Arrgh, all valves bent or broken!!! £500 to get fixed. Don't have time(or obviously transport)to source a second hand head as I need to be back on the road for work ASAP.

So, looks like I'm paying the price.........

Oh well, still a cheap car with the extra £500

 

After the garage almost doubled the price...can you believe it? I told them to forget it.

As if by magic they phone me back later having 'found' a complete reconditioned head for £250.

So, total parts are now running at around £300.

However, I wouldn't trust them as far as I could spit! I expect they will now charge me an excessive labour charge. It's £35 per hour!

What do you guys think is a reasonable time to change a timing belt & head? Of course it will need an oil change & filter too.

I think around 4 hours max. I've helped my father change a head and timing belt in around a couple of hours before. By the way the guy at the garage was going on they expect me to believe 10-12 hours for that.....they must think I fell of a Christmas tree!