Head gasket replacement or used engine is the question.

Wife's car is in the shop waiting on my decision.

Rebecca has 180k miles on her...
Choices are:
1. New head gaskets $3211.23 so long as nothing else is wrong...this doesn't include any extra head work or crap they find once they open her up. Car runs solid though.
I don't think a leak down or compression check was done.

2. Used engine 85k-130k miles with 100k mile warranty on the engine. Most cost is labor though. $5460

I will get the my new TB, Cops, complete hose set and transmission cooler swapped over.

communication with the shop is spotty as I am teaching now and our hours don't overlap.

This shop has been good to us. They have checked out things for me for free sometimes. I don't distrust them or their honesty.

Aside: A used vehicle would require the standard used car shake down cruise and replacing of shedding old parts.
Wife wants an suv, but that is a completely new crap shoot in our opinion, plus she loves her car and so do I.

Obviously opinions are welcome.

 

Also, if we do go with a used motor, I am thinking of having the main seal and upper oil pan gasket done before it goes in.

I have AL valve covers, but will leave well enough alone on that. It is easy enough for me to do that later as needed.

 

A good used engine with 50-60K is $1500. Maybe the warranty on the one you are looking at is pushing the price up a bit, but that leaves almost $4k for the shop to swap a motor. That’s crazy. Even the price to replace head gaskets is insane. I’d be inclined to do a lower mileage engine swap, but at those prices I’d be hesitant to do anything. I understand everybody needs to make a living, but I’d shop around a bit.

 

Q: about how many hours labor would you guesstimate it is for each job?

For me to do it, would be weeks as I carefully learn new skills, skills that I don't have time to acquire as I am
teaching full-time now.

Yup. Ok.
Wife is renting a ford escape, so has a taste for an suv.
We can get the car towed back home and have a yourmechanic.com guy look at her.

Just looked this AM at ex350 for size.

 

If the car is in great shape, I would take the replacement engine. I know someone above said the cost is cheaper, but $5k is the average I have heard from several people this year for a G35 engine replacement.

 

THANKS!
Recently Just thinking I might get the same price, but with a completely remanufatured engine, vice a 85k-130k warranted probable junk yard pull.

Guessing hours could be 16-24 hours labor with valve covers, intake, TB, hoses, alt, steering pump, etc being swapped over...most of which are new btw.

The speed in which they do the work should be their profit with a bit of parts charge maybe.

None, or at least most, of us are not getting rich.

I sent an email asking for a better break down if labor cost, and hope not to **** them off. These folks have been good to us.

Thanks for your input.

 

They're charging you 40 hours of labor for a 15 hour engine swap. This is completely unacceptable and I would NEVER recommend someone to pay that ridiculous sum of money for a motor swap.

The price on the head gasket is unacceptable as well.

I suggest getting a quote from some other mechanics in town, these people are literally charging you MORE than double the going rate. At very least you need an itemized breakdown of cost because those numbers are out of this world. They must be charging you $300/hr for labor which is insane.

If the only options are pay those amounts to that shop or buy a different vehicle, I would buy another vehicle. Heck I would rather go to the dealership and buy a zero mile NEW vehicle at a low APR lol. The money you lose in depreciation over 5 years for a budget SUV commuter minus resale cost is around the cost of that used engine once you factor in the fact that you'll have a full manufacturers warranty and service for a few years.

 

Yup.
This is why I consult the forums and my kindred souls for each of our cars.

I think maybe this shop has built my trust in them and now are looking to capitalize.

Time to pull out......or get f*cked.

Your input fortifies my idea of bringing Rebecca back home and swapping a reman'd engine in during the summer....and gain a new skill.

I am still not sure the problem is as big as they say it is.
This goes to your saying or implying a second opinion is wise.

We can rent or buy a beater in the in the mean time.
My wife is a peach.

Love you folks and love this forum.

 

You can always have another shop do a compression and leakdown test (mostly just the leakdown) to verify that it's actually a HG problem.

What exactly did the car do that makes you think it's a head gasket? Overheat all the way to the H mark on the temp gauge?

 

Not even all the way...wife caught right away.
Shop thought it was a slight leak by using a fluid test.
They removed the tstat to make it run cooler and it ran fine all winter in FL.

I recently did the rest of the coolant hoses and put a tstat in.
car ran well in heat for 200 miles or so.
Then wife caught it again.
Car is at shop as I don't have time anymore.

I still suspect the TB coolant hose is not clamped tight, as I had a aweful time getting it tight. I was warned about those silicone hoses.

I left a message with z fever in Tampa.
I have asked for a labor break down of the quotes.

 

Have you pressure tested the coolant system?

 

Yup, it was done after I got the hoses and thermostat in.
I had a yourmechanic.com guy check it for me, just to get another opinion...plus I was having trouble filling the coolant again....

This is why I still think a coolant hose clamp came loose.

I am really thinking about getting the car towed back home, so I can look at it myself..in all my spare time.

 

You can buy a bottle of the exhaust gas tester for coolant systems. Drain out the coolant, refill and bleed, drive it yourself until it overheats, then use the tester to see if there's exhaust gas in the coolant.

Those things work pretty well on fresh coolant, definitely don't try it on old coolant though I've had VERY mixed results.

 

I think that is all this shop is doing right now.

Thanks!

 

If they are billing 40 hirs, that's about how long it would take me to do it in my garage. Maybe this not something they want to do, so they are charging more? I don't know, I never take my car in anywhere, but I have heard this price quoted to me several times this year. Tough situation to be in. the last time i had this issue myself, I rented a car for the month, then did the swap, then returned the rental early since it took me about 10 days to get it right.

But if you don't have time, then that doesn't help you.