the best modification to do when replacing HG on K-series is MOVE the engine thermostat!!! I purchased a landrover thermostat housing containing a pressure release thermostat. I removed the standard stat on the K-series but left housing in place and fitted new stat at the top of the radiator into the pipe that runs along the top of the rad. needless to say the engine heats up better stat opens earlier and protects the engine alot better!

So glad I found this video, was just about to buy a second cylinder head for my Rover 75 but after closely inspecting the inlet manifold gasket I found it was leaking coolant into Number 4 cylinder, thanks Autoinform you saved me a load of money

Great Video..!! I've learnt a lot and were able to resolve the problem for my cousin's MG. He was charged 4k AUS dollar to have the head gasket replaced, But they didn't fix the problem. It turned out after careful investigation/luck, we managed the track down the inlet manifold water 3/8" pipe was blocked with deposit hence no water could get into the cylinder head. It could have happened again without finding out the REAL PROBLEM..!!! Thanks mate.

Excellent advice given here, having done several K-series headgaskets I'd like to add how important it is to keep not only the cylinder bores and water channels clear of contamination, but critically the bolt holes prior to replacement. I speak from experience managing to snap a cylinder head bolt! Tho due to the sandwich construction of the engine you have the option to remove the sump and access the bolt from there - so not the end of the world but best avoided in the first place!

@harryhillys ....cont. The problems emerged when there was a need to expand the engine capacity to 1.6 & 1.8 which effectively meant the introduction of larger capacity liners etc operating on a damp liner principle. This was less tolerable to overheating and coupled with poor engineering decisions such as nylon locating dowels and plastic inlet manifolds meant head movement and more opportunities to leak.

The best video on KZread about the K series engine. I'm having my inlet manifold, head gasket and piston liners replaced (or a whole new engine if they find any hairline cracks in the engine block) and this gives a great overview of what they're actually doing to my TF.

These Cylinder Head Gaskets rarely FAIL. Invariably as can happen with many engines, yes even BMWs, ask my work colleagues, over heating following coolant loss can damage engine components and so the poor gasket is usually the first to suffer damage so can no longer do the job it is designed to do. The video uses the term fail rather than the fact that the poor thing may have been damaged by some other process including professional incompetence by those entrusted with a car's well being and maintenance. By the way, my MG ZS bought new in 2003 with the "They all do that, well known fact" K-Series 1.8 has yet to "do that" . Now in its sixteenth year of ownership and my wife's daily driver has never missed a beat. Yeah I know we've been lucky. Howver, the car has always been serviced by me and only visits a pro-outfit come Mot test time. Bought three new K-Series cars all still in the family and none have done that ... yet. There's always a first time. ON ANY CAR! In my experience prime root cause of these so called "failures" is coolant loss. Be it a worn Water Pump allowing coolant to escape unnoticed, a poorly pro-fitted exhaust Manifold gasket 180 the wrong way around stopping the coolant elbow clamped nearby to be fully flush with the cylinder head. Cue coolant at pressure escaping through the small gap. I could go on with numerous other examples. The poor car gets the blame every time when the real blame lay elsewhere. The level of ignorance shown by some replies is so typical of the know-all know nowt mindsets.

@robganderson9780

5 жыл бұрын

A very good description thank you, I have solid water pipes and sometimes no heating had many a variety of reasons its like that,from head gasket to water seals gone, good it be water pump, the coolant level drops and gets very hot but no change on the thermostat gauge.

@douglaskirui9414

4 жыл бұрын

My rover 7.5 1.8 had the overheating issue just repaired it replaced the headgasket water pump n the oil rail but still the temperature gauge is raising dramatically n cooling too fast too what could I have missed

I've had 3 golf gti's My daughter had a Rover 25, no problem with it. Then I bought 1. My '03 did have a head gasket fail and it cost me £335 18 mths ago. Which obviously included oil, filter and coolant, plus the mid section of the exhaust which needed doing. No problem, my golfs cost that much for a service. My current 25 is a 54 reg and going really well. They are great cars and luckily because most people think there's a major worry with HGF, they are cheap to buy. Don't tell anyone!!

