The replacement of a head gasket can take a long time, especially in modern cars with injection engines. These cars have many parts that need to be removed before the cylinder head can be removed. The head gasket repair cost is therefore quite high, not because of the price of the head gasket, but because of the hours that has to be spent.
Basic replacement procedure
The following overview shows you the basic replacement procedure of a head gasket to give you an idea about the labor costs charged:
- Disconnect the battery and fuel hookups and drain the coolant fluid
- Disconnect the ignition system and spark plugs
- Remove the air intake, the carburetor and coolant lines
- Set the piston of the engine cylinder to the position of the top dead center (TDC)
- Remove the timing belt
- Disconnect the headers, timing covers and push rods
- Remove the rockers, head bolts and engine head
- Replace the old head gasket with the new one
- Put everything back in reverse order
This will give you a rough idea of the things that has to be done to replace a head gasket. As you can see there is a significant amount of labor involved in replacing a head gasket and this reflects the total cost of replacing a head gasket.
Head Gasket Repair Cost
This is the reason why replacing a head gasket is so expensive.
How high is the Head Gasket Repair Cost
The price for repairing the head gasket is between $1200 and $1600. This includes the cost of the parts, which is between $400 and $700 (the price may go beyond this price range depending on the car model) and the labor cost (seven to eight hours) which is between $800 and $900. Labor cost may vary according to the labor charges of your local car repair center and the car model. The replacement of a head gasket in modern cars with injection engines will certainly cost more compared to replacing a head gasket in older models.
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