dead engine from no oil change: swapping engine

[hammer]

Our engine died on our otherwise prestine 97 toyota corola, previous owner never heard of changing oil and has driven it for 3 years without any maintainance...no brakes, no fluids, nothing when I asked. Should have heeded the warning but the car looked immaculate....anyhow after almost a year...the engine has died....:(

I am interested in swapping engines with a used one from the junk yard since Toyota dealer wants $6000 for a new engine.

Anyone have any comments on whether this is worth it?

Whether it has any disadvantages?

What are the typical costs for an engine swap with a junk yard one?

[wing0]

if u knew the car was never maintained for 3 yrs...i'd walk away right away.
for $6000, it's not worth putting a brand new engine in. You still have to do all the maintenances for other parts. It also depends on how much u paid for the car.

[bunga]

you should be able to get a low mileage motor with warranty swapped in by a reputable shop or even dealer (inquire about them supplying a junkyard motor, or you supplying your own) for $1500-$2000

stay away from a friend that has a friend that has a shop that can do it for you for $600 or whatever, you'll be very very unhappy afterwards. Stick with well known shops/dealers

[careener]

Since you asked about used engine prices

1997
Engine
Toyota Corolla not FX 4AT,1.8L,MTP C60223 $949.11
--Can--
$1072.49 Lecavalier- Cumberland Can-ON(Cumberland) E-mail 1-800-463-9966 USA,800-570-3977 Can
1997
Engine
Toyota Corolla not FX 45,209
--km--
72,800 F9F791 $840.71
--Can--
$950.00 Rock City Auto Supplies, LTD. Can-ON(Sudbury) Request_Quote 1-705-566-9670 Request_Insurance_Quote
1997
Engine
Toyota Corolla not FX AC,124311K,190 C,OP-NA-,HT,NOTES 77,197
--km--
124,311 A 17895 $743.36
--Can--
$840.00 Arnprior/Ottawa Auto Parts Can-ON(Arnprior) E-mail 1-800-267-7386
1996
Engine
Toyota Corolla not FX AC,DX,171374KLM,175 C,65 OP,-309 106,423
--km--
171,374 A 15217 $584.08
--Can--
$660.01 Arnprior/Ottawa Auto Parts Can-ON(Arnprior) E-mail 1-800-267-7386
1997
Engine
Toyota Corolla not FX 190 COMP 55 OIL -327 NOTE 100,660
--km--
162,093 A 18504 $584.08
--Can--
$660.01 Arnprior/Ottawa Auto Parts Can-ON(Arnprior) E-mail 1-800-267-7386
1997
Engine
Toyota Corolla not FX 225CMP,30 OIL,RUN GOOD M329 $530.97
--Can--
$600.00 P and G Auto Can-ON(North-Bay) E-mail 1-800-461-9562
1996
Engine
Toyota Corolla not FX AOD,1.8FI,C.150 COLD,NOTES P22481 $530.97
--Can--
$600.00 Plazek Auto Recyclers Can-ON(Caistor-Centre) Request_Quote 1-905-957-8111 Request_Insurance_Quote
1997
Engine
Toyota Corolla not FX AOD,1.8FI P22485 $530.97
--Can--
$600.00 Plazek Auto Recyclers Can-ON(Caistor-Centre) Request_Quote 1-905-957-8111 Request_Insurance_Quote
1996
Engine
Toyota Corolla not FX 05-96,FWD,EFI,1.8L,A T,LE,-606 76,109
--km--
122,559 A 4G762 $530.97
--Can--
$600.00 Sonshine Auto Parts Can-ON(Navan) E-mail 1-888-834-3666
1997
Engine
Toyota Corolla not FX JAPANESE IMPORTED, MUST REPLACE HEAD FSJ $530.97
--Can--
$600.00 Lucky Star Auto Parts Can-ON(Toronto) Request_Quote 1-416-240-8444 Request_Insurance_Quote
1997
Engine
Toyota Corolla not FX COIL PACK SSJ $530.97
--Can--
$600.00 Lucky Star Auto Parts Can-ON(Toronto) Request_Quote 1-416-240-8444 Request_Insurance_Quote
1997
Engine
Toyota Corolla not FX JAPANESE IMPORTED, MUST REPLACE HEAD FSJ $530.97
--Can--
$600.00 Lucky Star Auto Parts Can-ON(Toronto) Request_Quote 1-416-240-8444 Request_Insurance_Quote
1996
Engine
Toyota Corolla not FX 200 COMP 50 OIL,M-DON,309-SOLD WL0105 $483.18
--Can--
$545.99 Woodbeck Auto Parts Can-ON(Stirling) E-mail 1-613-395-3336
1997
Engine
Toyota Corolla not FX 175 COMP 40 HOT OIL,M-TONY WB4065 $483.18
--Can--
$545.99 Woodbeck Auto Parts Can-ON(Stirling) E-mail 1-613-395-3336
1996
Engine
Toyota Corolla not FX U1.8FI,AOD,START GOOD PER JS 54,027
--km--
87,000 030201 $469.03
--Can--
$530.00 Queensway Auto Parts (No U.S. Shipping) Can-ON(Port-Robinson) Request_Quote 1-800-263-7124(Can.) Request_Insurance_Quote
1996
Engine
Toyota Corolla not FX U1.8FI,AOD,OKAY PER JASON 45,954
--km--
74,000 030537 $469.03
--Can--
$530.00 Queensway Auto Parts (No U.S. Shipping) Can-ON(Port-Robinson) Request_Quote 1-800-263-7124(Can.) Request_Insurance_Quote
1997
Engine
Toyota Corolla not FX 1.8FI,AOD,OKAY PER JIM 39,744
--km--
64,000 020147 $469.03
--Can--
$530.00 Queensway Auto Parts (No U.S. Shipping) Can-ON(Port-Robinson) Request_Quote 1-800-263-7124(Can.) Request_Insurance_Quote
1997
Engine
Toyota Corolla not FX 1.8FI,AOD,START,606 CAP-XX,SEE NOTES 52,785
--km--
85,000 020119 $469.03
--Can--
$530.00 Queensway Auto Parts (No U.S. Shipping) Can-ON(Port-Robinson) Request_Quote 1-800-263-7124(Can.) Request_Insurance_Quote
1997
Engine
Toyota Corolla not FX 1.8L,AOD,CANNOT START BURNT 010452 $469.03
--Can--
$530.00 Queensway Auto Parts (No U.S. Shipping) Can-ON(Port-Robinson) Request_Quote 1-800-263-7124(Can.) Request_Insurance_Quote
1997
Engine
Toyota Corolla not FX 1.8L,EFI,5 Sp,SEE NOTES C-200,O-50 26254 $398.23
--Can--
$450.00 Bell City Auto Center Can-ON(Brantford) E-mail 1-800-265-8498
1996
Engine
Toyota Corolla not FX 1.8L;AOT;N-309-327 -RAN A1- 21 78,246
--km--
126,000 QJ1441 $278.76
--Can--
$315.00 Logels Auto Parts Can-ON(Kitchener) Request_Quote 1-800-818-9118 Request_Insurance_Quote

