They still fail.
>
> There was a document written by somebody who I gather knows about engine
> design and has a connection with Rover, and he suggested it was the liners
> that caused the head gasket to blow, something about them needing to
> protrude above the deck by a certain amount. But either way, the engines
> still regularly blow their gaskets and whatever the cause, it still costs
> £100's to fix.
>
>

Possibly Caterhams don't provide the required level of cooling to the
engine. I've never had a head gasket go and I don't actually know anyone who
has, just heard about it on TV and a few people online.

"Darren Jarvis" <dkj255@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:6J3Vd.4223$e9.1613@newsfe4-gui.ntli.net...
>
> "neutron" <neutron(not real)@a.b.c.co.uk> wrote in message
> news:d02flp$i4s$1@sparta.btinternet.com...
> >
> > "Tim S Kemp" <news@timkemp.karoo.co.uk> wrote in message
> > news:Q42dncmHv_JjLLnfRVn-vg@karoo.co.uk...
> >> Dilbert wrote:
> >> > Well this is only from my rather limited experience both of this
> >> > group and a friends cars, over the years the words "head gasket
> >> > failure" and Rover K series do seem to have cropped up in rather a
> >> > lot of postings on here!
>
> I would be interested to know what size engines and year they were...
>
>
> >> Shows how good a car they are - lots of people buy them...
>
> Good secondhand buy as they're dirt cheap, quite rustproof and have decent
> performance and spec levels.
>
>
> > They are excellent cars to drive, and the engines are still some of the
> > highest powered engines for their size. Really puts VW's pathetic
engines
> > to
> > shame in that respect.
>
> The K-series has found it's way into many cars besides the 200/400 range,
> and not all of them are Rovers! I agree about them being good to drive -
> they're comfortable and handle well (except maybe in the wet)

Disagree with you there mine handles fine in the wet, you just have to know
how to drive it and adjust.

"Paul Giverin" <paul@giverin.co.uk> wrote in message
news:1Z81RMCxq2ICFwUE@10.0.0.3...
> The head gasket failure problem with these engines is well documented
> but I wondered if anyone is willing to put a percentage figure on the
> likelihood of one of these engines blowing its head gasket at some stage
> in its life.
>
> A friend of mine recently bought a W plate 214 when her Xantia expired
> and she needed a replacement car in a hurry. I'd hate to see her
> lumbered with a big repair bill and I'd like to know if she should get
> rid of it sooner rather than later.
>

The only problem with this engine is that it is less forgiving to improper
maintenance than other engines. Judging by the large number of people I see
everyday with badly inflated tyres and one headlight not working, I should
imagine quite a big proportion of the population don't bother to ever lift
the bonnet to check fluid levels etc, except when it goes for a service once
a year (assuming they bother with that).

A lot of people just happily drive around in their cars and only take it to
a garage when something is wrong, rather than keeping it properly serviced
to minimise the risk of such failures in the future.

If it is maintained properly then she will have no more problems with it
than any other car of that age range.
--
Andrew

NOTE: Return E-mail address is a spam-trap and does not get read!

"Rushing7" <null@ntlworld.com> wrote in message
news:v0rVd.3785$Yq6.159@newsfe4-gui.ntli.net...
> "neutron" <neutron(not real)@a.b.c.co.uk> wrote in message
> news:d013ro$fn8$1@sparta.btinternet.com...
> > Ignorance is bliss mate. I've had 5 cars with K-series engines, covered
> over
> > 100k miles in them, and never had a head gasket problem. It's not as
much
> of
> > a problem as some people make out, and ignorant people like you just
> > scaremonger.
>
> Have a look on www.blatchat.com, full of Caterhams with head gasket probs
on
> K's. Most of those cars are pampered, oil change every 3000 miles etc and
> are warmed up/cooled down properly. The Caterham is also about a third
the
> weight of a Rover car so the engine is in fact doing far less work most of
> the time. They still fail.
>
> There was a document written by somebody who I gather knows about engine
> design and has a connection with Rover, and he suggested it was the liners
> that caused the head gasket to blow, something about them needing to
> protrude above the deck by a certain amount. But either way, the engines
> still regularly blow their gaskets and whatever the cause, it still costs
> £100's to fix.
>
>
The root of the problem is indeed the liners- they are not fixed at the top
(o ring at bottom) and consequently move around. There is very little
protrusion, so the movement is worse than it might be which "rubs" against
the h/g and causes it to blow. They are also an iron construction, so dont
expand as much or as quickly as the rest of the aluminium engine which
doesnt help.

