Headgasket replacement

[pops86]

"My motor is a '97 200 loo

"My motor is a '97 200 looper. A couple of weeks ago I was talking to a local mechanic, and he suggested I need to replace my headgaskets this winter as a p.m. in order to "head" off any problems with future possible water leaks into my cylinders, due to the age of my motor.
My question is, is this the right thing to do, or "if it ain't broke don't fix it???"
Thanks for any comments."

 

[joereeves]

Do not replace head gaskets un

Do not replace head gaskets unless necessary.

 

[sashko12]

"How do you know when the head

"How do you know when the head gasket is bad? Water in the cylinders - obvious, but what if this water because of the ethanol fuel issue and not the gasket related? Will the compression be low if the gasket is bad?"

 

[joereeves]

That would be your first clue.

That would be your first clue.... compression.

 

[sashko12]

compression -- low or high?

compression -- low or high?

 

[nymack66]

"Steven the same test I told y

"Steven the same test I told you in your previous blog, COMPRESSION since yours is pretty close to 10 % difference I will pull the head and examined it just my two cents .."