98 Head Gasket Job

From what I hear $2400 is a pretty good price as the drivetrain must be removed. If you go for an independent, be sure they are familiar with the Northstar and that all 20 head bolt holse will be Timeserted. Come to think of it, be sure the dealer is including Timeserting for that price.

What dealership is charging 2400 for headgasket job?

He is installing Time-serts. He is billing 24 hours @ $78 per hour, plus parts.

This includes doing the 1/2 case seal.

The dealer I bought the car from (I only had it a day when the problem started) wants me to take it to an independant repair shop. He says it will be way cheaper than Cadillac. I think I want to stay with the Cadillac shop.

Wow! Caddy dealers aroud here charge like $95/hr!
Most independants don't have the knowledge or experience to do this job properly.

Peteski

Although it's entirely possible for many to just do in your own driveway I'd shy away from independants who don't have northstar experiance.

Here in Plano, the dealer gets $110/hr

HEY THERE IS A COMPANY CALLED CHRFAB THAT WILL DO A TIMESERT FOR ALL 20 BOLTS FOR $400. THE UNIQUE THING ABOUT IS THAT YOU CAN TAKE THE HEAD OFF AND ON AS MANY TIMES AS YOU WANT. KOOL HUH?
http://www.chrfab.com/Engines.htm

In Phoenix there is a place called "Cadishop" The Dealer Alternative.

They are awesome guys and do a great job. My car was overheating and they took care of it for me. It was only $73; and having a Cadillac that is rare. I think they only charged 70 hr and charged for a half hour.

I had some transmission issues a year ago and paid $2,800 to have a trans shop fix it. The Cadishop told me they fix many issues like I had for $350. Anyone in the Phoenix Metro area should check them out!

The thing with chrfab is that the $400 charge is just to do the timeserts, and that's it. It's the removal and reinstallation of the engine that costs the most. Doing the timeserts themselves is fairly easy, the kit's expensive but the inserts are fairly cheap. With chrfab you'll have to pay for the inserts themselves, $400 is just for the labor. Hell I'd do timeserts themselves for $149.49 in labor.

Hey, I'll do the timeserts for $149.50 (labor) if you bring the block over to my house!

But If You Use The Timesert Will You Be Able To Take The Head On And Off As Many Time As You Want Like Want Chfab Mentioned. Im Not Saying Any Of You Are Wrong But Just Want Advice. Thank You

So I can't drive over to CHRFAB (wherever they're located), pop open my hood, and wait in the lobby? Darn.

94CaddyConcours said:

But If You Use The Timesert Will You Be Able To Take The Head On And Off As Many Time As You Want Like Want Chfab Mentioned. Im Not Saying Any Of You Are Wrong But Just Want Advice. Thank You

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You are indeed not saying any of us are wrong, because none of us are wrong. You're only wrong in saying that it's unique for chrfab to be able to pull the heads off. You can take the head off and put it back on as many times as you want with timeserts or without, as long as the block threads are OK. It's just that you should use new headbolts every time you put it back on if you've started it since the last time you torqued the bolts down. Chrfab does timeserts just like everybody else, the only differance is that they don't include pulling the engine and putting it back in into their price.

Just got my car back from the dealer. They did the head gaskets with Timeserts, half case seals, front and rear crank seals and the water pump. $3200.

Will this repair hold up for a while, or will the head gaskets blow again?

Thanks

If it was Timeserted and you maintain the cooling system it should last a long long time.