To replace the engine or not?

[dopplebock]

So, the TV is a 2004 Ram 1500, 5.7L. 130,989 miles. Threw a valve on Saturday. Punctured the cylinder wall. Engine is a loss. Truck overall is in very good shape for it's age.
My dilemma is deciding to either replace the engine or replace the truck.
Never replaced and engine before. My mechanic has done dozens. He uses the Jasper engines and has a lot of confidence in them. Total replacement cost is $7000.
The value of this truck on the market is about $7,500. (with a working engine) I paid $8,500 for it two years ago.
If I replace the truck, I'd like to go newer, say 2010 or better with low miles. My online shopping is finding that I'd be into $15 -20K at minimum for that.

In my mind, I'm money ahead at this point to just fix the truck I have.

Curious about what ya'll opinions on this would be.

[wharfrat48]

Buying a 10 yr old truck, you never know what you are getting. You already know what you have. If it is truly in good shape, I'd swap out the engine.

[Chris Pastuzyn]

Well that's a tough one, how is the rest of the truck? Trans, body ,electrical ,rear end to name a few , Had a 2003 avalanche that ran great but started having electrical issues and rusting, up graded to a 2013 1500 ram the to 2015 2500.

[wtbuck12]

My question to you is, would you buy your present truck with a new engine for $7500? If so, replace the engine, if not or if you want to upgrade, then now is the time to do it.
Just my opinion.

[NMWildcat]

I'm one who keeps vehicles a long time... Sometimes too long.
If it's your daily driver, cut your losses and get a newer one. If it's a hobby truck, or an occasional tow vehicle, it might be worth fixing.
But usually when the engine goes, other components aren't far behind. And an engine replacement always costs more than estimated, if not now, soon after. And honestly, $7k seems a little high for a same engine replacement. Rebuilt crate motors are fairly cheap.

[007matman]

I've done two of them in my life. A 1999 ZR2 S10 and a 2002 Jeep Grand Cherokee. My son drives the Cherokee today.. it's got just over 200k on it now.

I'd do them both in a heartbeat again.

With a truck that you own, you know everything about it.. you know that maintenance history and you likely have it paid for.

If you were to sell your truck, what's it worth? $1500? So. Let's just say for a second that you took that and added $7500 in cash.. then went out to buy a new truck with 9k. What are you going to get for 9K? Pandora's box. You have no idea how the truck was actually taken care of. For all you know, that used truck w/ 130k or more could conk out on you tomorrow. No warranty either.

Take what you have, throw a new motor in there and what do you have? The most expensive failure component is brand new. Of the trans goes in 2 years, you replace it for $2500 or so.. still a lot cheaper in the long run.

Good luck.. just my two cents.. take for what it's worth.. others will likely disagree and even flame me for my opinion but the logic makes sense (at least in my head) LOL.

[NMWildcat]

Originally Posted by wtbuck12

My question to you is, would you buy your present truck with a new engine for $7500? If so, replace the engine, if not or if you want to upgrade, then now is the time to do it.
Just my opinion.

Yeah, but if replaces the engine, he will have $15,500 in an old truck that is worth $7500.
And then he is pretty much forced to keep it forever.........

[007matman]

Originally Posted by NMWildcat

Yeah, but if replaces the engine, he will have $15,500 in an old truck that is worth $7500.
And then he is pretty much forced to keep it forever.........

The money he's spent in the past is water under the bridge.. never ever gonna get that back.

That 1999 ZR2 I bought for 8500.. I put a 6k engine in it and sold it for 8500.. I drove it for almost 10 years. 6k in 10 years? Try doing that with a new vehicle...

[wtbuck12]

Originally Posted by NMWildcat

Yeah, but if replaces the engine, he will have $15,500 in an old truck that is worth $7500.
And then he is pretty much forced to keep it forever.........

He will get nearly nothing for it as is, and if he spends say $10K on a used truck he knows nothing about and blows the engine in 6 months? By replacing the engine, he would have some type of warranty. So I guess the question should be "do you feel lucky?" LOL
Good luck, whichever way you decide to go.

[NMWildcat]

Originally Posted by wtbuck12

He will get nearly nothing for it as is, and if he spends say $10K on a used truck he knows nothing about and blows the engine in 6 months? By replacing the engine, he would have some type of warranty. So I guess the question should be "do you feel lucky?" LOL
Good luck, whichever way you decide to go.

