Here is the OP's post in the "introductions" thread:

"I am from the US, and am about to get my drivers license. However, I need a car to drive. My dad had a broken land rover Discovery from 2004, so I signed up on this forum so I could get help fixing it. The problem right now is a blown head gasket, however since it is a land rover, I suspect many more problems down the line."

This was posted before the disassembly pictures here...

So now we know more of the context.

Kudos for getting the heads off and getting this far, however this may be more of a long term project. I mean it would be fabulous if you can pull this off, but realistically, get your license and get a cheap running vehicle first... then work on this project as time and money allow.

It's difficult even for some grown adults with gainful employment to keep up with the demands of a running Land Rover let alone one with that kind of damage...

And yes, do check the frame rails especially from the center of the truck to the rear for rust before even thinking about spending money on this one.

Best of luck!!

 

Goat- I am sorry to say but if this were a horse you would have to take out your six-shooter and out put it down. As many experienced rover owners have said here the block is toast.as is the head. IF you are hell bent on this truck, your best bet may be a junk yard or a pic-a-part place. You are going to need a bunch of tools like an engine stand, an engine lift for starters. As you have limited funds this may not want to be a road you travel down. Sorry.

 

X2. park it and work on it later on when you can---if you can and want. I've put several thousand into my rover this year alone. It's cheaper than a car payment, but it's still minimum $100-$200 a month averaged out over time. It may be better to just get an old Toyota or Honda. if you have to have 4x4, a 4runner or tacoma from 1999 onwards is a great rig to buy for a kid or someone on limited funds (for repairs that is. Toyota prices are higher). hell, sometimes even a cheap newer car with a low payment that needs basically no maintenance is best if you can work.

 

Is it possible to weld it, then smooth it? If so, how long would this repair last? If I replace the block can I reuse the cylinders and the other things that it needs? I can probably get a new head and block for about $1300, how much money would the other tools and parts be? Can I rent some of them?

 

you'll need a machine shop to do it....and it still might fail.

You'll need a new block and head, and associated gaskets. it'd be a good time to do every gasket or seal you can find while the engine is on the stand before installing it. you'll need both heads milled and surfaced. you'll want to pressure test the block. You can probably rent or borrow tools if you or your dad know anyone with those tools. unfortunately, you're probably minim gonna be into this thing like $3K being as cheap as possible and doing everything yourself, except the pressure test and milling. and that's if nothing else is wrong. it's doable with time and resources, but it's just not on a shoestring budget without asking for trouble a few miles down the road.

 

Anything is possible but to do so effectively you'll have to completely disassemble the block, have it welded and then machined smooth. You should probably hot tank it and check for other cracks or issues at the same time. In the end it will be essentially the same labor for you and probably equal expense to replacing the block. If I were you I'd look for a used motor before attempting to resurrect this one. Assuming you can find a decent one, it's far less work to swap an engine than it it to have this one repaired.

 

Find another engine, don't bother with this one...waste of time and money. These engines are findable.

 

Contact Will TIllerey or Doc Heydary on Facebook. Both have good engines for less than $1000 for a 4.0. 4.0 and 4.6 blocks are the same (actually 4.0's are better), so you could put your rotating assembly in the 4.0 block.

 

I took one apart like this one time. It's not melted, exactly. It's caused by a head gasket failure between cylinders. The gasses passing back and forth between the cylinders erodes away at the block (and head, probably) a lot quicker than you'd expect, particularly on aluminum engines.

It could be repaired, theoretically, but it will require extensive machine shop time. Many multiple thousands of dollars once you're done. You'd be much better off finding a used motor, or at least a used block to rebuild fresh with your rotating assembly.

 

So it would be cheaper to get a $700 block and $300 head than to repair it?