What To Do (r32 Gtr Engine Failure)

[NAITR]

Need some advice

my mate bought a R32 GTR about 3 months ago. got it serviced, some minor things fixed. timing belt was enspected, no need to replace

its got a big exhaust, running about 13psi with stock engine as far as he knows.

few weeks ago he was driving home sedately and the engine just died.

turns out timing belt tensioner failed. no compression. Needs rebuild. but has not been opened up yet.

He's been told by a big name auto place that it will be between 5k and 12k to fix depending on the damage.

what would you people suggest...

considering the bad stories you sometimes hear about crap rebuilders do you's think its the right option? GTRgeoff says he doesnt trust any place and only rebuilds himself.. hehe

instead should he buy a new engine? 12k is remarkably close to a new crate engine.. ??? (15k for N1 right)

or is it just overkill? what about an engine already rebuilt by a reputable workship?

what sort of guarantee would you expect from a shop after having an engine rebuilt or a replacement rebuilt motor bought?

and what do they generally go for?

also, it still has the standard turbos.. should they be replaced incase they fail soon and destroy the engine?

I have read the "report that engine failure" thread and its scary expensive stuff.. i dont want him to spend thousands and have it fail again in 6 months time..

Edited October 18, 2006 by NAITR

[Morgs]

What state are you in?

How long do you intend on keeping the car?

If its a short peroid of time, get a second hand RB26 in and sell the car.

If not, no doubt could recommend some good places to get a reliable rebuild done at a reasonable price.

[Godzilla32]

My engine didnt die but im currently rebuiding it. It is also an RB26. If your in Brisbane i have full faith in JHH Engineering. They doing the machine work for me and i will be building it. I also was faced with the question of re-using the standard ceramic turbos or replacing with steel wheeled items. i chose the safer option of replacing. However i am going to rebuild the ones i have to higher spec thru sliding performance. For $1200 its a pretty good deal. By the way a rebore is $220 forged pistons are about $1000-1400 depending on what you choose. However i am doing all the R&R labour myself so it would be much more expensive to do if your not a mechanic. You'll also want to check the crank as it has possibly spun a bearing or done some sort of damage in that department. A new set of bearings isnt too expensive. Anyway as long as his engine isnt totally destroyed i think he should just rebuild what he has would always work out cheaper...

[NAITR]

we are in Adelaide

Dont know.. he's still deciding whether to keep it or sell it when its back on the road..

it would be sensible imo to get it done properly and then keep it long term.. that way your not wasting money on repairing a car for someone else..

but not sure my mate can really afford to do what needs to be done.. or if he's just too pissed off with it to keep it.

Edited October 18, 2006 by NAITR

[blind_elk]

If you plan to simply fix and sell, then get a replacement from the wreckers and install it. Otherwise, rebuild the dead one - and ask to talk to previous customers of the engine builder if you have any concerns.

[GTR1993]

In adleaide there any many smaller builders that are good, also Rhemac and Adelaide engine developments are good.

[N1GTR]

Open it up first and see whats broken/failed

I know of one up here that failed, but if it needed to, COULD be back together with a light hone and new bearings etc which would end up being a lot cheaper than 12k

[cowie165]

I'd sell the RB26 and replace with an R33 motor. Sell off your old motor to offset replacement cost.

[glaze]

Same thing happened to my first GTR, engine blew badly, wasnt driving sedately!! I replaced with a R33 engine and sold my blown one, whole thing ended up costing me about $3k all up, pretty good for a nice newer engine and it drove soooo much better after that.

[SKiTLz]

Same thing happened to my first GTR, engine blew badly, wasnt driving sedately!! I replaced with a R33 engine and sold my blown one, whole thing ended up costing me about $3k all up, pretty good for a nice newer engine and it drove soooo much better after that.

$3,000 for a R33 RB26 dropped in? Thats a steal.

[700HP-GTR33]

$3,000 for a R33 RB26 dropped in? Thats a steal.

I think he means he replaced it with a RB25............

[Beer Baron]

no, he means he sold his own broken engine (let's say for $2K) had new R33 GTR engine bought and installed (let's say cost $5K) the total 'cost' to him was $3K ($5K-$2K=$3K).

[SKiTLz]

Im living in Canada these days. So 5k is still a steal over here.

[vidospace]

Hmmm I am in the same boat. Cant decide if I should find a second hand engine or rebuild the current one.

[Topaz]

What are the kms now? At import you have it at 76,000kms. Was it a rough drive from fresh import?

If thats your car in the link in your sig I'd say you will not find another RB26 in the same condition on the outside. Its not a VSpec is it? I say rebuild yours as you could probably get away with using a lot of the parts on your current engine as well.

[noone]

Till the motor is opened up it is pretty hard to estimate rebuild costs could be most of the internals are totalled could be not alot wrong impossible to tell