Blown headgasket??..hard to fix?

[esco23]

..i just bought a 91 318 about 4 months ago it was in pretty good condition...97k miles...
but i recently noticed that the car would not accelerate properly, and would act differently at low speeds ( 0-15)..
i checked the oil, ..and saw that it was milky..from what i have read ..that indicates a blown head gasket...please correct me if im wrong..
does the head gasket need to be replaced?

about a month ago i replaced the radiator because coolant was leaking and i constantly had to refill..
but i still have to refill the coolant...but no leaks are apparent.
i dont see white smoke coming out, but the oil seems milkish..

Is it hard to replace a head gasket in a 91 318?..i havent worked alot with cars, ..the most ive done is in some autoshop class, we took apart an engine block, but that was a few years ago..
i have the time to do it.. and i heard its pretty expensive to have a shop do it ..($ 800-1,000)

should i try to do it myself, or take it to the shop?..how hard is it..( access to parts / time-wise / expertise )...

this is my first BMW....please help..thanks !!

[ldsbeaker]

If you have a decent set of tools, a torque wrench, a Bentley Manual and a little bit of courage, I would say that you have everything you need to do the job. I would do it myself, but I have just about all of the above (missing a torque wrench right now) and even if you didnt' have all of the above, acquiring all the tools and books and parts would STILL be cheaper than taking it to a shop. Go figure.

[Kowalski]

Originally Posted by ldsbeaker

If you have a decent set of tools, a torque wrench, a Bentley Manual and a little bit of courage, I would say that you have everything you need to do the job. I would do it myself, but I have just about all of the above (missing a torque wrench right now) and even if you didnt' have all of the above, acquiring all the tools and books and parts would STILL be cheaper than taking it to a shop. Go figure.

GET'R DONE!

get a bently or a hayne's for the torque specs, other then that they arn't much usefull for our cars. also have a friend who knows what they are doing join you. my fee is usualy a 6 pack, and im sure others can say the same.