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cylinder head swap advise please

Posted: Mon Jan 16, 2012 8:31 pm
by sarahndaz
well a massive hello and happy new year to one and all

as some of you may know i blew the head on the bongo on new years eve and its been on the drive since ,i went into bit of a depressed state about it to be honest ,wondering what to do and whether to bother with it ,but after kicking myself in the minimals and having a quiet word with myself i have decided to pull up my socks and get her sorted ,i bloody love the thing so she is going to get better,i have spent the last couple of weeks researching and talking to various peeps (thanks ady ) and have come across a guy named simon in warks whose name seems to pop up regular on different forums ,so after speaking to him today it would seem for a sum of £1150 he will perform surgery and supply and fit a new head and all various other bits to make her sing once more ,and he comes and collects as well ,has anyone on here had any dealings with this guy please ???????????? he is also going to change water pump ,stat,fan switch,and rad for me ,and the good thing is the guy i bought the bongo from is paying half

so fingers crossed all goes well and we will be able to make a feb meet hopefully the matlock one

cheers guys for the support

Re: cylinder head swap advise please

Posted: Mon Jan 16, 2012 11:38 pm
by Driver+Passengers
I felt for you when I heard about your head. It was great hearing your enthusiasm come through in your early posts, and despite it all, how nice to read such a positive post as this. I can't offer anything on the guy who you might be taking up to do the work, but one word of advice - don't try to save money by sourcing any of the parts yourself - leave it to him. That way, if anything went wrong further down the line... etc... :|

Wishing you all the best - hope you're back on the road soon!
Matt.

Re: cylinder head swap advise please

Posted: Mon Jan 16, 2012 11:47 pm
by sarahndaz
cheers matt

i hear what your saying about the parts ,when i spoke to simon earlier he put me right on what to use and not to ,i am confident that he is the man for the job ,i believe a couple of people on here has used him ,so hopefully we will be pestering you good peeps at some meets soon

thanks again

Re: cylinder head swap advise please

Posted: Tue Jan 17, 2012 12:02 am
by mikeonb4c
And read up on Simon Jones advice on flatting the block etc. In order to get a repair that lasts. Good luck.

Re: cylinder head swap advise please

Posted: Tue Jan 17, 2012 12:17 am
by Simon Jones
Ask him if he will 'deck the block' which is the process of taking off any high spots on the block before fitting a nice new / skimmed head.

Re: cylinder head swap advise please

Posted: Tue Jan 17, 2012 12:22 am
by sarahndaz
Simon Jones wrote:Ask him if he will 'deck the block' which is the process of taking off any high spots on the block before fitting a nice new / skimmed head.
thanks for that simon ,he has 22 years experience of building jap engines so im hoping he has the knowledge ,its a lot of money to pay out at this time of year but it will be worth it ,,,,,,, i cant wait

thanks for the advice

Re: cylinder head swap advise please

Posted: Tue Jan 17, 2012 12:28 am
by dandywarhol
To echo Driver's comments - get the whole job done - labour and parts by the same individual - and get a receipt - just in case...................

Re: cylinder head swap advise please

Posted: Tue Jan 17, 2012 4:17 am
by Northern Bongolow
dont know the guy by name but if its the guy who is on the other forum :shock: [-X and travels round doing this sort of job for bongo peeps ive only heard good coments about him. but i dont recomend him in any way as ive never met him.
just thinking maybe an idea to ask to contact past customers and have a chat with them. dont let your heart rule your head.

Re: cylinder head swap advise please

Posted: Tue Jan 17, 2012 12:54 pm
by teenmal
Northern Bongolow wrote:dont know the guy by name but if its the guy who is on the other forum :shock: [-X and travels round doing this sort of job for bongo peeps ive only heard good coments about him. but i dont recomend him in any way as ive never met him.
just thinking maybe an idea to ask to contact past customers and have a chat with them. dont let your heart rule your head.
Is this the guy that advertises in the for sale section of This Forum (BF)..?

Mazda Bongo Servicing and Repair, Based in Warwickshire, mobile service also available. Toyota Granvia Servicing and Repair. 22 Years as a Japanese Engine Specialist. Full mechanical repairs, Engine rebuilds, Cylinder Head replacement, Cooling system overhaul, Full machine shop facilities, Mobile service also available. Rear wheel arch repairs and under sealing. Recommended by Bongo specialists.

