I have a 96 C280 with 78k miles. I have owned it for 7 years and it has always been serviced by a MB dealership. The car has run beautifully but abour six months ago I had it in for service and the dealer told me there was a "head gasket oil leak." I did notice some oil on the garage floor but I have never had to put oil in it and there is no noticeable drop in the oil level.

The estimate to replace the head gasket was $2,200. Is there another option to address the leak without replacing the gasket?

 

I just had my car inspected for a big trip to Colorado. I have 72,000 miles on my 1996 c280. I have never noticed an oil leak before, no spots in the driveway. They showed me underneath the car, and their was some oil around the area of the head gasket. They told me it would cost $2100 to fix it.

My uneducated car opinion is screw that, so what if there is a small leak. As of right now, I am not going to have them fix it, because my oil level never has any problems. And to be honest, the more I read about it, the more I think it is a classic case for mechanics to squeeze money out of car owners.

 

let the leaks go and it may turn into a big leak when it is too late and cause more damage ,just my opinion .

 

You may be right. But I am not going to pay $2100 for a head gasket oil leak when I have never had problems with my oil level, spots in the drive way, or burning oil. It is common for older cars to have some leakage.

If you could, please tell me what kind of problems I am risking, and what is the likely hood, and at what point have I waited to long. Because if I start seeing puddles in the drive way, I am going to get it fixed.

 

yes you are right it is pricey for that job ,but if you only have sweating no oil level drop or major puddle it is ok ,you just need to check it often to make sure it is only sweat ,and as for what problems may occur ,that is all depending on if it is leaking into the coolant ,check for coolant contamination as well ,and watch it all the time ,hope this helps ,