Engine overheated and won't start

[E Showell]

I have so been down this road, and recently too. I'm on my second used engine -- 2nd was a warranty job and then the exhaust system went to the tune of about $600 for a full system replacement. The only, and I repeat, only thing that made me dump more cash into mine is that it is a five speed. If it were a dime a dozen auto trans and I had the garage space, I would have attempted to scrape a few bucks together by parting it out. I would run away (best Monty Python voice) and not look back.

Plus, yours is a '99 which means you're ultimately going to have throttle body issues -- even more reason to run quickly and don't look back.

Here's a tip for some extra cash when parting it out, though. My local scrap yard gave me $70 bucks for my shot CAT converter when I replaced the exhaust system.

[jlindse1]

Thanks for your thoughts, which further reinforce my initial instinct. I have done the usual major fixes required of this year/model such as the evaporator/heater core, ABS module, radiator, timing/serpentine belts, water pump, wheel hubs, brake calipers, and throttle body issue (done by a Volvo Dealer 3 or 4 years back at no cost to me) but it's what I haven't done yet that worries me. I also have a 2006 S60 with 80,000 miles that will start needing more attention.

Thanks for the tip. Your thoughts are appreciated.

[Marcobrick]

If you have done all that other work to it getting the evap, brakes, suspension, and etm sorted, it may be worth a used engine (assuming the body and interior are good) otherwise for me the only models I would bother with serious engine work on are the special ones like 850R, T5R, V70R and then only if the body and electrics are any good.
At the end of the day, only YOU know what the car is worth to you.

All the best.

[E Showell]

Bear in mind, with that work having been done, my advice is completely different if you are a capable wrench and will drop a known good used mill in yourself. In that case, the numbers may add up. Otherwise, they don't.

Let's play a little math game. Known good used engine might be obtained for $750-$1,000 plus say $100 shipping. You don't know what kind of shape the used mill is in, or what the true mileage was on the vehicle it came from. It will be a similar vintage engine which means the internals are just as old as your current ones.

Labor to put it in is going to be about 15 - 18 hours at whatever your local independent charges. I am in a high cost area of the country so that number is $95.00/hr. (as opposed to about $135/hr. for a dealer). There will be a fist full of miscellaneous parts needed to do the engine swap, seals, gaskets, timing belt, tensioner, etc. Figure those will run you about $200-$300. So, you are already up to say $3,100.

The car, with that kind of mileage, regardless of what other regular maintenance you've already taken care of, on a good day is a $2,000 car, and that would be if it were running perfectly. Right now, it's a $500 car.

Parting it out, depending on what shape the body panels and seats are in could easily bring you north of $1,000, plus $300 from the scrapper when he comes to dispose of the shell.

Only you know whether those numbers work for you, but I'm not far off on the math -- trust me, I know these numbers well.

[erikv11]

A good used engine should be right around $500 if you shop around just a little, but that may take some time. Shipping, however, would be at least $200. OP is in Chicago so should be able to find one locally without much trouble. Buy a wrecked car on Craigslist.

The bottom line: if you aren't installing it yourself, then there is almost no way an engine swap is cost effective.

[abscate]

E Showell - thanks for that nice paragraph on the engine swap financials. Thats worth a bookmark...

[socompsp]

weather or not you should run from the car rests upon the condition of the car as a whole. if the rest of the vehicle is sound then a new engine could be a great solution. if the car has other issues id say junk it. just remember when you buy another used volvo (or any car for that matter), you could run into the very same issue again. not only that but buying used you need to expect there to be repairs that need to be done. for example, you buy a used volvo and all major components are sound (engine, tranny etc) but it needs tires, tire rods, control arms etc, and the cost to fix comes to almost half the new motor for your car, you may want to just put the motor in yours and call it a day knowing it should run another 10 years. (WOW WHAT A RUN-ON!!) sorry lol

and id be weary of a junk yard engine, they could have unknown issues. imho i think its worth it to buy a rebuilt one for $1600 (what it would be for my 98 c70 hpt) with a 3 year warranty. its only worth that kind of money if you can do the swap yourself tho im afraid..

[jlindse1]

Thanks for all the great input and discussion around replacing the engine, although it may not make economic sense for this car unless I could do the work myself. Having such detailed cost information is invaluable in my decision-making process. I am still thinking the other option is to put in a rebuilt head, especially if it could be done for, say, less than $500 and I could do the work myself. But I need more information on that option, especially what else could have gone wrong with the engine from the overheating in the first place. This car is in good shape for its age and many of the miles are highway miles. I am paying big college tuition for one of the kids right now and don't really need a car payment. Does anybody know where I could purchase a rebuilt head in the Chicago area? Any and all thoughts are appreciated.

[erikv11]

For the head, my route would be to rebuild the one you have. Especially in this case, there are no valve troubles (one of the reasons people often need a new head on these cars). Pull the head, take it to the machine shop, hand them the quality valve stem seals (they are little gaskets), you get a basically brand new head back. The quality machine shop here charged me $350 to do that. It is worth looking around for a well-regarded shop. Cost may be higher in Chicago area but not by much (may also be lower!).

Additional costs are timing components and water pump if needed (much easier now), cam seals, head gasket and other miscellaneous gaskets (do NOT cheap out on the gaskets!), anaerobic sealer, and some serious attention to detail in keeping the head surfaces and engine internals clean. With all timing parts the total out of pocket expense is usually right around $800.

The trick in your case is you must ensure the block is not warped after you pull the head (and before you put it back together!). I've never had to do that so can not advise. But it would be essential. It is cheap to tear it down, one option would be to get it apart and figure out if the block is good (it probably is), then forge ahead if confirmed.

[Marcobrick]

Seconded.