Heartbreak

Lexlas · Jul 27, 2009

Yup just as some people said on here, they are now saying 3 of my pistons are broke and i will need a whole new engine. I am so sad. This is going to cost mega dollars and all the new parts i purchased will have to be replaced to the new engine. I am at their mercy, i can't even see the car because i work 12 hour days, i leave before the shop opens and come home after it's closed. I hope that after i pay for this new or used rebuilt engine that i get to keep the old one. It's now a even sadder day. I saw my engine drown in water, my poor camaro.

68IslTeal · Jul 27, 2009

Lexlas said:
Yup just as some people said on here, they are now saying 3 of my pistons are broke and i will need a whole new engine. I am so sad. This is going to cost mega dollars and all the new parts i purchased will have to be replaced to the new engine. I am at their mercy, i can't even see the car because i work 12 hour days, i leave before the shop opens and come home after it's closed. I hope that after i pay for this new or used rebuilt engine that i get to keep the old one. It's now a even sadder day. I saw my engine drown in water, my poor camaro.

All is not lost and your 401k will not be drained...

1st off ask any of your friends if they know a reputable mechanic, etc... and have your car taken to this other place. A 2nd opinion is due in this situation because I like the others dunno about this shop your using now. Hell your in Cali, just say where and I am sure someone from the board can give you shops name/number that is reputable.

Ok lets say the 2nd shop comes back and says yup your engine is pooched, you got 2 choices...

1. If you want to keep that eninge becuase its numbers matching, etc... then rebuild it. Rebuilding the engine should run from 1-2k depending on parts needed (unless you need heads also then it will cost more perhaps).

2. Buy another engine and bolt on your parts you just bought. New engines run from 1.5k up, and have warrenty, etc....

http://www.jegs.com/c/Engines-Components_Engine-Assembled-Ready-to-Run/10763/10002/-1

You can go from mild to wild, what ever you want to spend there is an engine waiting for you! These days unless your want to keep the engine for numbers matching collector reasons, etc... and you dunno how to rebuild the engine yourself then buy a crate engine.

Calpantera · Jul 27, 2009

When I started reading about the water and oil pumping out of the dipstick tube I figured a broken piston or a major score in a cyl wall would put that kind of pressure in the pan. Dude where do you live? There are many of us here in California that would be willing to help out. At least get you going in the right direction if not some actual physical wrenching on your car, and to make sure that shop is not ripping you off.

Bill

Lexlas · Jul 27, 2009

Calpantera said:
When I started reading about the water and oil pumping out of the dipstick tube I figured a broken piston or a major score in a cyl wall would put that kind of pressure in the pan. Dude where do you live? There are many of us here in California that would be willing to help out. At least get you going in the right direction if not some actual physical wrenching on your car, and to make sure that shop is not ripping you off.

Bill

I live in Pittsburg California. I am getting my car fixed in Antioch California just 10 minutes aways. I am waiting to hear back from them on pricing. I called a local shop by myself and they said 2K for a 400 small block chevy with 2 years warranty. These guys are going to try to score my a used one for less. We'll see. Thanks for the advise from everyone, greatly appreciated. I also contacted small claims court because well i'm gonna see if i have a case. If this is something they did well i gotta take them to court. But we'll see, i'm not one to take time of work to handle court stuff, i'd rather pay my way out and get my car back on the road asap.

vetteman_72 · Jul 27, 2009

A '68 Camaro didn't have a "400" cu inch engine, so if they're pricing one, it might cost more than a 350 crate motor would.

Not to be harsh, cause I know how it feels to be in your place- but if it were me, I would be taking some time off from work to go check it out. It would take quite a few hours at work to pay the shop to fix my car, at my hourly pay rate, at the very least I might feel more secure in the end, having investigated their findings.

I would want to see the three pistons, and I would not tell them I was coming. If possible, I would take a friend along. Ask questions, ask to see the oil from the car for debris and fragments in the bottom of the oil pan.

Perhaps it's too late for that, but in any case, best of luck to you.

dhutton · Jul 27, 2009

Get your car out of there. It smells like a similar experience I had years ago:

My 69 Z28 was in paint jail for several months and started to run rough. There was a mechanic a couple of units down and he looked at the car and rebuilt the carb. Once he was done it was smoking bad and he told me the engine needed to be rebuilt but I said no so he offered up that it was likely the valve seals and he offered to change them. I agreed and he did the work. Next day when I went by the car was out of gas. Big surprise, he had put oil in the gas to make it smoke and then he ran it out of gas. Sure enough, fresh gas and no smoke. He only took me for a few hundred but could have gotten a lot more if had agreed to a rebuild. While I was there waiting for the car to get gased up I watched him pull an alternator out a Jaguar, clean it, paint it with casting paint, apply a "rebuilt" sticker to it and install it back in the car. He didn't realize I was watching what I was doing. He had a whole roll of those stickers in his cabinet...

There are crooks out there, if something doesn't look right, pull the car and look for someone you can trust.

