T25 Head gasket blown, alternative engine possibilities??

[macthejaffa]

Van ran dry and overheated, I topped up plenty of coolant but damage was already done as I drove later that day and have a thick white cloud coming from my exhaust. Checked the oil dipstick and sure enough it's covered in milky brown liquid.....

Looking through various posts it seems like most opt for replacement engines which I'd love to do but they all seem way out of my price range, so I'm willfully hoping there is some kind of cheap alternative for me to go for, or is it cheaper to try to remedy it myself (my knowledge is extremely limited but I do have a few VW buffs I could call in a favour with)...

All advice very much appreciated, things are very sad here as we love our van and we feel like a member of the family is out of action

Cheers folks

[macthejaffa]

.........should also add it's a 1983 1.9 DH watercooled engine

[airhead]

I tackled a head gasket replacement recently and I have to say it was not nearly as difficult as I would have thought. The only pain was doing the valve and pump timing.