well, my monte has been in the shop for over a week now. last Friday while driving to work, it started sputtering and struggling to stay alive. I pulled into a gas station and shut it off. im not that smart when it comes to cars, but the phone call I got this morning from the mechanic handling the situation said enough to make me feel an amount of emotional turmoil I havnt felt in a while. "you need a new engine, bud" from what I understand I have a cracked cylinder head? something to do with a broke piston? broke lifter? again, im not the brightest led in the tail light here. (for the record, the guy that currently has it works in a dealer service center and specializes in Chevys and works from his home shop on the side. he knows a lot of people I know. I trust him 100%)

I financed my car about two and a half years ago. I financed it for 3 years. just take a second to do THAT depressing math. I have recently been thinking about buying a NEW car, but I never really wanted to trade or sell the monte. I planned on keeping it. but now im really considering trading it instead of pouring money into it. i don't know. im just left in the dark with so many unanswered questions. everybody seems to have an opinion on what the right thing to do is and i just want this to be done with, whatever the outcome.

of course, the obvious, just put in another engine. well, after buying another engine and paying labor I wouldn't be paying much less than what it would cost to pay it off. if I buy a used engine, which seems to be the most popular suggestion today, it would have to have pretty high miles for me to be able to afford it out right. if I trade it on a new one, they aren't going to give me enough to pay it off. the damn thing don't move! my cousin told me to replace the engine with a used high mileage one and THEN trade it. it will run and drive and still say 75.000 on the odometer. they will never know.

any feedback would be nice. should i trade it like it is? should i just go for another engine? i am so lost its not even funny.

 

I'm sorry to hear about your troubles. How much do you think you owe on the car?

 

Very sorry about your monte bro that's a sad day I'd prolly cry if I got that news but it depends if u want ur monte or not that will help u make ur choice I love my monte so I'd replace the motor with a new one just to keep my monte but do what's cost effective or hold onto ur monte check some online places for a new motor I know there is a guy up here selling a l67 with 80k miles and a rebuilt tranny for 900 so look around maybe u will stumble opon a deal if it's meant to be It will be

 

I wouldn't try trading it in while it's not running, a dealer will give you next to nothing for it as a trade in if its not even running...

 

No, don't trade it. Find a private party to sell it to you'll get a lot more for it . Or if you are really attached to it just park it and wait till you can afford to fix it.
Good luck.
On another note, find out just how extensive the damage is, with the exception of a cracked block most engines are repairable.
If not than sell it for what you owe on it and get out from under it.

 

It's obvious you've done a lot of thinking.

Next, do you trust the mechanic? If not, get a 2nd opinion if you can.

Then, to decide what to do, ask yourself how good is the body and suspension?

Opt 1 - Next, yes, a used motor would be the best bet. That being said, I would NOT put another Series II 3800 in. I would consider getting an '05 or newer Series III (L26) in a reasonable mileage (I think it can be obtained for $300-$500). From what I know, the S2 and S3 engine swaps are identical, you just need a throttle body adapter plate from ZZPerformance.com (about $100) and you're set. Reason for the S3, forged connecting rods (better durability) and odds of getting a reasonable mileage S3 vs S2 are probably better. Your biggest expense is labor to have it done.
MCF member Frank has a thread where he went through that very swap.

Opt 2 - Now, being in the realm of realistic, if the cost of the engine swap still does not work out to how long you expect to continue driving the Monte, put it for sale as a "rolling chassis" or a "fixer-upper". If the body and interior are nice, it will find a new home, probably to someone handy to do the work and willing to pay a fair price. I would NOT trade in a non-running car.

Obviously you'll get more for a running car, but the trade off is how much do you have to gain if you make it a running car. And I would NOT pop a high mileage engine in and then try to deceive someone that it was original to the car. That is asking for karma to bite ya in the butt.

 

if it wasme i would save and get the engine swapped,i love my monte that much, and dont try to decieve someone because they could easily check to see if the vin on the engine matches the one on the dash....and when it dont match up and u dont tell them it will send red flags

 

I agree, i would park mine, swap in a better engine when i can, like The_Maniac mentioned. decieving someone on the condition of a car is not a good idea...

 

Sorry to hear about this. I too would keep my Monte

 

Sorry man, I would also look at getting another motor, either do what frank did, or get a series 2 tear it down and rebuild it.