[B0000rt]

If the previous owner did no maintence whatsoever, why would you even consider putting more money into this car?

Transmission = bye bye soon
Rad = bye bye soon
everything else, I would assume should be ok, brakes fluid w/o change is ok, rotors/pads are relatively cheap.
suspension requires little maintence, though your balljoints and stuff do need grease (check those)

But anyways, if you do decide to go for a different engine, I'd say go for an engine rebuild, it's the safest route, and fairly cheap (better than a new engine). It'll be a a few hundred more than the junkyard engine, but you'll know that the rebuild will last just as along as a new engine would (with a junker, you don't know what you're getting at all). I had a junked engine installed in my car over 3 years ago, and she's gone 70k kms w/o any problems (/me knocks on wood) :D But it was $1100 but the mechanic kept screwing small things up like screwing up some coolant line threads, so he knocked $300 off and gave me it for $800. Though I did get a good deal, I wish I had placed a rebuilt engine in there instead.

The engine rebuild will take longer to do though (vs engine swapping)

[nx2k]

you're kidding right?
my corolla burns so much oil and we deprive it all the time and it still runs good, the seals on those engines are bulletproof, i've run it with little to almost no oil in those toyota engines, my friend has done the same thing on his corolla
it would take a lot of abuse to have those engines crap out.
and those engine prices are ridiculous
u can find an 4AFE 1.6L for $400 CAD and a 7AFE 1.8L for $450
i've asked
this is why i don't care much about the engine and deprive it of oil
im wanting it to die and it just won't, it's currently at 240k kms, im betting everything else is gonna go on it before the engine dies, altho i haven't had too much of a problem with other things either, nothing out of the ordinary atleast except my suspension failed but i picked up almost new suspension from a newer corolla for dirt cheap so it was all good

[oldsnail]

knowing it had poor maintence..
you, as a new owner should at least take charge in doing some to avoid some problems.

for 6000, you could basiclly get another 97 corolla. and for 6000, this is no 2zzge, its just a regular corolla engine.. i woudnt pay more than 1000 for the engine. a swap is usually a grand or so.

[baymoe]

If you guys don't mind sharing, where did you get that list of used engine prices?

[nx2k]

i have no clue where he got it from but if u know where the collection is on dufferin and finch, there's an engine importer behind there and they sell 1.6/1.8L corolla engines in the $400 range, in fact u can get a silvertop 20Valve for $700, whoever wants $6000 is insane

[ElvaSoShexai]

If you guys don't mind sharing, where did you get that list of used engine prices?

www.car-parts.com... is one place you could look...

