View single post by John Harriott
 Posted: 08-17-2006 12:12 pm
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John Harriott

 

Joined: 05-06-2006
Location: Greensboro, North Carolina USA
Posts: 9
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 I finally took my 74 JH in to have the new exhaust welded and hung correctly.  Car sounded ok, but next day it died.  I towed to a shop that specializes in foreign cars here in Greensboro,  They English car mechanic previously worked on my MG and he is good.

The reason the car died was that too much oil was getting in the combustion chamber.  I took out a spark plug before having the car towed, and it was covered in unburnt oil. The mechanic believes the oil is coming past the pistons.  Now comes the woe. 

The estimate to replace pistons, rings etc is $6000.00.  I cannot afford to spend this amount and I don't have the time or expertise to do it myself.  The shop responded by saying I might be able to get by with just replacing the rings.  This would be 3000.00. 

My questions are these:

1.) Do these seem like reasonable estimates?

2.) Given your experience with JHs, is replacing the rings likely to cure the problem?

3.) Does anyone want the car?  If it comes down to the 6000.00 job, I will have to sell the car for parts or salvage.  I would hate to do this.  The rest of the car is in good shape, no rust.

Thanks in advance, for any insight you can provide.

 

John