I always encourage folks to get their engines rebuilt by Bob for this very
reason.  I sat down when I was thinking about replacing the engine in my '91
Carat Vanagon and tallied up all the costs of the new parts that I would
going to need to do the job right.  It came to close to $1500.  Or I could
get a rebuilt engine from Bob with a warranty for around $2200 (with
shipping).  So by doing it yourself you only really "save" $700 and you have
to factor in how much time and running around you are going to do and your
down time in the vehicle (my van is our primary car so I could only have it
down for a couple of days at the most).  Also you have to think about the
experience factor.  Bob does these rebuilds all day long and has done it for
years.  So of course he is going to know secrets and tricks that I am not
going to know (rod bolts, etc) that are going to make my van more reliable in
the future (he doesn't want engines coming back).

So it makes no monetary sense in my book not to buy an already rebuilt engine
vs rebuilding it yourself.  The only reason I would find valid for someone
rebuilding their engine themselves is if they know that it will actually be
more expensive, but don't care and want to do it to learn the internal
workings of the internal combustion engine.

I have rebuilt an engine or two in my day.  It just makes me appreciate what
people like Bob do, but it doesn't make me want to rebuild more engines (it
is really specialized work that I feel should be left to the pros).

Just my opinion,
Ken Wilford
Van-Again
John 3:16
http://www.vanagain.com
Office: (856)-765-1583
Fax: (856)-327-2242

[text/html]