girl needs engine advice, PLEASE help

I admit it, I am a girl with no car knowledge and I got screwed. Please don't hold that against me and help me make a decision.

About a month ago I bought a 94 delsol vtec. The car had 105,000 miles on it and seemed to be in good shape (like a dummy I trusted the salesman and didn't get the car checked) and I bought it with no warranty. The car seems to run great but in 500 miles it has used 1 quart of oil. I took it in to be checked and was told it need a motor rebuild (ring job) and would cost about $1900 (the service center I took it to has a great reputation so at this point I am assuming that this is accurate.) The car has the b16a3 motor in it.

I have since called and talked to many mechanics and each one has a different opinion. Some say replace the motor with a used one and others say rebuild. The estimates have run anywhere from $1700 all the way up to $5500. One option was to replace the current motor with a b16a1 used motor ($1030 for the motor, $500 to install) with about 50,000 miles on it and a 6 month unlimited mile warranty. Is this a good idea? Should I just rebuild and if I do, what is a fair price to pay because $1900 seems high to me?

To be honest, I don't care what kind of motor is in it. I am told that the b16a3vtec is fast, high performance and so on but that doesn't matter to me. I just liked the way the car looked and I have had a crx and civic previously and have never had any problems. I want to keep this car long term but since I just bought it and paid a lot I really do not want to put a huge amount of money in it but at the same time I want to fix it right.

I brought the car home today from the shop without making any decisions. They told me I can drive it for awhile as long as I keep checking and putting oil in it but I am scared I will mess it up worse and will not be able to rebuild if that is what I decide to do. Is it OK to drive it for now? PLEASE, you guys know about these cars and the motors, what should I do? Rebuild or put in a used motor? Approx. how much should it cost either way? Can I drive it in the meantime without doing any more damage? The questions just go on and on. Any help and advice would be greatly appreciated.

Sorry to hear about the bad buy. Yes, you can still drive on your motor. Just check the oil EVERY time you fill the gas tank. But, they motor could go tomorrow, or it could last another 5 years. It's hard to say.

Now, a good reputable shop, that is not a "import performance" shop, is more than likely going to charge you a flat rate fee. What this means, is they base the time they are going to charge you, off of a national database of labor estimates. For instance, the shop I work at, our labor guide says to rebuild your motor, including pulling it, installing, and assembly, is 23.3 hours. Our shops hourly rate is $65. 23.3 x $65 = $1516. Add on the cost of machine work, new parts, such as piston rings, bearings, oil, coolant, and $1900 sounds a little low for my shop. But every shop has a different labor wage. The one you spoke to may be $55, or $50. Changing that total.

I would not go with a B16A1. While it is essentially the same motor, it is from a older car. People will say they are low mileage, etc. But how long have they been sitting? Besides, where I am from, it is illegal to install a older motor than what your car is. B16A1's stopped about roughly 91'. You can get a newer, B16A2, from a newer, usually 98 (someone correct me if I am wrong on this) and up. They run $999 off of www.passwordjdm.com + say $300 shipping. My labor guide says 10.3 hours to remove and install, plus transfering over your old parts, like alternator, power sterring pump, etc. So 10.3 x $65 = $669. So, again, you are looking at about $1900.

Now, say you want to do preventive maintenance on either motors. New timing belt, new thermostat, new clutch, etc. The price will of coarse go up for the parts, but a good shop will not charge more on the labor.

Now, are there advantages over one? I think so. With a newer, low mileage JDM motor, all componants of the motor will be newer. Where as a bottom end rebuild, is just that. The bottom end will be new, while leaving the cylinder head, old. Make sense?

If it were up to me, I would opt for a low mileage, JDM motor. However, if you do that, I would suggest you order the motor on your own, from a reputable site, such as www.passwordjdm.com or www.hmotorsonline.com is another very good supplier. This will probably save you money, as the shops can't jack the price up, and you know it is from a excellent company.

just my :2cents:

I'm No Mechanic But A Friend Of Mine Is Burning About A 1/2 Quart Of Oil A Day, They Say Its His Rings. As Long As You Keep The Oil Level Consistant(spell) You Should Be Ok For Now!! You Must Seriuosly Consider Rebuilding Or Replacing. In The Same Senario, I Would Go The Cheapest Way. Since My Brother Is A Mechanic Himself, I Would Try To Do The Work Myself. Replacing the motor has it's benifits, like lasting years to come assuming proper care is taken.

I bought a 96 civic that was burning, oil and i didn't know, it got down to about 1- 1 1/2 quarts one time, then about 2 months later i melted a bearing on the crankshaft. had to do a whole engine rebuild, cost me about 700 $ by getting all parts from honda except crankshaft, which i got on ebay for 25 $ :) Car ran great till some blue hair t-boned me.

Thank you so much for your very informative reply Kris. You suggested I may consider going with a B16A2 motor. That of course makes more sence to me as I would end up with a newer motor. So is that motor basically the same as the B16A3? What are the differences, if any? Also, what type of milage are usually on the used motors purchased thru JDM? So many questions, I'm sorry....I have been researching, trying to learn more on my own.
By the way, I apologize for putting my post on 2 different forums. I'm new here and I didn't know that was not allowed.

Again thanks so much
Melissa

post up a pic of yourself. thats the rule for all the newcomers.

going with a jdm motor also has its risks, it could just as much oil as you are now, although buying a motor from hmotorsonline.com has really good customer service so if you get a bad motor they will most likely replace it free of charge. yeah i would get a jdm motor if i were you, like kris said your bottom end will be good, doesnt fix the head which could be bad as well. both has its costs and risks

post up a pic of yourself. thats the rule for all the newcomers.



lol good one...
she said she doesn;t care about performance...i would say pull the motor from her car...sell it and buy a d series or something...
again this is only because she said she doesn;t care about performance...drop 2000 ex motor in there and u'll b good to go..and it'll b wayyyyyyyyyy cheaper than a jdm motor

I'd say go with the jdm one. The only problem I see with a b16a2 is that it's a different OBD. And with a d-series swap, it'd cost probably about the same, because she'd need the transmission, ecu, axles, etc.
Here's the '92-'95 jdm b16a long block on hmotorsonline: http://www.hmotorsonline.com/shop/sc2000search.cgi?what=page&item=30022 It's $900, but you could sell the intake and exhaust manifolds and the other parts you don't need and get some $ back from those (or keep for replacement parts). Maybe even give them a call and ask if they can sell you just the block without all the extra parts for cheaper.

yeah and she could sell me her old complete head, intake mani, and dist because she wont need them anymore cause she wont need it anymore