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MG MGF Technical - New member says hello!

Hi all, used to be a member here when i had a factory V8 but not been back for a long long time! Glad to see this BB still runnng!
To the meat on the bone..Recently bought the Wife a 2001 28k mile MGF 1.8i BEFORE i read the horror stories of HGF...
The car had HGF early on in its life and was fixed under warrenty of some sort..I'm genuinley worried that this car may let her down late at night and leave her stranded..I'm i unjustly worried?? Is it a case of 'when' not 'if'? What are the best precautions aganst HGF, i've read stories about stretching head bolts, thermal shock, poor water circulation, air locks, etc etc. There is even a modified thermostst housing that is supposed to help--Any pointers or sensible/recommended precautios??
Thanks JC
JC

JC,

Get a low water level warning kit (sensor in expansion tank plus buzzer and light). This will warn your wife of any coolant loss, which is one of the prime reasons that many HGFs occur. Yes, there are real HGF issues, but a rad or hose leak can easily go unoticed in an F, as the water temp gauge is virtually useless. Many people drive on without realising they've lost water and HGF follows.
Dave Livingstone

Your are right to be concerned about the failure rate of head gaskets: Roger Parker has estimated it to be around 12% from his personal experience.

The good news is the latest TFs fitted with the Pressure Relief Thermostat do appear to be more reliable, but the jury is still out on whether this can be considered a cure because the cause of the problem remains undecided.

Carlos was the first to try out the PRT route and you can find out more on his website at: http://web.tiscali.it/elise_s1/index.htm

If you are really interested, Roger Parker produced some instructuions with pics at: http://www.mgcars.org.uk/cgi-bin/gen5?runprog=mgoc&a=&p=emg/mgfheadgasp1.html

Rob Bell produced a list of the parts you require at: http://www.mgf.ultimatemg.com/group2/common_problems/hgf_pages/cooling_system_modifications.htm

Somewhere in the archives you will find the parts priced for diy and dealer fit but I can't trace those.

Chris
Chris

Hi! JC

Ive got a 2001F. Bought it second hand with 36k on
the clock. At 67k the head gasket failed and £1100
later I am back on the road. My local MG garage
reckons that there had been a previous failure which
maybe why the previous owner got it repaired and sold the car. A customer of mine had to pay out £950 to get her FT head gasket replaced. Others on this site
have managed to do better over the cost of replacement
than me and you will have to shop around. But that
is never easy when you are stranded and at the mercy
of the nearest garage!

But I have to say that in the 2 years that I have
owned this car, the wife and I have had a lot of great drives (including a lot of European driving - making sure I had breakdown cover just in case). It
also has to earn its keep as a daily working car.

A recent contributor has suggested Warranty Direct.
I have just looked them up on the net, put in my
details and got quoted £27pm or £260 for a yearly
payment which covers this and many other wear and
tear problems. Seems pretty good and I may well go
in for it.

I intend to keep the car and keep a keen eye on the
oil and water levels. I'm looking forward to the
Jersey MG car club rally in May which is a great
event to go to.

Regards - Bill Pearson
W.A. Pearson

JC
Nobody has mentioned the warming up of the engine before using full power. I've not had HGF yet using this idea. My 2000 MGF 1.8i now has 28K on the clock and I have recently fitted the B&G coolant sensor. I always check the coolant level before and after runs and have not had to top-up over the last three years.

This warming up has regularly been mentioned on these threads. From cold use relatively light throttle and keep the revs below 3000 (70mph in 5th) until the oil temp gauge gets up to its normal temperature. Readings seem to vary from car to car, but can take around 8 miles to warm the oil up.

With the alloy engine being held together with those long through steel bolts, an excellent design once warmed up, but when cold this alloy engine will be relatively loose and prone to blow its head gasket until the alloy has warmed-up and expanded to its working temperature.

It does appear that the hot heads who cannot let anybody pass them even when the engine is cold and can often be seen roaring off from a cold start; they will be the first to have HGF.

The water temperature gauge will not indicate imminent overheating as the sensor is strangely located in the return pipe from the radiator. Hope this helps

Pete
Pete Tipping

Good advice Pete

It's also worth mentioning the reverse is true. If you've been having a very "spirited" drive and your oil temp is higher than normal it's worth making those last few miles easy to allow everything to cool a little before switching the engine off and having hotspots in the system

Stu
Stu Dickens

Stu is right. On any Autoroute/Autobahn run then 2 miles before a planned petrol/comfort stop, I pull back to 60 to allow the engine to stabilize.
Geoff F.
G. Farthing

Stu - you are right. I guess I do that too, it's a natural kind of thing to do isn't it. Probably all those old cars that used to boil over after switching off a very hot engine on those hot summer days...
Hoods down, tee shirts and shades soon!
Pete
Pete Tipping


Pete

You might want to check out the MGF register forum for meets and events etc, It's a very active forum and there's always loads going on all year around.

Here's a link

http://fregister.proboards37.com/index.cgi

And if you fancy taking your new toy on the track, come and play with us at MG's on track

Again here's a link

http://www.mgs-on-track.com/?

We have a track day this coming Saturday at Brands Hatch so if you fancy a ride out come and say hi, it's free entry into Brands, There will be approx 40 MG's of various types in two session and our friends at Lotus have the third session.

Hope to see you there or at one of the many meets

Cheers

Stu

Stu Dickens

Sorry Pete I should have made it for the attention of JC

Why is there no edit facility on this site !! :-)
Stu Dickens

Thanks for all the help gentlemen (and ladies!?). I'll look around to see if i can pick up thlater type thermostat and cooling pypass assembly. Although woryingly the later cars seem to suffer hgf too!
The car won't be driven hard as the Wifey generally just pootles along at the normal traffic speeds and i suspect that it'll rarely go above 3-4k revs!! Thanks for the register tips Stu -i'll take a look.
I do around 12-15 motorcyle track days per year but have never been on a track in a car, could be very inetesting indeed! Maybe i can blow that HG after all!
Regards all JC
JC

Stu

Ok - so you want to talk to JC. Couldn't help picking up on your track day thoughts - as I'm booked in for the Chichester MGOC's Goodwood Track Day on the 10th Feb. Are you?

Was wondering how one keeps the oil temperature up between sessions - apart from leaving it running.

Pete
Pete Tipping

This thread was discussed between 23/01/2007 and 31/01/2007

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