yeah 600 is rediculous there was a place i found on google that was selling 1.6 heads for under 300 i believe. and on ebay there are often some 1.9 heads for sale too. brand new.
am I able to use a 1.9 head?
yes but it will lower your CR which will make winter starting a pain. There is lots more indepth info about it on this site. The nice thing is better flow
I think i'll stick with the 1.6.
Hopefully I get good news tomorrow afternoon and the shop was able to remove the lifters.