Right...,

I bought a Mk1 punto SX 1.1i and iv just got back from the garage and found the reason my car's been overheating to a point where it's nearly melting is it's got a cracked head....so i rang Fiat and turned pale after they priced up a reconditioned head for me... i'm after a cheaper option, the mechanic who looked at it said it'd probably be cheaper to drop a new engine in it, but it'll still cost a lot. The damned thing's been more trouble than it's worth so far:bang: i would be graciously thankful to anyone with any ideas, Cheers.

welcome to teh forum,

But I'm getting fed up now of mk1's turning up with fecked headgaskets.
When you buy a car you really should leave it to idle and make sure it doesn't overheat. Followed by a gentle, then spirited test drive etc etc.

Right
1) do a search you'll find 1108cc and 1242cc 8v fire engines are the worst for headgaskets. as a general rule of thumb, if the gasket hasn't been replace just before you got it, replace it anyway, or face the concequences.

2) find a head from a scrappy. look for a car thats been in an accident with say, less than 50k on it, the head *should* be in fairly good order. will cost about £50 if you remove it. and check before paying that it isn't cracked.

3) get fresh head skimmed, will cost £20-30
4) get a fresh gasket set. they cost £13.50 for the 1.1 and £27 for the 1.2. DO NOT go to fiat for these parts. go to a local motorfactor
5) labour at a garage would be £60-100


DONOT dispair. puntos' are good once you've sorted the gasket

I know i should've checked it was ok b4 buying but i bought it off a mate who i trusted who's a mechanic, who's also gonna get a thick lip when i see him, cheeky beggar.

But that's made me feel a lot better about the cost of the job, so thanks for that, il look into finding the parts.

Cheers