For when the engine blows...

[MikeCuzzy]

Hey guys,

I have just bought by old man's well travelled VT - she's up to 451,000km.

Now sooner or later then engine is going to die, whether violently in a cloud of smoke showering cars behind me with bits of pistons or it just wont start one morning. So at that point I will need to fix it. Now I want to make it plain - at this stage I fully intend to keep the car, I know it's a Series 1 VT Exec, but for a variety of reasons I will be keeping it, the most important one being I want to.

Now based on that I need help from some people on here far smarter than myself. Under the assumption the block is still in good nick and solid do I:

A) rebuild my current engine or B) buy a new engine.

Opinions of which is best to do? And costs involved? Also can you still buy brand spanking new Ecotecs with some kind of warranty? Or would I need to put an Alloytec or something in it?

All opinions and advice welcome guys, especially to call me an idiot

Regards,
Mike.

[graham7773]

Mike, how much do you want to spend? For $2500 plus freight you can have a brand new short (block, pistons, crank, cam, timing cover etc) Ecotec crate engine. You will have to rebuild your own heads and use your own sump. Your VT will have a new lease on life. Have you priced the parts and machine work you will need to rebuild your own engine? Scary. I started the process and decided that $1400+ was getting too close to the price of a reco engine. VY ecotec at around $600-$700 is looking good for me. The link below is the crate engine.
http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/VX-VT-VY-...item5d2d7e71f0

[MikeCuzzy]

Well to be honest I will spend what is required, but ideally I would like to drive in, have a new motor installed and drive away for no more than $5000. I new to all this so I don't know if that's reasonable price or not. As it is, I have just finished my studies at TAFE and am living at home (I just turned 20), so apart from a bit of board to the parents all my money can be sent straight to the car.

I will then have to tackle the gearbox and diff. But I am less concerned with the diff for now as that's gonna be easier to sort out.

[Trayner]

I'd say by a 2nd motor with lower K's then to rebuild your current one

[graham7773]

Drive in, drive out? Try repco at around $3000 more or less, probably not less for an exchange reconditioned engine fitted. There are a bunch of others but you will usually wait for a few days or more, especially for the little workshops with 1 or 2 mechanics trying to juggle 6 or so jobs. I believe Repco has a 1 day service but I'm not sure.

[calais24/7]

i have to ask, if your willing to spend 5k on it, why not sell it for whatever you can get, and buy a differant one?

[gossie]

Drive it gently until it dies..........it might go for years if you treat it right plus use fresh high quality oil and filter twice per year, then a change over engine.

[showbags]

Don't bet on it expiring from natural causes too soon.my nephew is running around in his mums old VS ecotec which has just clocked 980,000 km on the original motor and never even lifted a rocker cover and doesn't use a drop of oil between services.

[MikeCuzzy]

i have to ask, if your willing to spend 5k on it, why not sell it for whatever you can get, and buy a differant one?

Several reasons:

1) Most importantly, I want to keep it, it's my car and has been in my family for 12 years.

2) I would rather keep this car, that I know like the back of my hand and that has had some work done to it already, then buy another Commodore. For arguements sake, buy a car for $7500 like a good nick VX or VY - I'm gonna have this problem in 5 years again. I'm not one of those people who swaps cars every 2-3 years. I figure spend 10K fixing it now and have it go fine for another 10 years.

Don't bet on it expiring from natural causes too soon.my nephew is running around in his mums old VS ecotec which has just clocked 980,000 km on the original motor and never even lifted a rocker cover and doesn't use a drop of oil between services.

That's amazing, and yeah I don't flog it at all. But my engine isn't as perfect as your nephews. Mine loses oil, looses coolant and appears to have very small amounts of oil in the coolant. At the very least for the time being there is NO evidence of coolant in the oil. But I'm sort of planning in case it is not long for this world.

[])R@G()N]

If it was me,, I'd rebuild the engine my self. This is probably the best option if you have the know how to do it.

[lout]

are you concerned with keeping the original engine number?
personaly if money is no option ($5000 to spend) I would fit the new short motor
a reco won't last as long as a new motor as the metal hardness is not as strong the deeper you machine (overbore)

[pjdm1980]

The phrase "more money than sense" comes to mind (but if you love the car that much nobody will change your mind), if you plan on keeping the car for ever then go the rebuild option, if you plan on keeping it for a few years and flogging it off like a sane person would (not many of those around here) then get a second hand low klm's motor.
Good luck what ever option you take.

[azkwazere]

ok... have you thought about everything else that will need work after those kays?

Trans? Suspension? etc.

Sersiouly, dont get a sentimnetal attachment to a car like that... if it were a XY GT HO Phase III then sure... but a VT SI? nooo

aZk.

[graham7773]

Oil in your coolant? While you have the motor out, shout yourself a new radiator.