Very careful assembly and correct torque-ing / dial gauging of the head
bolts can help, but if you have a K, then assume the h/g will fail at some
point(s).

Tim..

" Tim (Remove NOSPAM. Registry corupted, reformated HD and lost alot of
stuff " <the.farm@NOSPAMbtinternet.com> wrote in message
news:d0715n$ioe$1@hercules.btinternet.com...
>
> "Rushing7" <null@ntlworld.com> wrote in message
> news:v0rVd.3785$Yq6.159@newsfe4-gui.ntli.net...
> > "neutron" <neutron(not real)@a.b.c.co.uk> wrote in message
> > news:d013ro$fn8$1@sparta.btinternet.com...
> > > Ignorance is bliss mate. I've had 5 cars with K-series engines,
covered
> > over
> > > 100k miles in them, and never had a head gasket problem. It's not as
> much
> > of
> > > a problem as some people make out, and ignorant people like you just
> > > scaremonger.
> >
> > Have a look on www.blatchat.com, full of Caterhams with head gasket
probs
> on
> > K's. Most of those cars are pampered, oil change every 3000 miles etc
and
> > are warmed up/cooled down properly. The Caterham is also about a third
> the
> > weight of a Rover car so the engine is in fact doing far less work most
of
> > the time. They still fail.
> >
> > There was a document written by somebody who I gather knows about engine
> > design and has a connection with Rover, and he suggested it was the
liners
> > that caused the head gasket to blow, something about them needing to
> > protrude above the deck by a certain amount. But either way, the
engines
> > still regularly blow their gaskets and whatever the cause, it still
costs
> > £100's to fix.
> >
> >
> The root of the problem is indeed the liners- they are not fixed at the
top
> (o ring at bottom) and consequently move around. There is very little
> protrusion, so the movement is worse than it might be which "rubs" against
> the h/g and causes it to blow. They are also an iron construction, so dont
> expand as much or as quickly as the rest of the aluminium engine which
> doesnt help.
>
> Very careful assembly and correct torque-ing / dial gauging of the head
> bolts can help, but if you have a K, then assume the h/g will fail at some
> point(s).
>
> Tim..
>
>

I wouldn't say that at all. As I have already posted, it's never happened to
me with 5 K-series cars, and I don't know of anyone it's happened to. Also,
MGRover improved the gasket in the last year so it is far less likely to
happen now.

Best advise is if your HG does fail, make sure the garage replace it with a
proper Rover one. Half the problem is dodgy garages using cheap parts. I
remember when Watchdog did an article on it in one of their programs and
they showed a K-series HG in the studio and it was actually not a proper
Rover one they showed!

"neutron" <neutron(not real)@a.b.c.co.uk> wrote in message
news:d0842k$snr$1@hercules.btinternet.com...
>
> " Tim (Remove NOSPAM. Registry corupted, reformated HD and lost alot of
> stuff " <the.farm@NOSPAMbtinternet.com> wrote in message
> news:d0715n$ioe$1@hercules.btinternet.com...
> >
> > "Rushing7" <null@ntlworld.com> wrote in message
> > news:v0rVd.3785$Yq6.159@newsfe4-gui.ntli.net...
> > > "neutron" <neutron(not real)@a.b.c.co.uk> wrote in message
> > > news:d013ro$fn8$1@sparta.btinternet.com...
> > > > Ignorance is bliss mate. I've had 5 cars with K-series engines,
> covered
> > > over
> > > > 100k miles in them, and never had a head gasket problem. It's not as
> > much
> > > of
> > > > a problem as some people make out, and ignorant people like you just
> > > > scaremonger.
> > >
> > > Have a look on www.blatchat.com, full of Caterhams with head gasket
> probs
> > on
> > > K's. Most of those cars are pampered, oil change every 3000 miles etc
> and
> > > are warmed up/cooled down properly. The Caterham is also about a
third
> > the
> > > weight of a Rover car so the engine is in fact doing far less work
most
> of
> > > the time. They still fail.
> > >
> > > There was a document written by somebody who I gather knows about
engine
> > > design and has a connection with Rover, and he suggested it was the
> liners
> > > that caused the head gasket to blow, something about them needing to
> > > protrude above the deck by a certain amount. But either way, the
> engines
> > > still regularly blow their gaskets and whatever the cause, it still
> costs
> > > £100's to fix.
> > >
> > >
> > The root of the problem is indeed the liners- they are not fixed at the
> top
> > (o ring at bottom) and consequently move around. There is very little
> > protrusion, so the movement is worse than it might be which "rubs"
against
> > the h/g and causes it to blow. They are also an iron construction, so
dont
> > expand as much or as quickly as the rest of the aluminium engine which
> > doesnt help.
> >
> > Very careful assembly and correct torque-ing / dial gauging of the head
> > bolts can help, but if you have a K, then assume the h/g will fail at
some
> > point(s).
> >
> > Tim..
> >
> >
>
> I wouldn't say that at all. As I have already posted, it's never happened
to
> me with 5 K-series cars, and I don't know of anyone it's happened to.
Also,
> MGRover improved the gasket in the last year so it is far less likely to
> happen now.
>
> Best advise is if your HG does fail, make sure the garage replace it with
a
> proper Rover one. Half the problem is dodgy garages using cheap parts. I
> remember when Watchdog did an article on it in one of their programs and
> they showed a K-series HG in the studio and it was actually not a proper
> Rover one they showed!