I discovered this failure mechanism of the PRT thermostat that leads to overheating when idling on my Freelander 1.8 and thought it would be interesting to MGRover owners as well, if they have the external PRT thermostat. Here is the problem: At idle there is little water flow through the PRT bypass hose as the water pressure is low and the PRT spring /plate is closed and limits the bypass flow. The flow is restricted to 4 small holes in the plate. This small flow of hot water has to heat the thermostat which has cold water the other side of it and the PRT is a bit of distance away from the engine. Soo.. the engine could get very hot before the thermostat eventually opens. Which is what I see happening, and its made worst by the fans coming on as the engine gets hot, as this air flow just cools the PRT and bypass flow more, which doesn't help open the thermostat. Any revs quickly opens the pressure spring/plate due to higher water pressure, this increases hot water flow to the stat and it opens, rapidly cooling the engine with colder water. Not good either = big sudden temperature change. The effect is made worse by the internal rubber seal on the PRT thermostat ageing and maybe leaking slightly. Many people say they dont have a problem, but the car temperature gauge hides it well, showing ‘normal’ from about 60C to 110C! Use an OBDII reader to show the temperature while sitting idle for 20 mins and it might show a problem. Worse in cold weather. So a better system is, I believe, with an engine water outlet thermostat. This would then regulate the outlet temperature keeping it constant, reducing engine temperature fluctuations which can be bad for the HG. This is what a lot of people do for high performance k-series engines. The good news is that with a bit of simple replumbing (swapping connections/ reversing flows) the old PRT thermostat can be transformed into an output type thermostat at zero cost. Problem fixed and the side benefit is also a better heater and less temperature fluctuation which means fewer head gasket issues. This is the video I did to describe the problem and the fix that I have been running for the last year: kzread.info/dash/bejne/eK2lmdt9nLixdMo.html

Great video...Iv'e just bought my first ever MGTF....loving it! ;)

Nice clear video. Thanks Autoinform. My garage quoted £7-800 for replacement HG, looked sad about it, said it was a bitch to do as they are "In a weird position in the Rover25" and gave my car a terminally ill diagnosis. That was without proper analysis, not checking the level of warping everywhere -if there even was any.....(I could have understood if the engine was a mess, but they hadn't even checked that or stripped it.) Mind you, they sell second hand cars....And I'm a girl and I wear pink wellies! LOL I was tempted to use K-Seal or steel seal, (etc) but instinct said no. Somehow I couldn't imagine all the copper stuff floating about the cooling system, and sticking to most things that got hot. Sounded messy to me. I think the Rover25 HG replacement could be done for a LOT less than 7-800.

@T16MGJ

2 жыл бұрын

Hmmmm.. Irrespective of a girl or not, never use that garage. Renewing a CHG on a Rover 25 or MG ZR with the 1.4 K-Series has to be one of the easiest DOHC engines to work on in the known Universe. Years ago, when my penniless younger son needing to commute to UNI thirty five miles away, he asked me to source some cheap reliable transport. Asked him what would he like but he had no idea what to get. Then, because two of his friends had Rover 25s and MG ZRs, that'll do. Back then, even on ebay spares or repairs cars were numerous and included those with suspect so called failed Head Gaskets. One such Rover 25 accurately described located in Anglesey struggled to get many bids because of that remote location. I bid and won it for a good price. Needed to tow in back from Anglesey, decided to make a day out of it taking a route in the marvellous scenery of North Wales. Trailered the car back the hundred odd miles using the faster more direct main roads and Motorways. Nice day out. Back home. soon had Cylinder Head off and no sign of Cylinder Head Gasket Damage. Not for the first time have I removed a sound K-Series gasket in an overheated car which was OK. The overheating due simply to a worn out Water Pump. The first suspect mentioned in Autoinform's fine KZread posting. My only criticism, ober use of the word "Failure". More often than not they are damaged. Fitted MLS to that nice little Rover 25 and all these years later, that little car never misses a beat and well north of 100,000 reliable miles now and in regular daily use. Being a youngster's first car, is a bit bashed about with small dents and scrapes. That mainly due to his first drive in Snow ... "It went straight on Dad. Did not steer." Yeah .. right.... 😉 .. That's part of the learning process... Never let him down though. No question, the little K-Series is a doddle to work on and that Garage were misleading their customers in many fronts including the cost estimate. That sadly is far from rare in my experience. Finally, if you have read this far, well done. Here's a useful tip for anyone working on cylinder heads on any car especially K-Series ones. The best Cylinder Head Gaskets in "In the World" ( best read that with a farmer Clarkson accent .. 😉 .. ) will not last long if the most important checking and thorough cleaning preparation is not done properly. Several K-Series CHG repairs since have mostly been done fitting MLS ( Multi-Layer-Steel ) available off ebay for less than £20 delivered to your door. Contrary to popular belief, it aint Rocket Science although some would tell you it is.

