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[jampot1979]

Hi, I have recently been given a 2.2 2002 omega cd auto. It needs a new exhaust and afew other bits for the mot but other than that all seems good with it.

Was talking to a mechanic bloke today and he said that head gaskets always fail on omegas and the best thing I could do with the car is to get rid before this ever happens.

I was planning to sell my old vw bora and keep the omega as it has more toys on it and seems a good car.

Is it true that head gaskets fail on omegas all the time etc? Just want you guys opinions on omegas and what your thoughts are.

cheers peeps

[Welung666]

They do go on the 4 pots a lot more in comparison to the V6's but it's not an everyday thing. As long as it's properly maintained then it'll be highly unlikely it will fail. I don't think your mechanic is much of one to be fair (no offense meant)

[Bumbazor]

They probably fail more often than not due to poor maintenance which most owners don't keep up with and whose mechanics or garages cut corners with.

Properly maintained Omegas will last for a long time.

[jampot1979]

The omega has done 107K miles. Apart from the last 18 months, its been service yearly. The oil doesnt have a milky film and the water levels are fine.

Cheers for the honest replies peeps.

[ffcgary1]

The most important thing on the omega with ref to services to remember is that the coolant level must be changed every 2/3 years and always maintain a 50/50 mix with the red vx coolant. Then the cooling system will remain at peak efficancy and aviod the dreaded h/g problem. Saying that the head gasket on a 2.2 4 pot is not that hard to do yourself and not worth scrapping or getting rid on thos grounds.
 

[TheBoy]

time to change your mechanic, if thats what he thinks.

HG failure is very rare on v6, and probably has average failure rates on the 4 pot.

[Seth]

My previous, (and well-maintained!), 2.0 is now at just over 100k miles - the cylinder head's never been off!

The 4-pots may be a tad underpowered, but look after it, and it should confidently achieve a collossal mileage.
The present owner remains very happy with it - two years on.

There you have it - and get a new mechanic!

[tunnie]

V6 HG, very, very, very rarely go.

4 pot ones are more common, its down to poor servicing. service them properly will last for 170k at least.

For the record, my 2.2 is on 118.5k and it has not gone yet  

[miggcddave]

my r reg 2ltr has 150thousand miles and still going strong .   as tb siad time to change your mechanic

[Proz]

It went on my old 1997 2.0ltr but that will be my fault as i never serviced it or anything   ..... i've since learnt the error of my ways  

[tunnie]

biggest cause for HG failure on 2.0/2.2 & V6 is poor coolant servicing.

For the minimal cost involved, i change the coolant every year on our fleet.

[feeutfo]

due to the wide variety of different engines used in the omega, to say all omegas blow head gaskits, its obvious your "mechanic" aint clued up enough to work on it frankly...avoid him.

4 pots do come up now and then but certainly no more than any other 4cylinder and then only due to poor servicing. (18 months is far too long by the way) change the coolent and fluids to the schedule.
Belts are every 40k or 4 years.

Also if you have a search youll find a few threads with v engines being wrongly diagnosed by mechanics of similar quality to yours. Ie pi** poor...

[HerefordElite]

I think you're "mechanic" must be confusing an omega engine with a Rover 'K' series time to find a new one

[mathewst]

I have an 1999 facelift and it's done 110 000 miles without problems.
Now I have to change the head gasket, BUT it didn't go wrong.
The waterpump broke and made a mess out of valves, so head gasket has to be changed.
Have a complete car sevice history, and it seems the only problem with the car was an ECU, and the radio which broke still under guarantee so was replaced without paying anything

[tmx]

I think you're "mechanic" must be confusing an omega engine with a Rover 'K' series time to find a new one

They Only pack up due to poor maintenance of the cooling system or leaving the same oil in the car too long aswell my mrs's being proof of this 3yrs 30k miles of trusty ownership replaced HG when car was new kept car serviced ever since hg never went again!

Bloke at work has a X Reg 45 its on 110k on its original headgasket

Waterpumps should always be changed when the cambelt drives the waterpump otherwise that happens!! yes HG needs to be changed aswell otherwise it might not seal properly!