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Hi all,
I’m reaching out for some advice from anyone who has experience with the 2005 Citroën Dispatch 1.9D (DW8 engine), specifically around replacing the head gasket. Here’s the situation:
A few weeks ago, I noticed the van was leaking a very small amount of coolant from the radiator. Unfortunately, I didn't realise it in time and ended up driving it on the motorway. It overheated, and now the van won’t start. I’ve been told it has no compression, and from what I’ve read, this points to a blown head gasket.
The van has only done 75,000 miles, and it runs great, otherwise. It’s a real part of our family. We converted it into a camper during COVID and even documented the whole process on YouTube. So, it feels really hard to think about just letting it go. But, after getting a few quotes, having a mechanic replace the engine is way out of our budget, and we’re not ready to send it to the “scrapyard in the sky.”
I found a new head gasket on eBay for £45, and I’m keen to tackle the job myself. However, I’ve never done a head gasket replacement before, and I'm wondering:
Has anyone ever done this on a 2005 Citroën Dispatch (or similar van)?
How difficult is the job? Any specific tips or tools I’ll need?
Is there anything I should be aware of, like common mistakes or things I might miss?
Could the head gasket issue be connected to the radiator leak, or could I be looking at further damage due to the overheating?
I’d really appreciate any advice from those who’ve been through this, especially from people who’ve worked on the DW8 engine. I’m trying to avoid paying a mechanic if I can help it, but I also want to make sure I’m doing this safely and properly.
Thanks so much for your time and any help you can provide!
We bought our 2005 Citroën Dispatch in 2020 and transformed it into our dream adventure van. After months of hard work, ‘Doug’ is now our pride and joy. We’ve taken him on countless adventures and shared our journey on our YouTube channel, DougTheDispatch. It's more than just a van; it's our companion on the road to unforgettable experiences!
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I've changed many's a head gasket but not on a DW8.
Generally speaking, it's more than just swapping a gasket and off you go
The head will probably need skimming and best practise would be to renew the cam belt and water pump
while you're in there unless you know for sure it's been recently done
If the belt/pump has done 75K then I'd definitely renew them.
Plus, remove, check and lap in the valves as well and check to see if the coolant has got into the engine oil
You'll also need to investigate why it lost coolant and remedy that
this guy has done a Partner 1.9D head gasket which will give an idea of the process
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g36JD_Y_fGo
When all else fails, RTFM - 2006 Expert 2.0 HDI/110
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Oh I remember seeing your YouTube channel, glad to see you on the forum. Even if it's for not so great reasons
Agreed with RegW. It's conceptually simple, "just" unbolt the head, take it off, replace the gasket, put it back on. But that's simplifying to the point of uselessness
The tolerances you need to work with are the hard part. Like RegW says, it's got to be skimmed to make sure the surfaces are perfectly flat. Then there's a process of torquing the head bolts to specific tightness and in a specific order.
Doable if you fancy it, but it's definitely one to find out about before you get stuck in
2000 Citroen Dispatch 1.9TD XUD9 Camper Conversion
1999 Citroen Dispatch 1.9D DW8 Disassembled Camper Conversion
1996 Peugeot 806 1.9TD XUD9 Spare vehicle
1998 Citroen Synergie 1.9TD XUD9 Snapped timing belt
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Could the head gasket issue be connected to the radiator leak, or could I be looking at further damage due to the overheating?
o
Definitely, an alloy head has good thermal conduction but depends on a good flow of coolant to help
dissipate the heat from combustion which keeps temps in a range it can cope with.
A poor flow of coolant can allow the head to overheat and eventually cause it to distort/leak.
When all else fails, RTFM - 2006 Expert 2.0 HDI/110
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I tried to do this long ago on an old Fiesta, it didn't go well. During the year with severe flooding (2007) I had to drive through Derbyshire out near Ladybower Reservoir and I ended up going through a bunch of water and some got sucked up through the air intake for the engine. This caused the same problem as you have, OP. High pressure in the engine that caused a mass of problems. I ran some engine clean through the engine and dumped the oil, then refilled the oil and swapped the filter, then dropped that an hour or so later. Then put a new head gasket on it. Torqued everything up to spec, reassembled. New oil and filter. Started up, didn't fix it completely. I took it to the garage I use and it needed the extra work that Reg described. It wasn't a cheap job. I had the belt and pump done at the same time since this was pretty much an engine strip.
The good thing is once it's done, you should be good for a while.
Peugeot Expert 2006 2.0 Hdi 110 RHZ / DW10BTED+ 5 Speed Manual
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