@discocreator76 To be fair to Rover it was completely new technology as they were the first manufacturer to introduce the long bolt design. When they originally came out in 1.1 and 1.4 design they were much more robust as they used a wet liner design and they had decent inlet manifolds offering little opportunity for leaks. The first R8 rovers and metros didn't have HGF as a major problem and when so much later in mileage.

@discocreator76 In terms of the head gasket they are the same, however an advantage with the VVC engine is that they have an aluminium inlet manifold which is less likely to provide problems with leaks. All K series engines used to have aircraft grade aluminium gaskets on the SPI, however Rover in their wisdom decided to replace these for the MPI engines around 1992-3 to a plastic design. It was claimed that this was for efficiency reasons for a clean passage of air but it was cost saving!!

@harryhillys .....cont 2. The larger capacity engines also inevitably went in heavier cars meaning more stress and bang HGF is coolant wasn't kept in check. HGF however is not inevitable as a few simple modifications and good maintenance go a long way. In short change the radiator every few years, fit a pressure relief thermostat (especially on the MGF) to prevent thermal shock and ensure you keep an eye out for leaks regularly. Gaskets only tend to fail through movement on the block and heat

@harryhillys MLS Gasket works a treat and has had virtually no failures, providing of course the cause of HGF is found and cured as it is more robust. However, if your head has gone too soft through serious overheating then no gasket will work for a long period

Well I'm just about to tackle this myself and this has helped a lot, thanks.

Deffo a lot of info there. Ive got an older Freelander. I think over heating is very common on these engines and for a Freelander, the 1.8 engine is quite under powered.. I went down the path of fitting a modified thermostat which allows some water to always flow through to the rad. I changed my mind about it though and went back to the original thermosat...and simply drilled a small hole in it. Takes a little longer to warm up but no other probs so far..

Good job

Many years ago,when as usual I couldn't sleep the only thing on TV was the open university, I did state many years! Any hoo,1 programe I watched, with my jaw dropping more and more,was on the development of the "K series", From the differential crown wheel being SUPER GLUED!" to the carrier on to the head/block gasket debacle. I recall thinking,at the time,"well,there's going to be good money to make with these". And I was right. I wonder if this would all still have happened if the had run their design past an actual mechanic first? You know I miss the old OU programs.

Usually if a head gasket fails for the second time and its been done properly first its down to liners as the can lower at heat and cause a gap allowing the cylinder head to not sit properly on the face of the block allowing water to seep through.

Read aronline, best write up on the K series by a real engineer. Amazing engines and details the many misconceptions about the engine. New found respect for the Rover engineers of the day, way way ahead of their time and goes to show the ignorance around the servicing/tuning of this engine.

Hello there! my r25 has been using abit toomuch water lately. Early in the week, It started dipping in power (you know that jolting forward feeling) when my car was cold and today the temperature gauge was being erratic, getting super hot then back to normal, when I stopped there was a hissing coming from behind the top of the engine and what looked like steam? but not alot. My car is on 53k miles, original HG and the oil is still really clean? Is my worst fear about to happen? what checks as a novice can I do at home? thanks in advance

The mls uprated gasket never sealed leaked everywhere externally on my k-series engine had to revert to sls to get it to seal cylinder head was skimmed new head bolts and no warpage head block face or liner droppage so beware of mls! The only reason mine failed was the waterpump was worn which lost all coolant and the mrs was driving the car and failed to stop!

Hello! I have a '97 Rover 414 that has seized. the oil is correct, there is no aparent HG failure (coolant is good and has no leaks) ... is it a recuring problem, as so with the HG?? a friend of mina as a 2001 Rover 45 and it has hapened the same thing, for no aparent reason... The new gasket and the re-inforcement plate you've shown, do you supply it?

