by jayray » Thu Sep 03, 2009 11:48 pm
I'm trying to decide what to do with my car.
Big ends are gone and crank needs a regrind.
We got the engine out and the crank is out as of today. However it needs a new rod, and today I found out the piston won't come out the bottom of the bore. That means the head needs to come off, so in effect the engine needs a full rebuild.
I bought the car with the big ends gone, so replaced the bearing shells but the knock was still there of course.
So I'm trying to figure out what the rebuild will cost (I'll do most of the work) compared to what the car may be worth as a rolling body or completely parted out (which I don't particularly want to do).
I should be able to get a rod fairly cheaply, or a short block, but when there's:
new rings $?
full set of crank shells $230
front and rear crank seals $110
Head gasket $?
Cambelt kit w/ water pump $250
Oil pump?
Crank grind $?
Cam seals $?
Plus anything and everything else which needs replacing, and the myriad of little seals and gaskets, then the whole thing adds up fairly quickly.
Its an 87 MR2 hardtop SC which looks to be in excellent condition rust-wise, and the paint is pretty good.
So what do you think it could be worth as a rolling body, or as a very straight car with a rebuilt motor?
And if I did go ahead would it be worth converting to manual and get rid of the slushbox?