Little brother toasted his head on his '83 242TI. The machine shop says there are cracks in the jackets surrounding two cylinders, so the thing is junk.

We're looking into replacement heads. We can get a Volvo reman for $700 (this is my preference), and have found used heads from some of the big AZ yards with various warranties and levels of rebuild for around $250-300. Problem is that money is the issue right now for him and I'm sure as heck not going to spend my weekend going to every Pick n Pull in So Cal in search of the perfect low mileage head for 10 bucks that will inevitably be crap when I finally get it pressure-tested.

So far, Hirsch Foreign seems to be at the top of our list because they pressure test their heads and put in new valve seals (I think somebody in this chain of communication means valve guides, but I'm not sure - I'm not the one doing the calling). Anybody have any experience with them, or is there a recommendation on other places in the Los Angeles area that provide decent parts for a fair price? (Thomas Volvo doesn't have anything, BTW). Willing to go to other parts of the country, provided shipping isn't too bad.

Thanks for the $0.02.

Maybe it is time to put little brother in charge of dealing with his own
problems. There is no better way for him to learn both mechanics and
operator skills. Possibly a turbo was a bit of overkill for him. Simpler
is better!
--
George Downs, Bartlesville, Oklahoma, Central US

While I live in New Jersey, I have dealt with Hirsch on several occasions... got 4 near mint door panels & a contact reel (airbag) on different occasions. They have done me very well.

As for a head, a used one is no problem. Volvo remanufactured might be a little overkill. I would venture to say that the most local yard to you has a head you can score cheap. Get it rebuilt by your favorite local machine shop and you are good to go!!!

Peace, Jon

Normally, I'd agree with you about just getting a used head from most places. Buuuut.... we got this car for him because it had a blown headgasket and it was cheap and an easy head job.

Of course, the "friend" we bought it from didn't quite disclose that it also had a dying AW-71 trans. So the head's been off once (it pressure tested fine and wasn't warped the first time around) but the car continued to suffer heat-related issues that ended up forcing us to chase down and replace various culprits at various times including the tranny, the radiator, the water pump, all the hoses, putting in an intercooler, yada yada. And, unfortunately I'm not a nitwit -- I've done a couple of these stupid head gaskets on various B21/230 incarnations -- so it wasn't my overlooking anything. We finally got the running hot issue under control and whammo, it started spewing water into the exhaust man and the turbo last week and that was the last straw. Of course, some of this is attributable to a somewhat less-experienced and less-mechanically inclined operator, so damned if you do and even more damned if you try to explain why and how.

I want to find a final solution to this head that isn't going to bring any more bad (k)carma and won't require me going back into it again in a year, if you know what I mean.

I'll add my praise for CCCH in 'Dero - they did a fine job in my son's 81 B21F head with stripped plug hole. Excellent repair, 3-angle valve job, all new seals and proper valve clearances - the thing looked like new. $250
--
Bob (81-244GL B21F, 83-244DL B23F, 94-944 B230FD; plus grocery-getter Dodge minivan, MGB, and numerous old motorcycles)

Had similar issues with my B21FT head... cracked in each chamber and into water jackets, warped, one burned exhaust valve.

I too was concerned about finding a good core. Took the head to Central Coast Cylinder Heads, Atascadero CA. They did a great job (rebuild = welding, resurface, valve job, set the valve clearances) for about half the price of that $700 Volvo rebuild. They receive and ship UPS daily.

Robert

84 245 Ti