You really should of asked some of the mobile mechanics on the owners club to come and fix it for you. £350 tops. Even the most abused K-series can be repaired cheaply. The only time they cannot is if it's been overheated to the extend of the Aluminium annealing. Then it's scrap.

hi there I was wondering if mg knew about the head gaskets and such....at what point did they install the newer gaskets its just watching this video has me concerned I have a 2002 mg tf what type gasket what fitted in the factory by mg hope to hear your correspondence in this matter.....cheers

Has Sterling Automotive gone? I had some training last week at VW in Eastbourne, and Sterling was not where I remember it being?

Hi, can anyone help me. Head gasket went on my 1.4 ZR, i replaced it. Car running well. since filling the coolant up from the gasket change it has stayed high for about 3 mouths (above max) i therefore siphoned a-bit out to just under max. looked at it 2 months later and it has gone below minimum. when i drive away water comes out of the exhaust, no other leaks . why is water coming out of the exhaust?

2:23 how can a liner drop? As with my model car's engine, surely they are flanged to seat at a fixed, consistent position in the cylinder block's bore.

@cam9783

8 жыл бұрын

+sonicstep you would think, wouldnt you.

I have a issue with small amouts of coolent loss had to buy a CYLINDER HEAD & GASKETS TESTER KIT UNIVERSAL on ebay it confermed there was combustion gas in the coolent a sure sign of a head gasket leek guess i nees to spend some cash

Hi, I have a 97' 414 si with 1.4 lt engine. Now I'am at 233.000 km. I want to use the car as much as possible. Nowadays I have coolant loss and time to change the gasket is coming it seems. My service told me that they want to put old aluminum gasket because when we need to open up the engine again MLS gasket will cause more damage to egnine block than the aluminum one. Is it true? Probably I will want to open it again for cylinders in the future..

Sir i am from india and i have Maruti Suzuki Versa DX2I m in need help as my car is overheating and i have changed the thermostat and replaced both the hose pipes and cleaned the radiator but my car gets overheat on running in AC and not without AC when i drive my car Without Ac for 35 to 40 km no overheating but after that its overheat and driving in AC its Causes the car the overheat in 5 to 10 km the coolant comes out from the the box where we have to put coolant so please help

Exactly.

Hi my wife owns a MG ZR 1.4. her headgasket has been replaced. there is no pressure or heat in the engine. the mechanics have stated everything seems to be doing what it should be except the pressure and heat.

Does this coolant issue cause the car cut out/run bad ??

I have just bought an MGF with 54000 miles, found it in a barn in France, got it going after 3 years standing, Drives ok, doesn't overheat, I am wondering is a thermostat conversion has been done any one know how can I tell,? the car has had 10 owners

@C42ST3N

7 жыл бұрын

If the thermsotat is converted you should find the new housing outside the engine. It is a gray box. If there is no gray box or water intersection, than you don´t have the PRRT fitted.

I've spent more on head gasket repairs and coolant expansion tanks, than what my Rover 45 is worth. Just like another ill fated Rover 400, both cars consumed coolant like no other car I have owned. Total must to avoid for anyone thinking of buying 2nd hand.

Hi there, very good video, but always hear about the mayonnaise in coolant and what not, but if you watch my video. There is a jet of water spraying streight out of the head! Never heard of anybody else's going this way....have a look its a bad one hahaa

@ash - yes

Ello please can u help?

Interesting to watch, but MLS gasket is not bullet proof and has lots of issues. it’s alright on a brand new engine, but the very latest Elastomer gasket is a very good gasket and better on used engines, especially if there are any issues with the the liners, the gasket is more forgiving and reliable. As highlighted, the K series has more issues with the ancillaries causing over heating than the head gasket, especially the inlet manifold gasket, so anything that is going to cause overheating will eventually cause a head gasket failure. The new N series gasket is the best of the lot, far superior to the MLS one.

this guy is a fucking legend

When the head gasket fails then drop it off at the scrappy.

