So I'm in the process of removing the cylinder head myself.
Just started on the intake manifold , then i'm moving on to the exhaust mani... valve cover etc etc....
I've never took a head to a shop myself so i'm unaware of what I'm gettin myself into.

Basically I'd just like to know what's the average cost for repair on a bent valve.

 

I don't know about labor charges cause I do my own work, but I can tell you that valves are around $8-$10 each and valve stem seals are about $30 for a set of 16.

 

Depends on what all is needed done. I had 2 bent valves in an Escort head and it cost me parts plus I think $150 for him to install and mill the head.

 

Yeah I was gonna say between 150-200

 

awesome .

shoot im pretty new to breakin down the car all the way down to the engine.
I'm making headway though.
i've already went this far. I didnt know I could replace the valves myself.
might as well do that. I've already done all this other crap.

*update*
just as an update on my progress, I've gotten the head out.
I did a leak test to see which valves were gone.
I had 5 big leaks and 4 small ones.
But seeing as how i didn't have to remove the rocker arms to take the head out. I was unaware that this would have an impact on my test. I say this because along with those 9 valves my number 1 intake valves didnt close during this test. so having learned that removing the rocker arms will close all the valves I'm praying that it's just the 2 intake valves from the number 1 cylinder rather than 11 valves lol . since the valves are 7 or 16 from autozone i would surely say 14-32 dollars beats the HELL outta 77 - 176 for some valves plus the head cover gasket set which is a pretty penny $150 so I'm anxious for good news!!!!!!

Wish me luck lol

 

So as it turned out it's the 2 intakes and 1 exhaust valve on the number one cylinder.

I've heard that taking out the valves yourself on an aluminum head vs. that of say a cast iron head isn't good to attempt yourself due to a scraping sandpaper like effect when removing the valve which i'm guessing would ultimately lead to leaks.

Is this true? or hogwash?
I guess if it's true I can take the valves I purchase from autozone and just take to them to shop and have em do it that way no?

 

From somebody who learned the hard way, I recommend replacing all the valves. The first one I did, I just replaced the ones that were obviously bent and when I got it back together it ran like crap. So, after a compression test, I ended up taking it apart AGAIN and replacing the rest of the valves. I bought that car with a broken timing belt, so I couldn't do a compression test before taking it apart. I've bought 2 other Neons with broken timing belts since then and of the three, 2 had 14 bent valves, 1 had 12. It's hard to tell if they're bent by looking at them. If you stick em in a drill and spin em it's pretty obvious. You can get the valves from Rockauto for $7-$9 each and they made by Sealed Power, so they're good parts. Replacing the valves on an aluminum head is no different from doing it on any other head. It still has steel guides and seats. It is a bit of a pita just because sticking 16 valves in a small head doesn't leave much room for a valve spring compressor. I use the old C-clamp type and on the intake valves a short piece of 1" pipe because the spark plug tubes get in the way. Be sure to lap the valves and replace te valve stem seals. Another tip is leave the rocker shafts off until after the head is back on and the timing belt is on. That way there's no way the valves can hit the pistons when you're trying to get the timing marks lined up.

 

just curious would it be worth the extra $$ to have the head ported/runners polished out?

We used to do it on 4 banger volvo boat motors back in the day but only because it makes a big difference for runs @4500-5k rpms for long periods of time across big lakes

 

I imagine the the cost would outweigh the benefit since it's time consuming. But if you had the head disassembled and have a dremel tool, time and patience, it surely couldn't hurt anything.

 

did you do a leak test or did you just replace the ones that didn't close? I can do the drill test but i'm not sure how id go about that??? would i just remove the valves and chuck it directly to the drill?? thanks for tips! really!
one other question . when i'm removing the old gasket material from the head how meticulous do i need to be? i mean i know not to gouge the surfaces and all that but does the head need to been sparkling and **** or just spot cleaned??