3.4L V6 question.

Hi i have a 99 olds Alero. recently my engine started to knock. I had it brought to my mechanic who told me its a connecting rod or a Bearing in the engine in cylinder 3 or 6. He put in thicker oil for now and the knock isnt as bad.

I want to know if it would be worth putting a used engine in to replace the one now. My mechanic who is a family friend said if i can get an engine he will swap it out for me and it would cost me $200-$300 in labor. Maybe even less since he would have me help him.

would it be worth swapping it? if so anyone know any good places to get either a cheap car with the same engine or an engine already out in MA?

Thank you

If the car is in good shape and you like it it is worth fixing. If there are a bunch of other things wrong with it than no. But you need a new motor and what he is willing to do for that price is being very kind indeed. Keep in mind that you will need a few things that will add to the cost like oil, filters coolent and a few gaskets (exhaust manifold come to mind) for tranfering parts from your motor to the one from the yard. Also you should throw in a new thermastat and replace any hoses and belts that are showing their age. If at all possible see if he can go with you to the yard to listen to the motor you plan to buy. Go looking yourself first and only ask him to listen to what you think would be a good selection rather than ask him to run the roads with you, or if he uses a yard for his shop start there. The fact that heavy oil made it knock less means nothing more then you can drive it to someplace to fix it. The problem is still there and it only going to get worse untill it fails. Better to change it now and save your good parts, like heads and such as you can use them later or sell them somewhere to help offset the cost of the job. Plus this way you dont have to deal with getting stranded and paying towing bills and having to fight converter bolts and such off a locked up motor. Depending on what you need, 100-200 budget should cover your parts and fluids and filters. Also whenever I do a motor job I replace the rear main seal on the used motor and the front seal on the trans while it all apart anyway. Noting worse than saving 20 bucks and having to go back and pull the motor again to do it later after ya had it all out in the first place. Your call. And the last thing I can tell ya is to be sure to help him as much as he will let you even if he is charging you 300 AND buy him dinner or something after your done as thanks, think of how much you depend on transportation and what it would cost you at regular rate, he is doing you a huge favor.

You can answer that better than anyone else once you've crunched the numbers. First ya need to evaluate what ya got. Is the car in good shape otherwise? How did you treat it,maintain it? Any damage,rust, hows the transmission,brakes,steering, how are the tires wearing? Tires good or will they need to be replaced soon? What are comparable cars going for? How much will it cost to replace outright? How much for an engine from a auto recycle yard in your area? You can get your mechanic friend to help evaluate your cars condition. Then you can make an informed decision. HTH
Oh yeah, sounds like your buddy is doin ya a BIG favor!

well the car is in good shape, i bought it in November of 2011 and it has 146k miles on it. I just replaced the Water pump and lower radiator hose, as well as the serpentine belt and spark plugs and wires. The car only really needs 2 tires ( i put the good ones on the front) and a blower motor resistor. I mean i love the car it gets me from point A to point B.

The mechanic that said he would swap the Motor for me also said that i could pay him back over time and not all at once for the labor, or even work with him on other jobs to reduce how much i owe him.

Right now i did find a motor at a junkyard for $426 but i dont know how many miles are on it. Theres a totaled car listed on craigslist that has 90k on the motor and thats listed at $500.

If thats the case you may want to fix it. Swap over the new water pump plug wires and belt ect. If the CL car is totaled but runs so you can hear it see if your guy will check it out with you and as it is 500 asking I bet 350 to 400 cash waved under the sellers nose will get it for you. If you can't hear it run NEVER buy it. Even at a yard after you hear one run that you want mark the motor in some way to be sure that the motor you get when you come back to pick it up is the you same one you listened to after they pull it for ya. Its and old diry trick but some yards will take ya out to listen to a motor and after you tell them you will take it they say to come back and pick it up after they pull it and they will give you one off the shelf that is hit or miss. That is way I said start with a yrad that your guy uses. Also if that is for the whole car you can scrap the rest of the car after pulling any good parts that you may need later and get back some of the money you spent and lower the overall cost of the job.

Thank you you have been a great help, and i will probably end up swapping the motor as soon as i can since the car is already in good shape and if i get rid of it and get a different car who knows what the next car will need. My Alero's state inspection sticker is good for another 10 months so it makes sense to just swap the engine. But thanks again for everything!

Sound great, all the little things add up like inspection, water pumps, belts, wires ect. And as you said you know what you have with the rest of the car so it sound like a better way to go to fix it rather than start over with a diffrent car. Plus as you said, you like the car! Be sure not to drive it till the motor fails tho, getting stranded and paying 100 or more for towing will blow the money your saving your self and make the job harder.

Best of luck with your project.

I agree w/ stageone up to the point of unscrupulous yards. These guys have a reputation and a bad one gets around fast. I have had an experience where the engine I looked at was already gone when I came back. Thats why I pull my trailer with me when shopping. Better yards have their engines ready to go up in the rack and even keep record of the year and mileage on 'em. They'll start 'em for ya too.