200tdi head cracks

[WreckITFrank]

Short story is that I bought a head from Ebay. Great shape overall except for 2 cracks between valves. Seller promptly refunded me, so really I am only out the shipping which is no big deal and was agreed upon.

From extensive Internets searches and forums, it would seem as though there is no repair option, all of the posts I've seen basically state that no repair is possible, and to consider a replacement or a 300 head conversion. I have not reached out to any local machine shops either, but wondering how many are likely running this way currently or notice little to no issue.

Found someone else selling used head that showed visible cracks. Seller was aware of them and said they were no big deal and that he's been running his own with them for a while and has not seen many without.

I currently have 2, 200tdi's and no knowledge of issues with the heads, just bought a third to prep for a refresh without having too much downtime.

Do most have cracks and people just dont know it? I assume some run heads this way forever and only know if they have issues or pull them? TIA

 

[Uncle Douglas]

I have never pulled a 200 that had cracks and have always been able to have them surfaced and a valve job and put them back in service. Robert Davis has seen several with cracks.
My impression is you have to run them very hot/overheat to crack them.

 

[RDavisinVA]

The bridgework between the valves of the 200TDI are prone to cracking simply because it is so thin, but different people experience different scenarios with the same model engine.
The longer you run one, the more likely you are to develop cracks.
When the 300TDI engine was developed, 5 major improvements were initiated to eliminate the various 200TDI design flaws.:
1. The bridge between the valves was made much wider on the 300TDI to help prevent the inevitable cracking that is so common on the 200TDI.
2. Unlike the 200TDI, the 300TDI front cover does not have all the coolant running through it, so a pressurized cooling system will only blow out the P-gasket instead of the 200TDI coolant seals and require disassembling the entire front of the 200TDI engine to repair.
3. The crankshaft timing gear had a guide added to prevent the timing belt from walking off the gear.
4. The 300TDI has a serpentine fan belt system with external tensioner, while the 200TDI has V-belts.
5. The 300TDI block was reinforced, eliminating the need for the 200TDI ladder support.

I have a NOS 200TDI factory head stocked away in my parts stash for just such an occasion.

 

[Napalm00]

ive junked two heads with cracks. one from valve to valve like yours that was ticking audibly. Another that was cracked from injector port to the glowplug port, that one was blowing carbon into the injector bore.

you can use a 300 head on a 200 you will need:

• 300 head
• 300 injectors
• 300 injector pipes
• 300 thermostat housing
• creative coolant hoses

as doug states to get them to crack between valve you have to run them VERY hot. to get them to crack at the injector/glow plug port it just takes a gorilla arm on the glow plug.


EDIT: ill also say that i sold a head on dsource that i thought was good. I had cleaned it and checked it. Missed a crack and refunded the purchase plus shipping. you should try to get your shipping back if possible, its the sellers fault, not yours.

 

[WreckITFrank]

good info here. i guess it's safe to assume that a proper running 200 could survive a lifetime without a cracked head. ill strip this down and stick it in on the shelf. Ill hope both of mine are good, but wont likely know until I get into them. Might give me a reason to preemptively take a look since I dont know their past.