Yep, definitely a gamble either way.

[nvs4602]

Have you checked around for other remanufactured engines? I know jasper is good but there are other places out there too. They're are several on ebay. From $2100 and up. Here's one with 3year unlimited mile warranty. For $3000.00.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/293705390100

[babock]

Next will be transmission. Just be prepared for that.

[moose074]

Would assume the 7k is motor and labor. I did the work on my 84 GMC replaced the 305 with 350. Truck ran great until I sold and the young kid blew engine racing. Father in law replaced his 98 454 at dealership the trans went out, followed by ignition. Couldn’t trust the truck he sold it. Transmission went out again. I agree though if he puts another 7k in truck he has 15k in an 6 k truck with more trouble on the way, or he may never have another problem. I would trade up to newer

[rmac04401]

I’d replace engine. Even if you got two years before anything goes wrong you would be ahead of $500 a month truck payments over 2 years.
A decent used truck right now would be 16-25,000. Then something may go on that one on the way home.

[The Evil Twin]

I'm not a fan of Jasper. Couple bad experiences with them. For a 7500 truck, I would not put 7000 into it. That is just me though.

[Iwannacamp]

I don't know your area... I would think $7500 for a rebuilt engine is 2-3K too much. I would shop around. A new Mopar engine? Maybe for $7500.. not a rebuilt engine.

Now that being said. Some mechanics replace everything when "rebuilding" an engine. That includes all hoses, belts, trans re-seal and service, new radiator and of course fluids and filters. To me still not $7500, but that's an opinion.

[comfun1]

No mention of mileage or body/undercarriage rust. If the mileage is around 125k or less and no rust I would rebuild or replace engine. Unfortunately without the truck running it's not worth more than salvage value.

[GXPWeasel]

Why not purchase a used engine from a place like LKQ? You will spend a LOT less on that replacement engine, and you can replace the minor things that might go out, that are really easy to replace when an engine is out. For example valve cover gaskets, water pump, oil pan gasket, rear main seal, spark plugs and wires, and stab it back in the truck. Today, 130k isn't high mileage on any modern engine (year 2000+ is modern in my opinion) and you probably just got un-lucky on your current engine. I think you could put in a good used engine for $2,500 at most, and still have a very good truck which is dependable, and had many of the maintenance items done. That's the way I'd go. Then again, I'd replace it myself, but I've done a few of them before, so I'm comfortable doing it too.

[Lins]

Originally Posted by wharfrat48

Buying a 10 yr old truck, you never know what you are getting. You already know what you have. If it is truly in good shape, I'd swap out the engine.

I completely agree. Our previous truck was a 2002 Dodge 1500 with the 4.7. It was getting time to do heads or upgrade. That truck was not enough for us anymore so we got this 2500. Otherwise I would have done the heads and kept driving it as I kept it in great shape and would have loved to keep it.

[TitanMike]

Originally Posted by GXPWeasel

Why not purchase a used engine from a place like LKQ? You will spend a LOT less on that replacement engine, and you can replace the minor things that might go out, that are really easy to replace when an engine is out. For example valve cover gaskets, water pump, oil pan gasket, rear main seal, spark plugs and wires, and stab it back in the truck. Today, 130k isn't high mileage on any modern engine (year 2000+ is modern in my opinion) and you probably just got un-lucky on your current engine. I think you could put in a good used engine for $2,500 at most, and still have a very good truck which is dependable, and had many of the maintenance items done. That's the way I'd go. Then again, I'd replace it myself, but I've done a few of them before, so I'm comfortable doing it too.

A "Good" used engine installed for $2500? Maybe 20 years ago. Not even if you do it yourself as GOOD used engines for the OP's vehicle sell for more than that --------- uninstalled.

The question that needs to be answered by the OP is if he wants to be driving the same truck for another 5 years or more.

Unless buying a new truck a used replacement will just be a "pig in a poke". At least the current truck, with a new (remanufactured) engine is a known quantity and the big ticket item has already been taken care of.

Jasper engines are good but there are also regional rebuilders that are perhaps more competitive and just as good. May also be possible to get a crate engine through the dealer that will not be a rebuild but new that just needs the "tin" and accessories transferred.