What do with my boss' 03 Sport V6?

[4Rager]

My boss has a 2003 V6 Sport, and he's at a crossroads on what to do. He commutes between the Reno and the Bay Area 4 or 5 times a month, so it has 348,000 miles and he recently took it too a mechanic to diagnose a CEL. He was told that the CEL was for the catalytic converter going out and apparently this was due to a coolant leak in one of the cylinders that was causing a misfire. The mechanic told him this would be expensive to fix to the point where you might as well get a new engine, but at that point you'd be spending more than the car is worth so you might as well take what you can get for it and move on to another vehicle. So might first question is, does that sound like a reasonable diagnoses from the mechanic?

Secondly, the rest of the vehicle is in great shape so barring the engine trouble it still has plenty of life left. That being said, would it be worth spending the effort to sell it privately to someone who wants to fix it, or should he just take what he can get to be rid of it? (He was offered ~$2000 from the dealer where he was looking at a car to replace it)

 

[Drunner97]

My boss has a 2003 V6 Sport, and he's at a crossroads on what to do. He commutes between the Reno and the Bay Area 4 or 5 times a month, so it has 348,000 miles and he recently took it too a mechanic to diagnose a CEL. He was told that the CEL was for the catalytic converter going out and apparently this was due to a coolant leak in one of the cylinders that was causing a misfire. The mechanic told him this would be expensive to fix to the point where you might as well get a new engine, but at that point you'd be spending more than the car is worth so you might as well take what you can get for it and move on to another vehicle. So might first question is, does that sound like a reasonable diagnoses from the mechanic?

Secondly, the rest of the vehicle is in great shape so barring the engine trouble it still has plenty of life left. That being said, would it be worth spending the effort to sell it privately to someone who wants to fix it, or should he just take what he can get to be rid of it? (He was offered ~$2000 from the dealer where he was looking at a car to replace it)

Coolant leak in the cylinder is a head gasket. Definitely not a cheap fix. I'd slap a new engine in it for around 4k and drive it another 400k miles personally.

 

[4Rager]

Coolant leak in the cylinder is a head gasket. Definitely not a cheap fix. I'd slap a new engine in it for around 4k and drive it another 400k miles personally.

That's what I told him... head gasket. But is that really a "new engine" kinda deal? Couldn't you just replaced the head gasket and worst case a head if it's warped?

Also it's a slow leak so it's still driveable, but the main issue is since it caused the catalytic converter to fail he would have to replace that just to pass smog and keep it on the road. Is $4k a realistic number for an engine replacement or is that just a random estimate?

 

[Drunner97]

That's what I told him... head gasket. But is that really a "new engine" kinda deal? Couldn't you just replaced the head gasket and worst case a head if it's warped?

Also it's a slow leak so it's still driveable, but the main issue is since it caused the catalytic converter to fail he would have to replace that just to pass smog and keep it on the road. Is $4k a realistic number for an engine replacement or is that just a random estimate?

Depends how much damage has been done I suppose. I'd say 4k is realistic unless you do the work yourself. My buddy got his hands on a low mileage 08 engine for his 06 for like 1500 and swapped it over himself. He also needs cats still because of it.

 

[V8Man]

Great shape or not. Someone's ass has still been in the seat for 348,00 miles.
Things tend to get a little funky after awhile. Plus everything else has that many miles. It might be a great thing for the weekend but eventually things will start failing.

 

[ElZilcho]

A blown head gasket doesn't require a new engine, but an engine with 350K on it is already in overhaul territory and an overhaul is about the same cost as replacing the motor especially when you factor in the cost of a new cat. Also, a slow leak wont stay slow for long and will quickly render the motor junk if not addressed. If I were your boss, I would take the money and run, but I don't know your bosses personal financial situation.

...If I were you... I would buy a 4runner for a song and get crazy! Squeeze a diesel in there, or cut out the exhaust and run zoomies! Get that thing airborne and give it a proper viking funeral! Ya know... an honorable death.

Honestly though, a truck with that many miles (new motor or not) is probably a great deal for someone that can turn a wrench, but a money pit for the general consumer. ~$2K from the dealer seems fair to me (not great) and ~$4K for an engine swap is reasonable if it includes a warranty.

 

[mizak82]

Time to move on.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk