I have a 2002 Cadillac that has a leaking head gasket. Coolant leaks into the firing chamber. The Dealer said the engine is aluminum, so when they replace the gasket, they have to use helicoils to bolt the head back on. He said they can be a problem and can't make a guarantee. He has heard of one that went bad in 60 days. It will cost $1300 to change out one head gasket with helicoils.
I know I probably should not expect another 100,000 miles, but I think it might be worth it, if I can get another 50,000 miles with helicoils. It is a good car that was well maintained.
How long do helicoils normally last ? I would like to hear of any good or bad experiences from people who have used these.Are Helicoils reliable?I've used helicoils many times in jetski engines since many parts from the factory just have bolts threaded into aluminum.
If helicoils are installed correctly in your application, they should last indefinitely. They are no different that many other hardened metal inserts installed in a softer metal.
I have had them fail but it was due to corrosion and repeated removal and installation of a part in a saltwater marine environment.Are Helicoils reliable?It seems like the threads in the block are not in good condition. I would not recommend helicoils for this application. When the head is bolted down a lot of torque is applied and I doubt if they would hold.
I have used helicoils a lot in the past and they have proved to be effective %26quot;if fitted correctly%26quot;. Do You really want to take a chance.
If it were just a matter of replacing an attachment bolt hole I would say yes go aheadAre Helicoils reliable?I had a 1992 corsica with a 4 cylinder engine and went to pull a spark plug, the trheads snapped from the bolt head. I drilled the old opart out and was off on the centering and mangled the threads in the head. I used a helicoil with red loctite to install a new sparkplug and went 40,000 miles on it! The only reason I had to get rid of the car is the rack and pinion steering rusted off of the firewall!
