ive been asking questions but here is another, because of the costs i am either going to do one or the other with the help of my boyfriend, should i fix the head gasket or put in a used engine, its a 99 grand am gt and has 144,000 miles on it, its a 6 cylinder. im not going to a mechanic i cant afford it and i cant take the car back i bought it for 1500 at an auction. i dont really need the car because i have access to my moms chevy cobalt whenever i want, but it is nice to have ur own vehicle ya know, its my first one and i just wanna toy around with it!!!!
2007-04-09 04:27:51 · 9 answers · asked by Anonymous in Cars & Transportation ➔ Maintenance & Repairs
im going to buy a haynes repair manual
2007-04-09 04:31:13 · update #1
Depending on how much head work needs to be done and if it is only one side you may be better off getting a new motor. You will not know what kind of condition the head is in until you get the head off. You may find the head needs a valve job and that it also needs to be resurfaced. This can be quite expensive (about 700 per head) if you do one you will want to do the other. By doing that then you will now have a weak bottom end. It will have a tendency to burn oil. You would then need to over haul the bottom end. With that you’re looking another 1500 to have that done. No we have 1400 for the heads and another 1500 for the bottom half. That’s 2900. A new Long block from the auto parts store is around 2300. You could find a low mileage from a wrecking yard for around 1200. But again you will not know until you get the head off. It's possible you can just put a new gasket on it for 80 bucks and you’re good to go. Hope that’s all you need to do. Good luck.
2007-04-09 04:56:23 · answer #1 · answered by gearnofear 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Now you know why it was at auction. What makes you think it's the head gasket? Is it getting oil in the radiator? Does it have trouble going up a hill and loose power? Head gasket will be cheaper and probably easier to put in than a used engine. And, with a used engine, you never know what you're getting. They all have 57,000 miles on them, no matter what make or model. If you try to put an engine in, you'll probably hav to take the hood off, a friend of mine tried that and was sitting on the windshield helping to either lower it or position it to go in. Busted the windshield with his butt. Trying to put an engine in if you've never done it, let alone little mechanical experience will be a nightmare. You'll wind up taking it to a mechanic in pieces. Too much can go wrong, reconnecting the electrical system could be a big headache. Then the cooling system, vacuum system, the carb and all that other stuff.
2016-05-20 23:34:19 · answer #2 · answered by ? 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I would just replace the head gasket. You said you're low on money, so the head gasket is the way to go.
If you are planning to keep the car for some time, and everything else on the car is fine, then you may want to have a machine shop do a valve job on the heads before you put it back on. That would take care of any warpage that the head may have, and you would know the valves and springs are in good shape. Good luck
2007-04-09 04:41:38 · answer #3 · answered by Fordman 7 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Ok Tina, you is one stubborn girl, heh heh...
IF you have all the time in the world, and do take your time, and pay attention to detail, maybe doing the head gaskets will be the way to go...remember, pull the dipstick, is the oil milky? If not, then it may be a small leak to start with...does the engine run WELL otherwise, as in smooth with no shakes at all? If so...
Have fun, you have a lot of work ahead of you...like I said, read that manual first, EVERY detail...and get a lot of tools ready, you'll need them...
Good luck girl...
2007-04-09 04:45:46 · answer #4 · answered by Michael B 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Get the Haynes and go for it. It's how all mechanics get started. Just don't skimp on the details like cleaning the surfaces and bolt tightening sequence. And be sure to check the heads to make sure they don't need a valve job and aren't warped. The book will cover all that.
Don't let the timid folk tell you not to try it.
2007-04-09 05:08:12 · answer #5 · answered by Nomadd 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Sure do it yourself, I just found that I emailed you about a later question on this!
Need the displacement of that V6 engine. I will tell you what is not in the haynes book that you need to know.
About 4 really critical things OK
Lucky you, that one is frickin hard but abut the easiest one you could have
ASE Auto Tech 30 years, Shop Owner
2007-04-09 06:28:09 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
i just answered one of your questions didnt know what kind of car it was now that i know i would recommend you get rid of the car the grand am and grand prix or some of the worses mechanical pieces of crap to get the gm stamp on them even if you fix it something else is guaranteed to screw up on it i know of at least 20 grand am/prix's sitting in peoples drive ways dont put another dime into and 1500 for a 99 you should have known something is wrong with it
2007-04-09 07:31:40 · answer #7 · answered by anthentherwasi 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
no no no no no no no!
Take it to a shop. It will be more expensive in the beginning, but it will save you money in the long run. You could do a lot of damage if you don't know what you are doing!
2007-04-09 04:36:33 · answer #8 · answered by Lucy 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
fix the head gasket. thats what i did and theres no oil leaks at all. plus you dont know bout the old engine
2007-04-09 04:35:20 · answer #9 · answered by Tristan T 2 · 2⤊ 0⤋