Took the car in on Friday. Called today to pick it up, found out that it will probably need to have the head gasket replaced. Also, I was told that a [or all?] of the... Thrust bearings? [I'm not sure if this was the name used] were completely gone, and resulted in increased tire wear. To make a long story short, it needs new tires after 15-20k. The last set of tires that were put on were Michelin M-somethings. They ran about $135.00 [each] at costco. I'd like to put on a less expensive tire [Pirelli P6000 Sport Veloce VR?] without sacrificing much performance, noise, etc.

Just out of curiosity: [I know this is the tire section, but I can't help it] Is it unusual for the head gasket needing to be replaced at 186,000? It's never overheated as far as I know. [One previous owner]

Thanks a bunch,
James

For the $$ ($70 at Tire Rack in the 225/65/15), the Yokohama V-rated AVS Db are an excellent tire -- extremely quiet (thus the "Db" name) and comparable handling to more expensive Michelin and Bridgestone tires. I put them on my daughter's '88 420SEL and have been very pleased with them.