Just got towed back home after my partners 2012 Focus 1.0 Eco Boost broke down

RAC says water leaked out from a pipe and blew the head gasket

Fails to start, when water added to the reservoir it drips quickly from somewhere near the top of the engine and the reservoir empties with 1 minute

RAC says he can tell its the head gasket as when it turns over he can hear gurgling from the reservoir

Any advice please?

On a 1.0 ECOboost a blown headgasket is quite rare. Overheating of the 1.0 ECOboost usually results in serious engine damage before the headgasket fails. In case of overheating damage to the cilinder bore and pistons and/or a cracked cylinder block or cylinder head are quite common.

Since the 1.0 ECOboost on the Focus MK3 only measures the coolant temperature (and not the cylinder head or engine block temperature) overheating will not be detected in case of a coolant leak. Once the coolant leaks out of the system the coolant temperature sensor will no longer contact the coolant but will measure air instead. Since air does not transmit heat as well as coolant the engine will overheat without showing it on the temperature gauge. Once the temperature indicates overheating it is usually too late.
 

Further diagnosis/investigation and disassembly of the engine and cooling system is required to find whether the headgasket is blown or not and assess possible damage. If you are really, really lucky and only the headgasket is blown you are still facing major costs. Replacing the headgasket and wetbelts (these needs to be replaced once removed) and checking and (most likely) resurfacing the cylinder head is a major time consuming job.

 

11 minutes ago, JW1982 said:

On a 1.0 ECOboost a blown headgasket is quite rare. Overheating of the 1.0 ECOboost usually results in serious engine damage before the headgasket fails. In case of overheating damage to the cilinder bore and pistons and/or a cracked cylinder block or cylinder head are quite common.

Since the 1.0 ECOboost on the Focus MK3 only measures the coolant temperature (and not the cylinder head or engine block temperature) overheating will not be detected in case of a coolant leak. Once the coolant leaks out of the system the coolant temperature sensor will no longer contact the coolant but will measure air instead. Since air does not transmit heat as well as coolant the engine will overheat without showing it on the temperature gauge. Once the temperature indicates overheating it is usually too late.
 

Further diagnosis/investigation and disassembly of the engine and cooling system is required to find whether the headgasket is blown or not and assess possible damage. If you are really, really lucky and only the headgasket is blown you are still facing major costs. Replacing the headgasket and wetbelts (these needs to be replaced once removed) and checking and (most likely) resurfacing the cylinder head is a major time consuming job.

 

Wow thanks for the in depth post

 

Sounds like we need to look for a replacement engine

I agree with Wilco, but the costs involved and the potential damage to the engine just don't make it cost effective to investigate just to discover 'yes the head gasket has gone' and it going to cost a fortune OR 'no the head gasket has not gone' and its going to cost even more !!

You are better to cut your losses now and start looking for a secondhand engine from a vehicle recycling centre, a good engine can normally be found for £1500 - £2000, still a lot of money but at least you should then have a working engine.

Is a 9 year old Focus even economically viable to repair if it needs a new engine in though?  Considering cost of engine and then labour charges. 

It might be worth putting it to a Ford dealer and asking them to look at the problem even if you need to pay an hours labour as Ford are covering the costs for a high percentage of these repairs.

 

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1 hour ago, gds1972 said:

Ford are covering the costs for a high percentage of these repairs.

Its a nice idea Gordon but its very hard work getting Ford to cover stuff that is in warranty never mind them fixing a car thats 9 years old. All that would happen is you would spend £200 on getting a report that says you need a new engine and its not Fords fault. Then they might as a gesture of good will offer you a new engine at half manufactures list price (so thats about £2500 after discount) but you would have to pay the Ford dealership in full for the work, about another £2000.

If Rob is lucky he will find a secondhand engine for about £1500ish and a small garage who will do the work for a bout £1000. Not a perfect answer but potentially better than the £4500 plus he would spend going to the Ford route. Granted of course he would be getting a brand new engine.

21 hours ago, RobFordFocus said:

Just got towed back home after my partners 2012 Focus 1.0 Eco Boost broke down

RAC says water leaked out from a pipe and blew the head gasket

Fails to start, when water added to the reservoir it drips quickly from somewhere near the top of the engine and the reservoir empties with 1 minute

RAC says he can tell its the head gasket as when it turns over he can hear gurgling from the reservoir

Any advice please?

Do you have a Ford full service history record?