$1000 is a bit too expensive for the engine imo... i think you should be able to get everything done (parts + labour) for around 1500 or less since it's a direct swap

[FastFokker]

nx2k: the Corolla engine may be a great, strong engine, but insufficient oil will kill any engine, period.

[CompWizrd]

What are the typical costs for an engine swap with a junk yard one?
It cost my warranty company 4700 for the first engine rebuild, but that included the there months of a loaner vehicle, which was bout 900 bucks there.
It cost me another $1200 to get the car in a runable condition.

The second engine I put in the car three years later cost me 2300. On my car, it's an 8 hour job to take the engine out through the bottom of the car ,and another 8 hours to put it back in. A brand new 350ci crate engine was around 8000 or so if I remember right.

[baymoe]

It cost my warranty company 4700 for the first engine rebuild, but that included the there months of a loaner vehicle, which was bout 900 bucks there.
It cost me another $1200 to get the car in a runable condition.

The second engine I put in the car three years later cost me 2300. On my car, it's an 8 hour job to take the engine out through the bottom of the car ,and another 8 hours to put it back in. A brand new 350ci crate engine was around 8000 or so if I remember right.

What the fudge? 16 hours in total to replace an engine is a little outrageous. You can do a swap in your garage in less time than that.

[CompWizrd]

What the fudge? 16 hours in total to replace an engine is a little outrageous. You can do a swap in your garage in less time than that.
1996 Firebird Trans am

Very few people would have the equipment in their garage to do an engine swap on one of these.. I doubt most people would have the four point lift and roof clearance to lift the car completely off the ground.

To remove the engine, hoist the car on a liftt, unhook the front wheels, and all associated suspension. Remove the engine, transmission and front wheels downward the car as a unit. It is impossible to remove it upwards. Disconnect front wheels, and transmission.

Now, the part that took a bit longer is they didn't do a _complete_ engine swap, it was mostly a block swap(as that's all that was wrong with the old engine)

The way the car engine is laid out, it can sometimes take a good mechanic 6-8 hours to replace the spark plugs by the time they finish removing parts of the engine to get at the rear 4., as they're under the top edge of the firewall'

It's not a friendly car to work on, a 5.7L engine jammed with very little room to spare.

http://www.compwizrd.com/car/96transam/largepics/Engine.jpg

You can see the air intake at the front, the engine begins at the plate behind that. You can see the top of the block, the part where it disappears under the end of the windshield is about halfway back.

[Lil Big Mec]

What the fudge? 16 hours in total to replace an engine is a little outrageous. You can do a swap in your garage in less time than that.
Get with the times, buddy. Some newer vehicles are upwards of 20 hours. Ford 6.0L powerstrokes are around 17 hours warranty time, so retail would be well over 20 hours. I wuld love to see the average back yarder tackle some of the newer vehicles :lol:

[bunga]

Get with the times, buddy. Some newer vehicles are upwards of 20 hours. Ford 6.0L powerstrokes are around 17 hours warranty time, so retail would be well over 20 hours. I wuld love to see the average back yarder tackle some of the newer vehicles :lol:

yup, unless you have the 10 grand to install a hoist in your garage, good luck doing a lot of these motors

oh and retail is usually 40% more than warranty rate

[DJ_Peanuts22]

great, now you have an excuse to swap in a Blacktop 4A-GE engine with 6-speed manual and LSD tranny.. 1.6L engine, revs to the moon..
165 hp @ 7800 rpm and 120 ft·lb @ 5600 rpm

dont get a junker engine, those will cause you to repeat those problems again.

[ah802]

Some of the above messages have your solution... A few of the wreckers offer a kind of insurance/warranty for a year. Installation at your favorite garage would be about 6-10 hours.. (around $500) and then you have to add a few bucks for misc. parts. You should come in under 2 grand.. Trust them and you'll have a nice car for years.

New engine = $6K
rebuilt certified = $5K
rebuilt = 3K
wreckers certified =$1.5K
wreckers gamble = .6K

I never trust a re-built... I'd go with the wrecker certified everytime, but I find it myself.

[bionicbadger]

Our engine died on our otherwise prestine 97 toyota corola, previous owner never heard of changing oil and has driven it for 3 years without any maintainance...no brakes, no fluids, nothing when I asked. Should have heeded the warning but the car looked immaculate....anyhow after almost a year...the engine has died....:(



Likely not worth putting more money into it. You mentioned brakes, they will probably go soon. Transmisson too if it was never maintained.

You will have to spend at least a few thousand to get it running again and then might have problems with something else (transmission, brakes, rad, etc.) at anytime. Its a 10 year old corola, you can buy another one for the $6000 you mentioned.

[Supershyguy]

www.corollacustomz.com check out our site. people on that forum should be able to help