Ghetto head gasket repair -CarGo Seal Up

[Erich]

Here's an update on the ghetto repair I did on my headgasket.

First a little re-cap. I was having trouble getting the engine to turn over, then it ran very rough with a big white cloud coming out of the tailpipe the first five minutes or so. I pulled the plugs and sure enough, #3 looked like it had been soaking in coolant.

Being short on cash and time, I looked for a temporary fix. I searched the web and found a product called CarGo Seal Up. It's available at Pep Boys and Walmart for around $4. I figured what the hell, and gave it a shot. I followed the directions to the letter.

I reported here right afterword, that my starting, running, overheating and white cloud problems were gone. Well, it's been a month and a little over 3K miles and it's still running great. I have kept an eye on #3 plug and I have noticed the slightest amount of moisture at the base of the threads after the car sits overnight. The tip is dry though.

So, to this point, I'll say I'm 98% healed. I decidied to make this a test case to see how long it will hold up. The CarGo people say it's a permanent repair. We'll see. But, if anyone gets in a pinch, this stuff really works. It will get you home safely if you were on a raod trip until you could get it to your regular tech, or longer.

I'll update this at the 90 day mark as kind of a case study.
Mr.Bill
E34 '90 525iA