Sad day for my 240

[mcpaul99]

Hey all
I have had a '96 240 for the past nine years. I love this car, even though compared to most of the cars talked about on these forums it's merely a stock job.

I had a problem with overheating this weekend, and my mechanic today told me I blew a head gasket . The motor has almost 200k on it, so he said he wouldn't do a head gasket job on it because he would only be rebuilding the head/valves/etc, which in his words would cause the lower half of the engine to bear the brunt of any wear and tear.

His recommendation to me was to put in a remanufactured or used motor. He estimated this would be perhaps a $4000 job with a remanufactured motor, or $2500-$3000 with a used, un-refurbished motor. My tow truck driver today said he had a friend who could do it for $2200, though I'm not sure what kind of motor he'd be putting in there.

I'm not sure I'm going to keep the car, but I am considering all of my options. Does anyone know what is a reasonable price for an engine swap in this car? I read a lot of posters that say "just do it yourself", and I would consider that but I don't know that I have the time or the fortitude...I have done plenty of work on the car myself; replaced the fuel pump, replaced my brakes and calipers, but that's about the extent of my ability. I found a remanufactured motor for about $2200 on bestrebuiltengines.com, but again I'm not sure I have the ability to replace it myself. One thing it said on that site was that I need a pressure primer to prime the oil system. I have no idea what that is. Anyway, just wondering if anyone has thoughts on this. I'm really disappointed but I think I may just hang it up in regards to this car.

[StryfeS13]

2200 for a KA is outrageous. Unless you want a fully built/forged KA you dont need to spend that much lol.
My KA blew up and I rebuilt it with stock internals for less than 500 dollars.

I know you said you arent sure you have time to rebuild your motor but if you really like your car and want to save a 2200 price tag, then thats the way to do it.

[mcpaul99]

Thanks Stryfe. Yeah, I definitely won't be able to rebuild my own motor. I'm not even sure I will be able to swap in a rebuilt one, but I am thinking about it. Where can I find a rebuilt KA for less? You say you rebuilt yours...does that mean you dismantled it, bored out the cylinders, replaced all of the seals, re-seated the valves, etc.? And by stock internals, I assume you mean new valves, pistons, rods, etc?

[PyroTecK]

as much as i hate to say it for that price u might as well swap in an sr. in all reality a regular mechanic and a regular reman motor (purchased through the mechanic) will cost about that much. heck i got a ka for sale but it needs a rebuild lol. paying a mechanic sucks but if u dont think u can takle the job urself then u realy dont have much of a choice i guess. that is alot of money. try sourcing a good motor from someone doing an sr swap or just do an sr swap urself. either way, u can do better.

[hatedinthemind]

My KA blew up and I rebuilt it with stock internals for less than 500 dollars.

Really? Did you use used parts or a rebuild kit?

To op im sure you can find a decent used engine for $500 to $600 if you think you have the time to do that kinda work

[biggie]

Wow $2k+ for a used NA KA swap is a rip off. Someone should do it for less than a grand I would think, including the used engine purpose.

Post in the local section or local forums and ask someone.

[xX RB Xx]

Why does your mechanic have to rebuild the head to put a headgasket it on?? Sounds like he just wants to over-charge you.

Take it/ Talk to another mechanic and get a second opinion.

[Az24tsx]

Yeah seriously u could either do it yourself and learn from it or go to another mechanic or even find someone in your are that has the know-how and pay them

[Seanzyyy]

do you want to keep it ka or go sr for the hell of it?
either way,
a ka swap shouldnt cost you 1k, or come close to that really.
used ka's can be had for around 600.

for 4k, you can have a shop drop in an sr lol

diy is always a good learning experience.

btw, the mechanic you went to is out of his mind.
a refurbished ka is more expensive than an rb25?
GTFO

[mcpaul99]

Why does your mechanic have to rebuild the head to put a headgasket it on?? Sounds like he just wants to over-charge you.

I wondered the same thing because I've never done a head gasket job. But the way he explained it makes sense. It isn't so much that the gasket itself has failed, it's that the head has warped due to overheating, and that the head needs to be re-ground so it seats properly onto the block. It's not as simple as swapping out a gasket.

[elchoccolatte]

Mines had almost 200k when i did my head gasket, But I also re did the head with new timing chains and all that good shish, I also installed all new gaskets, no problems since, The only thing i regret not doing was the bottom end, I didnt bother with it because my compression was 160 all the way around... But if ur mechanically inclined save yourself a couple of nickel and dimes and get ur a manual, HELL, D/L one from here and read over the material b4 u get started, Then make a plan and go at it...

[gigabit240]

Honestly you'd save an a** load of money just buying an sr swap package and installing it yourself. I hear the Sr swap isn't difficult at all.

[mcpaul99]

Where can I find a rebuilt KA for less than $2200? I've been looking online, and there are certainly people that are selling their used KAs for much less, but I think the limit of my ability would be to swap it out and not do any work to the engine. I wouldn't want to put one in that wasn't rebuilt/refurbished.

[sleeper180]

check out craiglist in your area see if any1 is parting anything out or check your local junkyards.