FYI, Rover have modified the HG for the K series a total of 7 times,
finishing with the composite one we have now, and the inlet manifold gasket
3 times.

Tim..

" Tim.. (Remove Safetycatch)" <the.farm@NOSPAMbtinternet.com> wrote in
message news:d09s94$er7$1@sparta.btinternet.com...
>
> "neutron" <neutron(not real)@a.b.c.co.uk> wrote in message
> news:d0842k$snr$1@hercules.btinternet.com...
> >
> > " Tim (Remove NOSPAM. Registry corupted, reformated HD and lost alot of
> > stuff " <the.farm@NOSPAMbtinternet.com> wrote in message
> > news:d0715n$ioe$1@hercules.btinternet.com...
> > >
> > > "Rushing7" <null@ntlworld.com> wrote in message
> > > news:v0rVd.3785$Yq6.159@newsfe4-gui.ntli.net...
> > > > "neutron" <neutron(not real)@a.b.c.co.uk> wrote in message
> > > > news:d013ro$fn8$1@sparta.btinternet.com...
> > > > > Ignorance is bliss mate. I've had 5 cars with K-series engines,
> > covered
> > > > over
> > > > > 100k miles in them, and never had a head gasket problem. It's not
as
> > > much
> > > > of
> > > > > a problem as some people make out, and ignorant people like you
just
> > > > > scaremonger.
> > > >
> > > > Have a look on www.blatchat.com, full of Caterhams with head gasket
> > probs
> > > on
> > > > K's. Most of those cars are pampered, oil change every 3000 miles
etc
> > and
> > > > are warmed up/cooled down properly. The Caterham is also about a
> third
> > > the
> > > > weight of a Rover car so the engine is in fact doing far less work
> most
> > of
> > > > the time. They still fail.
> > > >
> > > > There was a document written by somebody who I gather knows about
> engine
> > > > design and has a connection with Rover, and he suggested it was the
> > liners
> > > > that caused the head gasket to blow, something about them needing to
> > > > protrude above the deck by a certain amount. But either way, the
> > engines
> > > > still regularly blow their gaskets and whatever the cause, it still
> > costs
> > > > £100's to fix.
> > > >
> > > >
> > > The root of the problem is indeed the liners- they are not fixed at
the
> > top
> > > (o ring at bottom) and consequently move around. There is very little
> > > protrusion, so the movement is worse than it might be which "rubs"
> against
> > > the h/g and causes it to blow. They are also an iron construction, so
> dont
> > > expand as much or as quickly as the rest of the aluminium engine which
> > > doesnt help.
> > >
> > > Very careful assembly and correct torque-ing / dial gauging of the
head
> > > bolts can help, but if you have a K, then assume the h/g will fail at
> some
> > > point(s).
> > >
> > > Tim..
> > >
> > >
> >
> > I wouldn't say that at all. As I have already posted, it's never
happened
> to
> > me with 5 K-series cars, and I don't know of anyone it's happened to.
> Also,
> > MGRover improved the gasket in the last year so it is far less likely to
> > happen now.
> >
> > Best advise is if your HG does fail, make sure the garage replace it
with
> a
> > proper Rover one. Half the problem is dodgy garages using cheap parts. I
> > remember when Watchdog did an article on it in one of their programs and
> > they showed a K-series HG in the studio and it was actually not a proper
> > Rover one they showed!
>
> FYI, Rover have modified the HG for the K series a total of 7 times,
> finishing with the composite one we have now, and the inlet manifold
gasket
> 3 times.
>
> Tim..


Yeah I know, and the latest one is very reliable indeed. BMW recalled all
their M5s recently because of engine problems...not the first time they've
had to sort things with that car. Most cars seem to have certain problems,
Rovers are actually pretty reliable imo.