I spoke with the mechanic this morning and he had throughly checked the upper/lower head gasket & tensioner. Also stated shop rates of $65/hour and use of OEM parts for most and non OEM parts for things like gaskets etc.

He did state that water pump might be the next project because of the mileage of the car. Any ideas what they would cost??

I gave the OK to repair per above mentioned list.

Thanks to all for your help.