Do Head Gasket Sealers Really Work? - Mechanic's Opinion

Don’t get fooled on the idea that head gasket sealers work. THEY DON’T. Especially long term. If they did, car manufactures would sell the product for their vehicles. They don’t.
Look at the damage it causes:

🎦 Learn 3 Symptoms of Blown Head Gasket - Part 1
🎦 More Blown Head Gasket Symptoms - Part 2
🎦 Blown Head Gasket - Don’t Neglect Your Cooling System

✅ Used Car Buyers Checklist - Private or Dealer - 5 Top Tips

💰Save money on your car/truck maintenance and repairs:
Don't let Timing Belt Failure Happen
Look what happens when you neglect your engine oil
Check your Engine, Coolant, Transmission, Power Steering Fluid, and Brake Fluids
Always make sure your lug nuts are TORQUED and not done with an impact gun
How to diagnose and replace wheel bearing going bad on any car
Learn why the tire pressure is important and how to check it in your car
Remove and replace Broken or Stripped Wheel Stud on most cars
Cheap Way To Check For Bent Valves Without Removing Cylinder Head
Fast and Easy Way to Restore Faded Car Paint and Scratches - With Minimal Tools
The Best Way To Fix & Repair Broken Wire in Your Car - Soldering Car Wires Together

⁉️QUESTIONS
If you have any questions or I missed something, comment below and I’ll answer and try to help you out
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⚠️Disclaimer:
The videos on Motorcarnut channel are posted with informational purpose only.
Information posted in this video does not guarantee any particular result. Use this information provided in the video with caution and at your own risk. It is the responsibility of the viewer to take this risk.
Motorcarnut is not responsible or liable for property damage, any loss damage, or injury related to or resulted from information posted in this video.

❓️QUESTIONS
If you have any questions or I missed something, comment below and I’ll answer and try to help you out
If you find this video helpful, like it and subscribe to my new channel. I’ll have tons of videos on all kinds of car and truck repairs in the
future.
⚠️Disclaimer:
The videos on Motorcarnut channel are posted with informational purpose only.
Information posted in this video does not guarantee any particular result. Use this information provided in the video with caution and at your own risk. It is the responsibility of the viewer to take this risk.
Motorcarnut is not responsible or liable for property damage, any loss damage, or injury related to or resulted from information posted in this video.

[jimmorris]

Well if you guys didn't charge 2 grand to replace it maybe we wouldn't need to use the sealers. Huh?

[dannyc.]

i went to three mechanics that said the car wasn't fixable. I was prepared to junk it so i threw in a bottle, if i can get a few more months out of it while waiting for a new car because wait times for new cars are insane right now i'm happy. It was 30 bucks and so far so good. I wouldn't trust it going any long distance but for my work commute it works for now.

[oLMNOo]

Anyone saying it's about mechanics making money, just do ur own work. Remove the head, take it to a machine shop. Learn to fix ur own car and u will save a lot of money

[sagex]

Every situation is different. And it depends on how severe the problem is. If you have a vehicle that is 20+ years old and is worth around $1500 or less with a blown head gasket, or warped head, is it worth spending $3-5K to have the head milled down? If the vehicle is on its last leg, this temporary fix will at least give you time to shop for another vehicle.... unless you have emotional ties to a piece of junk and want to invest time and money in something that isn't worth it. Otherwise, if the vehicle is relatively new and worth more than it costs to repair it, then YES by all means have the head milled and a new gasket installed.

[rogersweeney]

I had a head gasket blow on a Lexus. It was Winter and I attempted to use gasket liquids. I used the silver colored head gasket sealer, I will not mention the name. It was brand name. Seems to work for maybe a couple of months maybe less. I started losing antifreeze again so I removed all of the liquid water antifreeze along with the head gasket liquid as much as I could and then cleaned with tap water and then drained the tap water. Upon refilling I use distilled water and antifreeze recommended for Lexus. Then I used the copper-colored head gasket sealer. Again brand name. The copper seem to work a little longer possibly three-and-a-half to four months. All the chemical bottles I use said it was a permanent fix. That was not the case. I checked all the usual things like cracks in the radiator which there was none. Radiator hose leaks thermostat hose or thermostat housing leaks which there were none. So the engine got to where it finally wouldn't run much at all because of the water leaking into some of the cylinders. In my case it was cylinder 2 and 4 bank 2. A leak down test proved that it also had a leak on Bank 2. It was very slight but it was only cylinder three. The leak down test proved that was a gasket. It took four months for me to tear the head off due to work hours. I'm not a full-time mechanic but an engineer for an unrelated job. After removing the heads and inspecting the gaskets they were an off brand of Fel-Pro. I did not install these. they were installed by the previous owner. The gasket was called PrimeTorque. Which was an odd name. After some research I found out they were made by Fel-Pro. The car was a 2008 and I can't say exactly when the head gaskets replaced - however I believe it to be a absolutely shity job. I found bolts loose all over the place while taking the engine apart. However all of the main head bolts were extremely tight and I believe they were torqued to spec, but that was about the only ones. After removing the head gaskets, an inspection prove that the Silvery colored gasket sealer, had created some clogging areas specifically near the top of the cylinder. They were small amounts of silver caked around the top of the cylinder head. Some of the small passages were filled with the gray material. The gray material was definitely the head gasket sealer liquid however it was not hardened but it was soft and easy to remove with one finger. In my case I do not believe the silver material had completely clogged all of the passages. What I did find is that the silver material had hardened on small parts of the gasket however did not completely make a seal. I did not find traces of the copper material anywhere - except in the antifreeze. I could not find evidence that the copper material had hardened anywhere on the gasket. The break, in my case was between cylinder 2 and 4 mostly. That's where the head gasket was the worst. I could not find any evidence where the chemical had hardened like glass, as the bottle stated that it would. Anyway I'm replacing it with a new gasket and doing it the right way. That would be mostly by the book. I still haven't decided if I'm going to use the copper head gasket spray along with the multi-layer gasket that I purchased.