Please contact Simon on 07551578462 by phone or txt or email [email protected]

Re: cylinder head swap advise please

Posted: Tue Jan 17, 2012 1:32 pm
by sarahndaz
teenmal wrote:
Northern Bongolow wrote:dont know the guy by name but if its the guy who is on the other forum :shock: [-X and travels round doing this sort of job for bongo peeps ive only heard good coments about him. but i dont recomend him in any way as ive never met him.
just thinking maybe an idea to ask to contact past customers and have a chat with them. dont let your heart rule your head.
Is this the guy that advertises in the for sale section of This Forum (BF)..?

Mazda Bongo Servicing and Repair, Based in Warwickshire, mobile service also available. Toyota Granvia Servicing and Repair. 22 Years as a Japanese Engine Specialist. Full mechanical repairs, Engine rebuilds, Cylinder Head replacement, Cooling system overhaul, Full machine shop facilities, Mobile service also available. Rear wheel arch repairs and under sealing. Recommended by Bongo specialists.

Please contact Simon on 07551578462 by phone or txt or email [email protected]
Hi yes it seems to be one and the same

Re: cylinder head swap advise please

Posted: Tue Jan 17, 2012 1:50 pm
by borntobag
Last year my bongo overheated and after that blew a hose off, I contacted Simon for advise and he suggested a cracked head was the problem that was pressurising the system.
We agreed a price and time for the replacement head, he arrived at 07:00, diagnosed the problem first, replaced the head and she has been running as sweet as a nut since.
He was very efficient, certainly knew his way around the bongo and the job was done in about 8 hours.
The only problem we had was with the brass union that the bleed hose comes off, my original didnt fit the ranger head, it was too lose, luckily i knew a man locally, who there and then cut and braised the extra outlet from my original to a new ranger one.

Apart from that all went well, so well that 3 weeks later we took the Bongo to Spain for a fortnight.

So yes, i definatly would recommend him, just make sure you have plenty of tea bags, he likes a cuppa.

Re: cylinder head swap advise please

Posted: Tue Jan 17, 2012 2:17 pm
by Simon Jones
Don't forget to fit a new cambelt & tensioner too. £44.50 from AVA Leisure, but as mentioned before, it's better if he supplies all the parts.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/MAZDA-BONGO-F ... 2a17deac8b

Re: cylinder head swap advise please

Posted: Tue Jan 17, 2012 3:00 pm
by Northern Bongolow
teenmal wrote:
Northern Bongolow wrote:dont know the guy by name but if its the guy who is on the other forum :shock: [-X and travels round doing this sort of job for bongo peeps ive only heard good coments about him. but i dont recomend him in any way as ive never met him.
just thinking maybe an idea to ask to contact past customers and have a chat with them. dont let your heart rule your head.
Is this the guy that advertises in the for sale section of This Forum (BF)..?

Mazda Bongo Servicing and Repair, Based in Warwickshire, mobile service also available. Toyota Granvia Servicing and Repair. 22 Years as a Japanese Engine Specialist. Full mechanical repairs, Engine rebuilds, Cylinder Head replacement, Cooling system overhaul, Full machine shop facilities, Mobile service also available. Rear wheel arch repairs and under sealing. Recommended by Bongo specialists.

Please contact Simon on 07551578462 by phone or txt or email [email protected]
:oops: :oops: 8) . not seen that, thought he was just on the other side :wink:

Re: cylinder head swap advise please

Posted: Tue Jan 17, 2012 5:13 pm
by sarahndaz
Simon Jones wrote:Don't forget to fit a new cambelt & tensioner too. £44.50 from AVA Leisure, but as mentioned before, it's better if he supplies all the parts.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/MAZDA-BONGO-F ... 2a17deac8b
hi simon he actually does that as part of the price so all good

Re: cylinder head swap advise please

Posted: Tue Jan 17, 2012 5:15 pm
by sarahndaz
borntobag wrote:Last year my bongo overheated and after that blew a hose off, I contacted Simon for advise and he suggested a cracked head was the problem that was pressurising the system.
We agreed a price and time for the replacement head, he arrived at 07:00, diagnosed the problem first, replaced the head and she has been running as sweet as a nut since.
He was very efficient, certainly knew his way around the bongo and the job was done in about 8 hours.
The only problem we had was with the brass union that the bleed hose comes off, my original didnt fit the ranger head, it was too lose, luckily i knew a man locally, who there and then cut and braised the extra outlet from my original to a new ranger one.

Apart from that all went well, so well that 3 weeks later we took the Bongo to Spain for a fortnight.

So yes, i definatly would recommend him, just make sure you have plenty of tea bags, he likes a cuppa.
ahhhhh brilliant thanks for the endorsement its so much better when its word of mouth thankyou muchly