Kmonami

So after a slew of different issues and a lot of wasted time and money, I ran a compression test on my 2004 Ralliart and it's got bad compression on almost all the cylinders, and the mechanic diagnosed it as a blown head gasket after I overheated my car. You can read about it if you care enough here:

https://www.evolutionm.net/forums/ev...y-trouble.html
https://www.evolutionm.net/forums/04...solutions.html

After all the fixes and code reads and learning and all, the car has become a bit of a money pit and also finally the real trouble is serious and expensive.

I figure it better that I just buy a new car. My real question to all you guys is, how do I go about moving on from here?

I don't know the first thing about selling a car that isn't running, and with the problem that it has, it's not an easy or cheap fixer-upper. How should I go about selling the car, and getting at least some money to put towards my new car? what's the way I should just go about getting rid of it while still getting something out of what I paid for it?

I hope I'm not off topic here, I posted in the General Ralliart, I don't have enough posts to post in the marketplace and even still, I'm not trying to advertise this for sale or by any means violate that forum principle, I just need some advice as to how I should go from here. Any help would be appreciated!

CrAnSwIcK

iTrader: (5)

what were your compression results?


selling a car that doesn't run is tough, because you need to find a buyer who can fix it, and is looking for a car that obviously needs work...this will only be possible if you price it well below market value...


how much money have you put into the car out of curiosity...I hear a lot of people say their car is a money pit, but these are the people who are paying more for labour than they are on parts...

2006_RA

iTrader: (1)

Are you selling out of frustration and the daunting task of replacing the head gasket, or is it making sense financially to change the car ?

Hard to fathom that a new car is cheaper than changing a head gasket.

Kmonami

Hate to be so wishy washy but I suppose my idea of getting a new car is a bit draconian and shortsighted, especially concerning my financial situation as a part time worker full time student and a crappy insurance record combining a totaled car on my history with the fact that I'm not even 21 years old, male lol.

Cranswick, my compression clocked in at:
Cylinder 1: 90 psi
Cylinder 2: 30 30 psi
Cylinder 3: 40 psi
Cylinder 4: 150 psi (yay! Lol)

Yeah, you're right. And honestly, it's a bit of an exaggeration. I haven't spent all that much, I just got the car for like 3500,and having spent a few hundred on it already, as well as this new fix being upwards in the 1000 range, I'll have been investing around half or more of the value of the car back into repairing it, however that doesn't mean it's not worth it.

2006_RA, you're definitely right, it may not be the best idea. Kinda did a lot of thinking realistically, after sleeping on this.

Any thoughts moving forward? I still have to deliberate whether I want to go through with fixing the car, but my mechanic says he'll replace the head gasket AND the timing belt for 900,and there'll be additional charges to be determined if when he gets down into the engine, he finds there are any piston or valve issues, but at the rates he charges, I assume it not to exceed 2 G's to fix. Thanks for the good thoughts on the matter guys!

2006_RA

iTrader: (1)

Hi Kmonami,

Maintenance is the side of owning a car that no one talks about. If that $900 includes parts, then that is a sweet deal. I was checking the picture with the spark plug and the socket coated in oil, if oil is settling in the spark plug well then that's the gasket around the hole in the valve cover. They probably would be included in the head gasket set though.
I've never had an engine overheat so dramatically, the one time I did experience overheating, it didn't blow the head gasket. I would be surprised if more than resurfacing the head is required, in addition to replacing the head gasket of course.

I keep a spare key in my wallet.
The only time I had to use it was when the dealer locked the key in the car. I watched them stew for a while then took it out LOL.

I hope you decide to keep the car, it's quite a fantastic driving experience and believe it or not quite reliable. It would be great having you around as your few posts are quite articulate and wreak of intelligence.

CrAnSwIcK

iTrader: (5)

yeah $900 is cheap for all that...normally just the timing belt is about $1200...timing belt service is a good idea if you're pulling it apart, since a new timing belt, as long as it's OEM will last for quite some time...some service intervals stated by Mitsubishi are even "suggested" and not required...


I've had a timing belt fail, and I think it cost me about $1000 to do the work myself, mind you, I had the head rebuilt, valve job, seated and lapped, new guides, and decked for about $300...the OEM upper engine gasket kit includes head gasket, valave cover gasket, all 4 spark plug tube seals, new valve stem seals, camshaft seal, intake and exhaust manifold gaskets, and a new O-ring for the water pipe, I forget how much it was, but I can get a part number and price for you by Friday or Saturday if someone else isn't nice enough to be "cranswick lite", I'm currently "travelling" for work...


all in all the job is not that bad...


also those compression numbers are ****, sorry about your luck, looks like the gasket blew out on one side...


here's my sad story....https://www.evolutionm.net/forums/04...d-rebuild.html

Kmonami

It really was an insanely ugly episode. It overheated until the engine cut itself off, ending up running for a few minutes in the RPM red zone above 6000 before finally letting off a few gentle pops and giving up. It caused the radiator to Crack as well, and while it was overheating all the coolant and water got on the floor. I've since changed the radiator, but realized the issue was more severe than just that, recently with this compression issue.

Cranswick, that part number and pricing would be seriously awesome, thank you!

Honestly, I joined this forum because though I've always been into cars, Lancers and Eclipses being some of my favorite iconic tuners, I wanted to actually garner practical knowledge and be able to really get to know what I'll be behind the wheel of, to save money, enjoy it more, and have fun delving at least lightly, into car culture. A Lancer Ralliart or Evo is a cool way to do that. Now is this situation a little more than I bargained for? Haha maybe, but at least a lot of good will come from figuring it all out.

CrAnSwIcK

iTrader: (5)

upper engine overhaul gasket kit is MD979393, and costs about $200...


pm me for timing belt parts