Engine rebuild questions. . .

Sorry about all the posts, i just don't have a reliable mechanic that I can barrage with these questions.

What exactly is an 'engine rebuild'? I see it in used car ads all the time and I am not sure exactly what they mean.. is it just new rings and maybe a valve adjustment? My car doesn't burn oil (leaks it, but doesn't burn it) The compression I think is not great--car doesn't like to climb hills much.

What's the ave. cost?

I am stuck deciding to buy a used car for 5K or spending the $$ on fixing up my old car. I could do a lot with 2, 3 or maybe 4k in fixes. My car is a 1995 altima w/ 185k on it.

 

well it is a common term and some rebuilds are better than others it should be new bearings and rings and new gaskets and seals at the least but that isnt that great of a deal if they didnt do the machine work, a good rebuild usually requires some machine work such as boring the cylinders and installing new pistons turning the crankshaft to remove any damage from the bearing journals along with a valve job or new valve guides if needed basicly nothing gets reused if its not up to specs.
an alternative would be finding a lower mileage used engine to replace your existing one, cost can vary alot but you might look at engine remanufacturers to get an idea of what it would run far a remanufactured engine and get some estimates from a few shops.

 

I did a quick check and you're looking at $3800 for a Jasper remann'ed engine. Jasper is one of the better national rebuilders. A used one, as bejay mentioned, would likely be a better buy although any warranty will be considerably less than a rebuilt unit. Even used motors nowadays are commanding premium prices due to supply and demand. I wouldn't be surprised if a low-mileage used engine would run you $2500 plus installation.

 

about 2500 to 3500 if you have a shop do it but your parts for a full rebuild pistons rings cam /all of it mayb about $600 or $700. but they have the nohow {do u

thats where they get ya. all in the laber
just shop around trust me might save u a 1000 for the same stuff i do it all the time my last 2 rigs i bought with probs. mayb im out 200 and my weakend . they wourth 4000 each now and im out mayb 800 for both. just SHOP can do better than 2500

 

The car doesn't smoke, doesn't burn oil--just leaks it!. It still runs fine. But it it does have some miles on it. I just want to get more miles out of it. Hopefully the rebuild may be gentle on the parts end of the deal.

Do they pull the engine out? I hope so! Then they can see to the leak around my timing chain cover or around the oil pump--hard for me to see where it is exactly. And replace a couple of connecting hoses and one motor mount I missed. So you can tell I am hoping to cut a couple of corners for other labor while the rebuild is happening.

I thought about buying a newer Altima, but who knows when I will be replacing the same stuff I have already done on my own car.