[MikeCuzzy]

ok... have you thought about everything else that will need work after those kays?

Trans? Suspension? etc.

Sersiouly, dont get a sentimnetal attachment to a car like that... if it were a XY GT HO Phase III then sure... but a VT SI? nooo

aZk.

Suspension was done last year, as were the brakes. And yeah I'm very sentimental, but I could either a) buy a decentish VY or something or for the same money I could keep this, and I would rather keep this. And the auto trans, yeah it's gonna have to get done too... any advice on that?

The phrase "more money than sense" comes to mind

Too bad I am poor... I'm gonna have to work my backside off to pay for this.

Oil in your coolant? While you have the motor out, shout yourself a new radiator.

Yeah, but I guess in for a penny in for a pound.

[graham7773]

Reco transmission $1200 and up but you can get a low Ks transmission out of a VY for around $400ish and expect 60 to 100000Ks out of it. Important, flush the hydraulic lines and trans oil coolers with about 6 litres or more fresh trans oil. Can be messy but necessary. Saves future dramas. Or just put the newly reco'd trans in. In any case, flush the lines and coolers or get the auto mech to do it.

[MikeCuzzy]

Reco transmission $1200 and up but you can get a low Ks transmission out of a VY for around $400ish and expect 60 to 100000Ks out of it. Important, flush the hydraulic lines and trans oil coolers with about 6 litres or more fresh trans oil. Can be messy but necessary. Saves future dramas. Or just put the newly reco'd trans in. In any case, flush the lines and coolers or get the auto mech to do it.

Ok that sounds good, I don't have the mechanical know how to put it in so will be paying someone to do it. Any idea what kind of labour costs I am looking at? And I suppose with a lowish kays one as you say, maybe get 2 years out of it but again could go for ages like mine has. Reco trans, what's generally involved with that? Is a reco'd one gonne have more lifespan in reality?

[JMP]

It sounds like your pretty attached to this car for what ever reason but I can understand that. If it were me and I was feeling that attached to my car I would be rebuilding the current engine to keep it all original (numbers wise anyway). If you go the path of a reco or secondhand motor just to keep it running then personally I would just trade up but that's your call.

[MikeCuzzy]

It sounds like your pretty attached to this car for what ever reason but I can understand that. If it were me and I was feeling that attached to my car I would be rebuilding the current engine to keep it all original (numbers wise anyway). If you go the path of a reco or secondhand motor just to keep it running then personally I would just trade up but that's your call.

I would prefer to keep the original engine if at all possible, what would be a reasonable price to expect for a full rebuild?

[CHA53R]

Has it regularly had a service? When was the last trans sevice? Radiator flushed? Prob needs a few gaskets and a complete service. If the trans is slipping? Sure the oil your thinking in the radiator isn't just sludge build up?

[MikeCuzzy]

Has it regularly had a service? When was the last trans sevice? Radiator flushed? Prob needs a few gaskets and a complete service. If the trans is slipping? Sure the oil your thinking in the radiator isn't just sludge build up?

Serviced every 10,000km. Trans service, I'd have to ask Dad, god knows when but the fluid looks ok.
Was serviced last Wednesday, biggish service, including full coolant flush. It may just be sludge, but the radiator is only 24months old, so I doubt it. There was some black crap on the coolant level thing, I have driven 800km since the service (had to do a trip to Oberon). Now it may not be oil from the engine as that is a nice fresh colour, this crap was brown/black goop, don't know if the good oil would go like that just from getting into coolant? Underneath the radiator cap looks fine.

Trans slips very occasionally, under specific circumstances.

[JustDylan]

I would just nurse this engine while getting the parts for an Ls1 conversion here and there. A full engine rebuild will cost a lot, better off with a low k's one. Don't expect the engine to die too soon though, it will go forever as long as it isn't thrashed and you service it regularly.

[Longman]

Dude, I've seen VT ex-taxis with over 1,000,000 Kms on them and still running. As long as it's been serviced and maintained and continues to be, your current motor should keep going for a while yet. If it does die in the a$$, changeover engines are cheap and have warranty and then spend the extra $$ on doing up your original motor yourself as a project. I would probably expect the trans to die before the motor though.

If you truly want to keep the car, good on you, stick to your guns and keep it.

[monkeys437]

The oil in your coolant is likely to be manifold gaskets. If it was me I would save up some cash for a reco or second hand engine. Theres a few commodore wreckers in melbourne that sell and install 2nd hand engines and transmissions with 1 month warranty for very reasonable prices. If you have anything simillar in your local area its definitely worth a think about.

Leave the money in the bank, and keep on driving her till she dies, or until you decide to move on to another car, whichever happens first. If you keep it serviced, your VT will probably outlast the world oil supply