[Mojmír Udatný]

Sup guys,
I own yr 2000; 50kw swift hatch, the one with air filter on top of the engine, she burns some oil and im ok with that, its the piston rings I assumed as there was tiny bit of oil under the air filter, but recenly there has been loads of thick white smoke coming out of my exhaust and burned (lost) some coolant, I have read that the most common issue is blown head gasket, I am by no means a car mechanic, but I am quick learner.

If I were to change the head gasket myself, I assumed I would also need to change timing belt.
Would there be anything else I should change while doing this task ?
Also do I need to empty the oil for the gasket to change ?
I just put new filter and oil in there.

Thanks In advance
Best Regards

Mojmír Udatný

[GT4LIFE]

I would always start with a compression check, and a leak down test to get as much information before you tear anything apart. If you find the compression is uneven across the cylinders it is usually a good indicator that you have a blown headgasket. Make sure you hold the accelerator open when you check. The leak down requires a compressor but will tell you more information about the engine. Depending on the amount of difference between the two gauges and where the air is escaping you can determine a lot more information about the condition of the entire engine. The leak test is done at TDC for every engine cylinder without turning the engine over with a compressor. The compression check is done by turning the engine over checking each cylinder individual by screwing the gauge into the sparkplug hole (remove all the spark plugs first and hold accelerator down).

Report back your findings (you should be able to rent both tools for free; except the compressor).

Short answer: Yes, you will need to drain your oil again if your doing anything more then opening the valve cover.

[SirkAl]

I just did the head gasket on my 87 Forsa. I didn’t drain the oil as the car had been sitting for a while. You have to drain the coolant though, as it will get into the oil passages when you remove the head. I stuffed some old rags in all the passages when the head was removed, so when I scraped all the old gasket off, it didn’t fall into the oil or coolant passages. Then I vacuumed the cylinders and all debris away before removing the rags. Just keep everything clean as you go. And -make sure the valvetrain is well lubricated before start up.