Hi Guys,
My 2003 KL Verada carked it last Friday night. Basically the engine is toasted.
Is it worth replacing the engine? If so how much will that cost me in Sydney?

What happened to it? I'm sure you could get another engine fitted for around $1500,

havn't done it myself yet but I wouldn't be replacing with another 6G74, I'd get the engine from a 380 (6G75) which you can get from mitsfix
I havn't driven a verada with the 6g75 engine, but I have driven a 380. And the engine is definitely better. More punch off the line, more responsive, more power overall, about equal or slightly better fuel economy by reports

havn't done it myself yet but I wouldn't be replacing with another 6G74, I'd get the engine from a 380 (6G75) which you can get from mitsfix
I havn't driven a verada with the 6g75 engine, but I have driven a 380. And the engine is definitely better. More punch off the line, more responsive, more power overall, about equal or slightly better fuel economy by reports

Theres nothing wrong with the 6g74 motor, if this guy just wants to get his car back on the road for a cheap price he's not going to go down the path of fitting a 3.8, which will cost at least about twice as much as a 3.5

he has 5 posts and may not be aware you can swap in a better engine. Keyword is better as i've not seen a single report of any downsides to it
I know if I was in his/her situation i'd appreciate someone telling me that it can be done, especially if I was wanting more power as a nice upgrade

Downside is the cost if you are on a budget.

Thanks for your replies folks.
Long story short, the timing belt slipped (or more of the thread/teeth got damaged) and resulted in engine damage (I am trying to put in words whatever the mechanic told me). I did got the timing belt done on 116k.
I am on a budget to be honest and would prefer to put the car back on road for... well... not for more money than I have to.
The car is September 2003 built has done 158k. I am the third owner (I believe). The car was written off as repairable write off under the first owner.
The gear box played up year and half ago and got that one fixed. Now it was time for the engine and not really looking to spend a fortune.
I towed it to the local mechanic he is asking for $1500.00 for a 2nd hand engine from wreckers as is (no servicing done to the engine) or $2500.00 for a 2nd hand engine from wreckers, do the timing belt, water pump and other seals. The 1st option I am not too confident about and the 2nd one seems bit of rip off.
I know Mal (Mitsfix) is great but don't know of anyone closely good in Sydney. That why I am here for help.

$1,500 for a second hand engine, plus $1,000 to freshen it up.

Does that include his labour? Does he offer a warranty on the work? If so, it sounds reasonable. But only you can decide if it is worth fixing. If you consider the price too steep and have alternatives, like another car that you can use, or public transport, consider the situation carefully. Invest $2.5K in a KL Verada and unless you keep the car for another 10 years, you will not see that money back at trade in or sale time.

$1,500 for a second hand engine, plus $1,000 to freshen it up.

Does that include his labour? Does he offer a warranty on the work? If so, it sounds reasonable. But only you can decide if it is worth fixing. If you consider the price too steep and have alternatives, like another car that you can use, or public transport, consider the situation carefully. Invest $2.5K in a KL Verada and unless you keep the car for another 10 years, you will not see that money back at trade in or sale time.

It does include his labour. He got upset when I asked him about warranty :-), I think he was saying warranty for the parts but not the labour.
You are right MadMax, if I don't keep the car for long term then the price is too steep. Investing the money to sell it after putting it back on the road does not sound too promising either. $1,500 probably would get my money back but not if I am spending $2,500.
Would anyone put a second hand engine without freshening it up?

It does include his labour. He got upset when I asked him about warranty :-), I think he was saying warranty for the parts but not the labour.
You are right MadMax, if I don't keep the car for long term then the price is too steep. Investing the money to sell it after putting it back on the road does not sound too promising either. $1,500 probably would get my money back but not if I am spending $2,500.
Would anyone put a second hand engine without freshening it up?
I would be finding a new mechanic. The price sounds ok, but warranty on the engine only but not labour? GTFO. If you go to a wreckers and buy a secondhand engine, the wreckers provides a statutory warranty.I would start getting quotes from some professional, communicative mechanics who are happy to explain the costs, the process and the inclusions without acting like you are a burden to their day.

Mate, you are being robbed blind,

Stay with me here a minute, for that sort of price

Transport to Melbourne (ie mitsfix) $650
Motor with new timing belt fitted $750
Labour to install with fluids etc $450
Total $2150

OR

I can supply a good fresh motor with similar mileage to yours, new timing belt fitted and ready to bolt in for $850 including freight to a workshop of your choice.

As for freshening it up that is BS, he will do a timing belt and that is it if you are lucky, the freshen up will be a wash.

You asked about warranty and he got upset, go somewhere else, no one should be upset when a question is asked about warranty. Sure you may not like what you hear if you were expecting more than what you are getting but hell, if he can not warrant his labour he is not much better than a back yard warrior.

There is no need to do anything to a motor pulled from another running car, yes belt is smart so you know what you have but aside from that should be all that is needed.

No offense mate but I can see your English is not that good so in my opinion the mechanic is using this to make extra money from you. I am not trying to be rude to you but more point out that I think the mechanic is not being totally honest here thinking you will not understand what is going on.

"No offense mate but I can see your English is not that good"...i must be missing something here.