It absolutely stuns me that these engines suffer so many issues. Begs one to ask why the damn things weren't engineered correctly initially. When compared to contemporary Jaguar engines, which are generally very long lived, these are very poor indeed. Obviously explains why MG/Rover in a British sense is dead while Jaguar/Daimler survived. Jaguar always tested their engines in a pilot sense to iron out flaws like these. The XK engines were world-beaters on launch. The V12 is a stunning engine, and the AJ6 and AJ16 engines are pretty bulletproof. I remember working for an MG specialist, and he hated these K-Series engines with a passion. Incredibly, Kia Motors Australia used the Rover derived 2.5 litre V6 engine in the early Kia Carnivals and we replaced hundreds of these hand over fist under warranty because the liners dropped inducing head-gasket failure-surprise-surprise...They're just rubbish in my opinion, and anyone buying a car with this motor must either be a narcissist or totally ignorant of motor-cars in general. Just don't buy one!

@rogeruk9263

6 жыл бұрын

The engine is fine but they used a cheaper head gasket to save cost which they never knowingly knew would fail months or years later. Don’t buy a petrol Rover unless it’s had a professional fitted new head gasket . I know this because a chap told me the main designer of the engine told him the above.

@arrenlambert8044

5 жыл бұрын

Jaguar engines aren't without there faults too, the v8 engines commonly experience timing chain tensioner failier and bottom end bearing failier arround the 100k mark. Trust me I own one and have taken steps to prevent this, and just in time too. And know of and have fixed many other engines, the old 6 cylinder engines also suffered bottom end failier and ware on the bearings if not correctly serviced. As with any engine, if the correct steps are taken with the k series it is a strong reliable engine, anyone who says otherwise needs to go and do there research befor assuming an engine that was ahead of its time is a bad engine, rover never built a bad engine it's the owners that destroy them buy not keeping up maintenance. We do it with our body's, that's why we're alive now so why not our cars?

Well, we know that the HG will fail sooner or later, so look at it another way - HGF is God's way of telling us to change the belt. ie don't do any serious work until the HG goes. The cars are fine, so talk of scrapping just because of a HGF seems a shame. I'm happy with the engines otherwise, and currently have a Rover 75, Rover 25 and an MGF.

Head gasket gone open the cap i bet the exhaust gasses are leaking into the chambers..Smell inside the expansion tank and see if you can smell carbon monoxide..Don't keep running it until its sorted out pal..Make sure there is no leak that may be coming from your inlet manifold gasket as well..I've read that you had the head gasket done before maybe even if it has been done properly it could be a crack in the cylinder wall .Or worst case scenario would be a crack in the cylinder wall liners..Hope this helps,Please tell me this isn't the 'K' series engine that they put in the 'MG',It sure does look like it that engine is one of the worst engines I've ever saw in my life i hate it with a passion it got constant problems with the head gasket.

@nickdavies2864

9 жыл бұрын

Are you dull ?There is no smell to carbon monoxide that is why pole fall asleep and never wake up in homes with leaking boilers. Cant see it or smell it.

@wanabear5716

9 жыл бұрын

There is a a distinctive smell when it happens,No I'm not dull that's how i diagnosed my own car and a few others with the same issue its not carbon monoxide you can smell its the carbon buildup smell or a type of chemical smell.

@nickdavies2864

9 жыл бұрын

Search google you can not smell carbon monoxide. Millions of people have a carbon monoxide leak then fall asleep like normal and then never wake up every yer.There is no smell to it.

@wanabear5716

9 жыл бұрын

No its like a burning kind of chemical smell I'm talking about not carbon monoxide pal..Or the other method is the white smoke out the back of the exhaust was caused by coolant leaking into the chambers there are a few methods but the dye is the best one.

@AlfOfAllTrades

8 жыл бұрын

+nick davies What you are actually smelling is NOT the carbon monoxide but other elements of the exhaust gas. The coolant will simply smell of exhaust gases.

@ash7990

why? For £270 - £350 you could of had it all repaired and sorted.

They dont all do that!. Whoever says they do is a nutter. The rate of HGF is made alot worse than it actually is by vids like this and the media. Every owner of the K Series engine has HGF do they? yeh whatever.

@gooseholla1 £350? Really? The engine was cooked and filled with chocolate mousse. I was told about £1000 to fix it, and the thing only cost me £600. Besides, it would only last until it blew next time. And you hardly see any of them now, they're all dead and buried.

No point replacing a head gasket on a K series! Just scrap the thing!

Rover are shit....bad cars...no wonder they went down lol

Rovers were shit, part of the reason they went down the tubes