You didn't say what's wrong with your engine. Unless a rod came through the side of the block, I would guess rebuilding it would cost less. I taught engine rebuilding for nine years, and can't imagine how costs could run up to $4000.00. Based on your previous experiences, you are in a better position to know if $2000.00 labor is reasonable or not. I do know a lot of shops have to charge over $100.00 per hour labor to pay all the bills. I wouldn't want to pay two grand for labor, but I can understand how the bill could get that high.
I also have a friend who rebuilds one to two year old smashed Dodge trucks. He recently had to buy a used low mileage '08 diesel engine. He paid $1800.00 and wasn't very happy. That's why I'm thinking $4000.00 is a bunch.
After rereading your original post, I'm confused by all the numbers. Is the $5500.00 for a crate engine installed? Or do you mean they want another $1500.00 to install a $4000.00 used engine? If you have a crate engine, why do you need another one. Not that all these details are important. It just seems 4 grand is kind of high, and two grand for installation is not totally unreasonable.
Caradiodoc
Tuesday, March 9th, 2010 AT 3:12 AM