As others have said, the price you've been quoted is excessive. $1500 should get you a new (2nd hand) engine with belt etc done, installed and warranted.

Yeah that mechanic sounds like a right wingnut. You can get 6g74's with a few months warranty for about $600 or so.

With the right tools and equipment this only takes a day to do, I can't see how that guy is charging the earth then not giving any warranty on what has been done... RUN!

Mate, you are being robbed blind,

Stay with me here a minute, for that sort of price
...
I can supply a good fresh motor with similar mileage to yours, new timing belt fitted and ready to bolt in for $850 including freight to a workshop of your choice.

As for freshening it up that is BS, he will do a timing belt and that is it if you are lucky, the freshen up will be a wash.
...

There is no need to do anything to a motor pulled from another running car, yes belt is smart so you know what you have but aside from that should be all that is needed.

No offense mate but I can see your English is not that good so in my opinion the mechanic is using this to make extra money from you. I am not trying to be rude to you but more point out that I think the mechanic is not being totally honest here thinking you will not understand what is going on.

It's good to hear from you Mal.
English is not my first language, so no offence taken. I would rather have people correct my mistakes so I can improve.

The idea of getting a engine from you is great, as I will know what I am getting.
Now, don't get mad at me I just need to ask some question as a customer would do. You did mention about the timing belt, what about the water pump? Does it need to be done at the same time? If so, will it be done? How will the warranty work if you are to provide the engine (parts) and a sydney mechanic to bolt that in (labour)? What are the things can go wrong in such arrangement?

Once I receive your response, I will find out from him how much he will charge for fitting the engine in and if he will provide any warranty for his work.
Cheers.

Yeah that mechanic sounds like a right wingnut. You can get 6g74's with a few months warranty for about $600 or so.

With the right tools and equipment this only takes a day to do, I can't see how that guy is charging the earth then not giving any warranty on what has been done... RUN!

Thanks Neo. I am shopping around.

"No offense mate but I can see your English is not that good"...i must be missing something here.

As others have said, the price you've been quoted is excessive. $1500 should get you a new (2nd hand) engine with belt etc done, installed and warranted.

That is what I was thinking as well.
As Mal mentioned "Motor with new timing belt fitted $750 + Labour to install with fluids etc $450" = $1200 which sounded like a very reasonable price. Now Mitsfix is in Melbourne, so there is a $650.00 transporation cost involved or I can get the engine delivered here in Sydney for $850.00 and get someone to fit that in.

May be worthwhile to go back to the guy who quoted you originally and present him with these numbers. Sounds like the $1500 + $1000 may just have been numbers he pulled out of thin air on the spot and may be prepared to do better on price & warranty. If he tells you to "FRK orfff" at least you know where you stand with him. lol

That is what I was thinking as well.
As Mal mentioned "Motor with new timing belt fitted $750 + Labour to install with fluids etc $450" = $1300 which sounded like a very reasonable price. Now Mitsfix is in Melbourne, so there is a $650.00 transporation cost involved or I can get the engine delivered here in Sydney for $850.00 and get someone to fit that in.

Bhai it's going to cost $200 more to get a motor to your mechanic than getting the car to Mal, if you send the car to Mal you can either get it sent back for that $650 which is an extra $400 over what it would cost to get the motor sent to your mechanic or you could travel to Melbourne once Mal finished the install and drive it back home giving the engine a good run in.

I'd probably sent the car to Mal if I was in your position.

The $850 is cost of engine and freight to his mechanic, not just freight quote ;) That way he'd be up for $850 (motor, delivered) plus whatever his mechanic wants to fit it.

The $850 is cost of engine and freight to his mechanic, not just freight quote ;) That way he'd be up for $850 (motor, delivered) plus whatever his mechanic wants to fit it.

Oops ..... I have to stop dying my hair blonde!

May be worthwhile to go back to the guy who quoted you originally and present him with these numbers. Sounds like the $1500 + $1000 may just have been numbers he pulled out of thin air on the spot and may be prepared to do better on price & warranty. If he tells you to "FRK orfff" at least you know where you stand with him. lol

I am planning to see him today with the numbers. Would help if I could get a Sydney based quote. But he should get the idea. I suspect he will ask for a hiked up price for the fitting if I am to get the engine from Mal (as the local mechanic won't be able to make money on the engine). Let's see.

Mate, is there another local mechanic who can give you another quote?

Mate, is there another local mechanic who can give you another quote?

Went to see another mechanic this morning.
He will find out the price for the complete job once he can find a suitable engine.
He is asking for $600.00 fitting charge if I am to source the engine.
Cheers.

$1450 for the whole job (Mal's engine plus local fitting), better than your first quote (plus the second quote seems more reasonably priced).

Latest update:
$1400 for the whole job (locally sourced engine, new timing belt, three months warranty).
Local mechanic said that if I am to source the engine, I have to deal with the warranty.

Latest update:
$1400 for the whole job (locally sourced engine, new timing belt, three months warranty).
Local mechanic said that if I am to source the engine, I have to deal with the warranty.

Sounds like a good deal

Got the car back today. Let's see how it goes now. Thanks everyone for the suggestions and information.