Replace the engine - best value

[offroad]

Have read at least three discussions where it might come down to replacing the engine in your RV. So think we should get some straight talk from a few who have had this done, and what they suggest for corrections in the process.

1) Used - have did this on a car twice for $2000 to $3000 including installation, and both times the engine did not last more than a year. Verdict, not worth it, as could get a better used car for the same price. Only do this if you have a manual transmission, as manual is easier to control getting repaired correctly (no second guessing the age of the automatic transmission and its issues)

2) Refurbished - Rebuilt - much better warrentee of six months to a year, or maybe longer. Installation mechanics are usually happier to sell you this, as the rebuilt company stands behind them.

3) New - best mechanically, but super-super expensive $5000 to $10000 installed and gurenteed for a specific amount of miles. Usually.

so tell me the horror stories, and the good stories?

 

[Terry]

I have used a few rebuilt engines from auto zone and can tell you that for all the effort to change an engine, go with at least the rebuilt one. The warranty covers the installation as long as you had it done by professionals. Especially if its in a van or motor home.

 

[Seraphim]

I'd go with the rebuilt as well, unless you know a mechanic you trust to do the rebuild on what you have.

Buying a used engine is a crap shoot: your luck might run either way.


No horrors stories - my best friend owned his own shop for over 30 years, and he oversees me doing the rebuilds: so far a 400 small block and a VW engine.

Neither have blown up yet lol

 

[offroad]

What are the typical costs for rebuilt RV engine, installed?  any guesstimates?

 

[Les H]

Ive never rebuilt or installed a rebuilt, but have swapped a few ( several/ many?) . Average price was +/-$500 for the engine, no need to change engine and tranny unless both are shot. I once bought a whole car for $100, pulled the eng, and sold the rest for $200 for scrap. Have also bought eng that was no good, had to repull and install another. Most junkyards will give you 39 days. Helps a lot if you can do the swap yourself, ir have a buddy to do it. Avg cost ive paid is $1000 for eng, install, and parts. The last one we had done was last year, my wifes 97 mercury sable. Unfortunatly, we did not know the shop as we had just moved, and hadsome issues with the workmanshio, but they are resolved and the eng is doing ok.

 

[sparky1]

&nbsp; I don't Know what Brand , type,or year RV you have BUT.personally RV engine changes are NOT like changing a Car engine.RV engines were installed originally on The Frame of a truck chassis then the body after that.<br />&nbsp; some RV engines,you have to take the engine apart just to get it out&nbsp;&amp; re-assemble it, short block first&nbsp;&amp; back together after that point---lots of labor.<br />&nbsp;&nbsp; my first RV was a 75 Dodge class A, went thru (3) engines,<br />If you find cost becoming more than the RV is worth..trade it get one that might last better.<br />sparky1

 

[offroad]

Sparky - did not know that. wow!! That something to be very clear about. how much did the engine cost to replace? and what was the approximate year you replaced it. Hope I can guess at what that is in todays dollars.

 

[sidat202]

I have replaced a few engines in motorhomes. The labor involved depends on the type of motorhome. If it's a class c (van front end) you can pull the motor thru the front. If it's a class A it depends on the model. Some of them have a drivers door. You can remove the drivers seat and bring the motor out thru the drivers door. The cost is expensive if a shop does it.<br />I had a chevy box van. The guy who owned it before me had the engine replaced with a rebuilt. A shop did the work. The total cost on the receipt was 4200.00. That was about 10 years ago.

 

[sidat202]

I won't buy a used engine unless I can hear it run and pull the valve covers to see the condition of the inside.<br />A guarantee is nice, but&nbsp;it doesn't help much&nbsp;if you have keep working on it.

 

[offroad]

SIDAT202 - you make some really valid points about taking chances with a used RV and the engine. If it costs $8000 in todays money to replace the engine, why would you take that risk?

Am thinking that a used RV is an $8000 gamble, that a new owner has to be ready to take.

The alternative is a pulled trailer RV, or a pickup bed insert RV, that can be disconnected, and still lived in, if you are broken down. The connected truck would cost maybe $5000 to replace the engine.

On other posts had mentioned that someone should have $10,000 in the bank for emergency repairs, and you justified that estimate.

