Is it worth replacing an engine in a used car?

July 20, 2017 6:53 PM

Is it worth replacing the engine in my 2008 jeep liberty?

My 2008 Jeep liberty ( 220 000km) needs minimum $2000 work on the engine. ( head gaskets)
The guy at the shop recommended just replacing it or trading it in. He quoted me a price for
replacement ($3600) but said i should call around and go elsewhere as it would be cheaper.
(this was at Canadian Tire)

I found an engine with 125 000km for $2500 installed after taxes at a local auto recycler. It seems like a great deal and I think I will do it.

I would have to take on a loan if I were to buy a different car.

Is this a good idea or are there common reasons why more people
don't do this?

posted by skinnydipp to Grab Bag (14 answers total)

I blew an engine on my Ford Ranger and it was much cheaper and better to buy the replacement engine than get another vehicle. The rest of the vehicle was in excellent shape. The way I looked at it was I was getting a great used car for cheap. I actually purchased a factory refurb. Went for about 125k after new engine put in.

Get a warranty or guarantee on the replacement engine and don't look back.
posted by AugustWest at 7:28 PM on July 20, 2017

If those are Canadian numbers, those are pretty good.
posted by Brockles at 7:40 PM on July 20, 2017

The main reason I can think of not to do it is if replacing the engine makes the car's value significantly more than it's actual resale or trade-in value--if you wrecked it on the way home from the mechanic after you put the new engine in, would you be totally fucked? But if you're not looking to sell it or trade it in any time soon, that's not very important. $2500 is less than a year's payments on even a used car, and if you like your Jeep, haven't been thinking about moving on, and aren't ready to take on a loan, it seems reasonable to replace the engine if you think you can eke out even another five years on it. At the very least you're buying a few years to plan for replacing the vehicle outright.

Many people don't think about doing this because the allure of getting a newer vehicle is strong and a ten year old vehicle often has other minor and cosmetic issues that already have them thinking about moving on to something fresher. A lot of people also probably worry about mechanics who are trying to pull something shady, so asking for a warranty or guarantee is a wise move.
posted by padraigin at 9:03 PM on July 20, 2017

Get a second opinion on the repair from a reputable mechanic. Canadian Tire auto service centres have a bad reputation for quality.
posted by crazycanuck at 9:17 PM on July 20, 2017 [2 favorites]

I'd get it repaired, that really isn't that many miles on the engine and assuming it wasn't driven too much with a blown head gasket (potentially damaging other components) you should be able to find a smaller shop to replace it for much less. On many engines (and I'm not familiar with this particular one) the headgasket is more or less a consumable, albeit one with ~100k mile lifespan.
posted by miles at 9:20 PM on July 20, 2017

I did this on an old car once and it lasted another four years, so it was worth it to me.
posted by lollusc at 11:45 PM on July 20, 2017

We replaced the engine on a car older than yours (which we bought used several years ago, is paid off, and is otherwise in excellent shape, according to our mechanic). We went with a refurb engine with low mileage and a warranty and are very happy. It was far better, to us, than trying to buy another vehicle that we hadn't been in the market for.
posted by hurdy gurdy girl at 1:17 AM on July 21, 2017

I put a rebuilt engine in a Camry and it was the wrong decision to make, but I liked the car and wanted it to live which clouded my judgement.

It took much longer than expected, a couple weeks to get the engine, then another few weeks to get it installed, but this could have been my dad's mechanics fault.
There were lots of little problems after related to ripping the old engine out and putting the new one in, example some kind of speed sensor came undone after while driving leaving me stuck in 2nd gear with no dash instruments while on a highway.
So many oil leaks, mechanic couldn't fix these, dealer did to the tune of another thousand dollars.
And it top it off it turns out the engine was rebuilt wrong in the first place from some factory that's professional at rebuilding them.

I was emotionally attached to my car, the better financial move would have been to junk it and buy something else instead of replacing the engine.

That said, replacing the head gasket is a bunch of labor, but relatively straight forward, I've never heard of replacing the engine unless the block is cracked or warped from overheating.
posted by TheAdamist at 3:52 AM on July 21, 2017

An '08 Jeep Liberty in that condition is worth about $3k. You haven't said anything about the transmission - do '08 Liberties have transmission problems? That could easily be another couple grand to fix. You're essentially making a $2500 gamble that you won't have another major system failure (fuel, transmission, ELECTRICAL!). How important is reliable transportation to you? How much exposure are you willing to take on dealing with a potentially complex mechanic job?

I'd look for a new car, but I also have a low opinion of newer Jeeps and the Liberty in specific.
posted by Geckwoistmeinauto at 6:16 AM on July 21, 2017

That is not terrible money to get a car fixed. But don't go to Canadian Tire. Really, just don't. I don't even trust them to do switch my winter tires (which are on rims) because they have screwed that up enough times (yeah, should have learned our lesson the first time, but they are almost right across the street from our house).

If all your engine needs is a new head gasket, then if that is replaced you know there are no more issues. If you get a used engine from an auto recycler, you have an unknown engine with unknown issues. I would get a second opinion on the repair from a reputable shop. Where are you located? Someone may able to point you to a better shop.
posted by fimbulvetr at 7:12 AM on July 21, 2017

An '08 Jeep Liberty in that condition is worth about $3k.
Canadian Jeep prices are higher - or did you mean including the damaged engine? Ontario prices for those Jeeps are going for $7-9k, so spending $2,500 on an engine on an otherwise sound car is not unreasonable.

Although, I agree, Jeep Liberties are awful and that reason alone would make me walk away from it with this kind of excuse.
posted by Brockles at 7:56 AM on July 21, 2017

I'm not sure why you wouldn't just get the head gasket replaced, albeit perhaps at a better mechanic. A replacement engine from an auto recycler could have any number of unknown issues—who knows how well it was taken care of, or what happened to the car it was in that it ended up at the scrap yard after just 125k km?

You know your current engine's history and that the only thing wrong with it at the moment is the gasket. What if you replace the engine and then the head gasket on that engine blows in a couple of months? Also, replacing an engine is more labor intensive and failure-prone than just replacing the head gasket (not that either are minor procedures) as well as being more expensive up front.

Head gaskets do blow out. It's expensive to fix, but on the two or three times I've had to deal with it (in various older cars) there's never been any question about replacing the whole engine. I've always just had the gasket replaced and then the engine lasted for as long as I had the car.
posted by Anticipation Of A New Lover's Arrival, The at 8:02 AM on July 21, 2017 [1 favorite]

Check on other maintenance, like timing belt. How's the transmission, brakes, tires, etc. If it's in generally good shape and you like it, then fix the head gasket.
posted by theora55 at 11:54 AM on July 21, 2017

I think this is pretty much impossible to answer until you get it in to a legit shop. I wouldn't trust any diagnosis or cost estimates from a CT mechanic.
posted by mannequito at 1:35 PM on July 21, 2017