[thomasdangerpowers]

I say it depend on the value of the car. If your a guy in highschool how bought a beatup car for $1500 bucks its not worth the $3500 to $5500 dollar job that will take a month in the shop. It will not be the same and there is no guaranteets will not have the same or another major issue. If for example its a classic car your late grandfather loved and left you it might be worth it. In the event you have no way to pay that much or its way over the cars value why not try a sealer if its going to be scrapped anyway. They might be a temporary solution. In that case start saving and trade it in or sell parts on on ebay when it dies.

[khvidtube]

First, I appreciate you sharing your experience. I am listening. I am currently using K-seal to help stop the coolant loss in my newly-built engine. I am yet to know the result. The K-seal instruction says it would take up to 10 days for minor coolant leaks. I am not "desperate", but in fact, I am trying it in the last resort because 3 separate highly-rated mechanics have diagnosed my engine with flying colours. The engine has been re-built. No evidence of coolant leakages, all engine components and hoses are dry as a desert, no evidence of mis-firing, no evidence of pressure losses of both the cooling system and the cylinders, the engine is very strong and revs like heaven, but I have to top up the 250ml of coolant for every 200 km of travel. It is a frustration to a point we all stood there scratching our heads and looking at each other. Take my words, I am more sceptical than you for this kind of cheap fix but as I said, it is the last resort without another options. If you have any suggestion, I am happy to try.

[cjweinzapfel]

Thermalweld was the best decision I ever made for my 2001 Cadillac Seville with the notorious 4.6 Northstar. Sure, I could have got Northstar Performance head studs and bulletproof kit, but that'd be $1000+ in parts and $6000+ in labor. Thermalweld was $250 and after listening to Robert explain how it works and what makes it the real deal, I decided to trust him. It was either that for $250 or get rid of the car which I couldn't bring myself to do. My car wouldn't even start because of how much coolant had entered the combustion chambers. 11k miles later and still running like brand new. Definitely recommend.

[TypedAnimal]

I tried it on a K16 K series and it worked perfectly, i will eventually get around to doing a proper seal but for now it is what it is gotta make do with what i can

[jerryteran-jmpj]

We appreciate the video and effort also for not trying to be against sealers I can see you prefer the official repair but cars don’t last long you fix one thing then next thing you know it’s totaled so non mechanics prefer temporary fix

[CUSTOMWORKS.PSD]

I used a head sealer Blue devil on my skid steer diesel in 2005 it was a cracked head can you believe it still is holding as of today, Steel block, steel head. You could see the crack in the head when I did it and actually watched the sealer fill up the crack like melting glass But would I use it on a steel block to aluminum heads NO even if it fixed it its just temporary and you have all that crap in the engine blocking up other area's

[julaiarnold]

1100 bars leak fixed my blown head gasket on my 96 honda vtec..white smoke coming from a tail pipe, coolant mixing with engine oil its all goned..it works!

[raymondgonzalez]

how do you clean/flush the coolant system after using one of those sealers? what do you recommend to get that junk out?

[sirfrankie]

I have a 02 bravada definitely has a blown head gasket.Paid 1400 for it.A ur again has earned it's money back.Not worth fixing?Or is it?160.000 on her.Im leading towards yanking engine for parts and scrapping I have a s10 with 4.3 vortex also and other parts are interchangable.scrap or no?

[hellaphantsrt]

I’m 15 trying to replace 04 4.7 Durango mls head gasket. Is any paste or glue required or is it just put in dry?

[desmondou]

Thanks for your video will it seal external coolant leak from head gasket

[jupiterlegaspi]

Do u only remove the head to replace the head gasket ? Jetta 2012 se manual

[dripthST]

Bro I got cvt Nissan mr20 engine. My problem I loose oil & now water recently I checked the oil and and it's a bit high and kind of like chocolate. What do I do change the engine? & it overheats. I got the car with metal radiator should I put back plastic after fixing my current problem?? Thanks in advance man

[lxiswli]

I currently have the head off of our 1989 Honda Civic DX 1.5 engine with 146, 000 original miles. I spent some 8 hours removing remnants of original gasket material and other crud from the mating areas of the barrels and outer machined areas (upper-top surfaces of the block). The head is at a machinist shop to examine head, valve seats, install 16 new valve seals and shave the head flat. I bought a spray can of Permatex Copper Spray-A-Gasket high-temp sealant. Your message is to not use any of such products, but only the gasket with no sealing aid. Please comment.

[flashoflight]

Replacing the head gasket or engine is not economically viable on really old cars especially where you suspect there are other lurking expensive issues. The only economically viable choices are throwing away the car for scrap or gambling $50 on a bottle and then scrapping it if it fails. Replacing the head gasket or the engine is a hard no.