Don

DOUG G · Jul 28, 2009

Lex... this is the time to man~up. Roll up your sleeves,get dirty,and spend some quality time with your pride and joy.
I understand the 12 Hr.days (did it for 8 or 9 years). Find someone who know their stuff and see if they'll help you for a few dollars and teach you the basics.
I learned the hard way also (like a lot of us here). I kept paying and paying for shoddy work and $1400 for a tranny with install was the straw that broke my back (3 weeks and blew). I had to learn from trial and error along with help from buddies... but even with doing it 2 or more times to get right it was cheaper than paying for $hi##y work over and over :yes:

Kokamo · Jul 28, 2009

Another word from the wise.....unless you are dealing with someone like Chip Foose, you will not have the heart and soul put into your car like you would personally do it. Perfection can only come by one person and that is yourself.

Go to harbor freight, grab some tools, grab your camera, start pulling things apart, and when you have a question, ask away here on Team Camaro. I would be willing to bet that about 98% of every question that could be asked about 1st gem Camaro's has already been asked.....thats why the search is one of my most prized tools in my toolbox.

~Joe

Eric Kammerer · Jul 28, 2009

If you have another car, and this car is just a toy, my advice would be to get it brought home and park it. Then start reading all you can, and try to become at least a knowledgeable "consumer gearhead".

Yes it is awful that you've spent a bunch of money recently, and you're left with a car that won't run. Maybe you have some recourse against the shop if the car was abused or if shoddy/shady work was performed, maybe you don't.

Maybe you got incredibly unlucky. The initial issue with the idle sounds like it may have been fixed with a few turns of idle speed and/or mixture screws, and maybe some more in depth learning on your part could have given you the knowledge to perform the adjustments yourself.

As it is, you had a shop perform a bunch of work that probably was not necessary, and may have led to where you are now.

Before you continue to throw money at the car (unless you have really deep pockets, and don’t mind being very, very upside-down in the project), bring it home and park it, and sit and plan out what you want to do, and try to learn enough that you can at least guide whomever you select to perform the work and know that you’re not being completely taken for a ride.

The way things are going, and at your current level of knowledge about these cars, I am afraid that the shop will either throw together a bunch of junk parts and charge more than they should for a junkyard engine, or you’ll spend a pile of cash for an okay rebuilt engine when you could have had a “crate” engine with better specs and a warranty for the same money or less.

Even something like the “Goodwrench” 350 might be a better choice than spending a ton of cash rebuilding a junkyard engine.

http://paceperformance.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=224002

GM PART # 10067353
CATEGORY: Eng Asm (shipped only to local fedex hub 4 pickup)
PACK QTY: 1
CORE CHARGE: $0.00
GM LIST: $1,887.78
OUR PRICE: $1,766.96

When you can’t do the work yourself, the way you need to approach this type of project is very different than someone who can do most of the work themselves. You are well on the road to having $20K to $30K “invested” in a $10K to $15K car, and my advice is to bring it home and really think and learn about what you want to do with the car.

Lexlas · Jul 28, 2009

Eric Kammerer said:
If you have another car, and this car is just a toy, my advice would be to get it brought home and park it. Then start reading all you can, and try to become at least a knowledgeable "consumer gearhead".

Yes it is awful that you've spent a bunch of money recently, and you're left with a car that won't run. Maybe you have some recourse against the shop if the car was abused or if shoddy/shady work was performed, maybe you don't.

Maybe you got incredibly unlucky. The initial issue with the idle sounds like it may have been fixed with a few turns of idle speed and/or mixture screws, and maybe some more in depth learning on your part could have given you the knowledge to perform the adjustments yourself.

As it is, you had a shop perform a bunch of work that probably was not necessary, and may have led to where you are now.

Before you continue to throw money at the car (unless you have really deep pockets, and don’t mind being very, very upside-down in the project), bring it home and park it, and sit and plan out what you want to do, and try to learn enough that you can at least guide whomever you select to perform the work and know that you’re not being completely taken for a ride.

The way things are going, and at your current level of knowledge about these cars, I am afraid that the shop will either throw together a bunch of junk parts and charge more than they should for a junkyard engine, or you’ll spend a pile of cash for an okay rebuilt engine when you could have had a “crate” engine with better specs and a warranty for the same money or less.

Even something like the “Goodwrench” 350 might be a better choice than spending a ton of cash rebuilding a junkyard engine.

http://paceperformance.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=224002

GM PART # 10067353
CATEGORY: Eng Asm (shipped only to local fedex hub 4 pickup)
PACK QTY: 1
CORE CHARGE: $0.00
GM LIST: $1,887.78
OUR PRICE: $1,766.96

When you can’t do the work yourself, the way you need to approach this type of project is very different than someone who can do most of the work themselves. You are well on the road to having $20K to $30K “invested” in a $10K to $15K car, and my advice is to bring it home and really think and learn about what you want to do with the car.

Well their total is $3500.00 with a 3 year warranty, it will be shipped and i wont' see it till the 13th of next month. This will be with all the parts transfered from my block over to this block and labor included. what do you guys think ?