 

[sidat202]

Offroad, I agree with you. A trailer is probably a better option. Not only the reduced cost of engine replacement but also if the truck goes down, you still have your home to live in. Even for me, who can replace the engine myself, It's not something you can do on the road. With the equiptment required.

 

[offroad]

You can get AAA with RV towing for 100 or 200 miles, depending on what you want to buy. But 100 miles might not be enough to find a CAMPERS WORLD. Thus overall a rather large gamble with a used RV.

Here is a tip that I just remembered. You can get your engine oil chemically checked to see if there is any small problems (cracked head gasket, metal microscopic content, invasive gases) in the oil. The cost is like $30. So if you buy a used RV, get it checked immediately, and predict if something will happen soon. I used http://www.blackstone-labs.com/ and the report seemed correct.

 

[Cubey]

Offroad, I agree with you. A trailer is probably a better option. Not only the reduced cost of engine replacement but also if the truck goes down, you still have your home to live in. Even for me, who can replace the engine myself, It's not something you can do on the road. With the equiptment required.

<br /><br />A Class B or C uses a normal van engine so it would be as cost effective as a full size cargo or conversion van as far as engine replacement. But you'd have to find other accommodations.

 

[offroad]

A Class B or C uses a normal van engine so it would be as cost effective as a full size cargo or conversion van as far as engine replacement. But you'd have to find other accommodations.

but can you pull it and work on it like a truck? can you pull a class B or C engine right out of the engine compartment?

 

[sidat202]

On&nbsp;a pickup truck you can just lift the engine up out of the engine compartment. A class B or C, and a van, you have to remove the grill and the core support and pull the engine out the front. The engines may be the same, but not as much labor time on a pickup.

 

[sidat202]

You can also tell alot about the condition of an engine with a vacuum gage.

 

[oldsoul]

personally ive seen some good used engines and some real junk. Rent an air compressor get a leak down tool and do a leak down on the engine.It will tell you what you need to know. The condition of the valves, rings, etc. I do them everyday when someone brings in an engine they say needs to be rebuilt.Some times a high leak down is just tight valves. Once adjusted to spec, the engine sometimes has between 5-7 lbs leakage. Ive seen engines run just fine with up to 20%. The condition of the engine oil (look under the valve covers) says alot about the engine as well.&nbsp;

 

[offroad]

<p>Oldsoul - never heard of a LEAK DOWN test with an air compressor.&nbsp; I speculate that what you would do it get a fitting that screws in where the spark plugs are, and blow in compressed air, to see if it is leaking when you rotate the starter (gas line disconnected of course).&nbsp; Is this what a LEAK DOWN is?&nbsp; In the many years of having mechanics work on an engine, and working with shade tree mechanics, no one has mentioned the LEAK DOWN test.<br /><br />Can you tell me more?&nbsp; or can others?<br /><br />I have heard of a COMPRESSION test, which is similar I guess.&nbsp; Is that the same thing?&nbsp; or is the LEAK DOWN a betetr test or with easier tools?</p>

 

[oldsoul]

what a leakdown does for you is that it allows you to see how well individual cylinders are holding their combustion gasses. You basically get the proper spark plug adapter, screw it into the head. Put 100 psi into the cylinder when its at top dead center on the compression stroke (both valves are closed) and read the results. If you put in 100psi and the gauge reads 90 psi then you have a 10% leakage figure which means that you have 90psi available for combustion.Every mechanic is different on what they will allow, but anything over 15% i usually go looking for the cause. Could be leaking valves (intake or exhaust) could be leaking head gasket or a crack somewhere in the combustion chamber. No engine is 100% perfect, as they all tend to leak some.Sometimes just a simple valve adjust gets the engine back to spec. (normal leakdown)

 

[offroad]

have always thought about starting a chain of SHADE TREE mechanics that all they would do is inspect engines, and transmissions, and brakes, and mufflers; with specific tests. Mobile diagnostics for $100 one hour work. Buyer orders and pays for the report. If the sale does not happen, the seller can buy the report from the mechanic, or from the seller.

Not sure how to control. Not sure why this type of business woulld be unsucessful for a mechanic