Mkelcy · Jul 28, 2009

Lexlas said:
Well their total is $3100.00 with a 3 year warranty, it will be shipped and i wont' see it till the 13th of next month. This will be with all the parts transfered from my block over to this block and labor included. what do you guys think ? I could be i l blew it out running it at 120 mph. I have a thread before this one that was stating why my engine started to leak fluids after i ran it at 120 mph. Maybe i just screwed it up myself ? The only thing i do know is that it did not have water in the engine, it was idling incorrectly and this is why i took it to the shop. I had gotten the carb adjusted and it was running fine, the fluids had also stopped leaking with all new gaskets all around, except for one. I have a thread here posted and a pix of that one leak i had also. I think i might go for it.

Have you gotten a written estimate detailing exactly what you're getting, what's new or rebuilt and what's being swapped from your old engine? If so, post it up and let us take a look at it. If not, you're likely in deep doodoo. What are the terms of the warranty and where do you have to take the car to get warranty service?

I've got to say, a person without any mechanical knowledge owning a 40 year old car is not going to be happy unless you have very deep pockets, a very trustworthy mechanic or learn about your car pretty quickly.

69 z11 · Jul 28, 2009

You've got some pretty good advice here, but you don't seem to be listening. Continuing to throw money at the car is a losing proposition. They (and it doesn't matter where you take it) will keep finding things wrong and you will keep paying and you will never learn anything. Even when it's fixed right, things will still be breaking, wearing out, or getting out of adjustment. These cars aren't for everybody, you have to willing to get your hands dirty and make some mistakes.

Just my 2¢

KMG69 · Jul 28, 2009

Do you know the size of the engine they are getting you...350" or 400". Short block?
If it's a short block you may want to consider inspecting the heads. Get the information on what they are getting for you, so you can take it home and study what you're buying. So I guess $3,100 dollars sounds like a good deal to you? Thats ALL in parts and labor? Are they taking you're old engine for core? Sorry for all the questions, but this thread makes me cringe. Many of us here do not like to see others taken for a not so pleasant ride.

Lexlas · Jul 28, 2009

KMG69 said:
Do you know the size of the engine they are getting you...350" or 400". Short block?
If it's a short block you may want to consider inspecting the heads. Get the information on what they are getting for you, so you can take it home and study what you're buying. So I guess $3,100 dollars sounds like a good deal to you? Thats ALL in parts and labor? Are they taking you're old engine for core? Sorry for all the questions, but this thread makes me cringe. Many of us here do not like to see others taken for a not so pleasant ride.

It will be a 400 Small Block and it will be more like $3500.00 because the mechanic says the intake is rusty and full of gunk that did not come off when they sand blasted it and it's best to get a new one. I can keep the old one and as far as the old block he said because when the oil and water mixed and it's all full of gunk too. He also said i can take it home too. I hope to get it all done by the middle of next month and will keep pix up asap. thanks

Arch Stanton · Jul 28, 2009

Why did they sand blast the intake????
I don't get it....did you ok them to take it off? What was the reason they said they needed to take it off and sandblast?
Too wierd.
I'm not diggin' this shop.
Get that car outa there, tow it home if you need to. You're being taken for a ride, and this'll bum you out on classic cars real quick.
Get it home, grab some tools and a good digital camera. We'll slowly e-fix this by walking you through it. These old cars are easy to work on.

Kokamo · Jul 28, 2009

Lexlas said:
the mechanic says the intake is rusty and full of gunk that did not come off when they sand blasted it and it's best to get a new one. I can keep the old one and as far as the old block he said because when the oil and water mixed and it's all full of gunk too. He also said i can take it home too.

Wow....right there is a perfectly clear sign that they are grabbing at "wrong" things and taking advantage of you. 90% of the members of this site know that anything aside from a hot fire on an aluminum (or cast iron) intake can be cleaned and re-used. Same thing goes for the block. I've seen LOTS of water/oil mixed nightmares and unless a connecting rod came loose, the block was re-used. It just needs some cleaning.

My advise is to listen to all of the advice here on this thread.

~Joe

vetteman_72 · Jul 29, 2009

Anyone who owns a classic car of any caliber, had better have a basic understanding, a will to learn more, and be involved in this forum. I think Eric's plan makes the most sense. You'll learn a lot with the hood open, and your hands in it. And you're not under any pressure to make a decision- in a hurry- and can weigh all your options, after getting suggestions and maybe some hands on help. Maybe even friends!
Lex, wouldn't you prefer to have less stress and more options, without feeling like you're being taken?

vetteman_72 · Jul 29, 2009

Have they removed the motor from the car?

Get someone knowledgeable, rondevous with someone from this site even!

Take a half a day from work- call in SICK!!!!

Go to the shop with this other person, and review this from start to stop.

Dare I say, do you know the laws in your state? A lawyer could quote them for you.

(Boy- that was tough- recommend a "lawyer!" ??)

cheby2 · Jul 29, 2009

Guys , this whole ordeal seems kind of weird to me (as in the chasing of wild geese)

This entire thread has been about trying to help a clueless member not get screwed by a no good shop . The original poster , Lexlas , keeps coming back with all the textbook wrong , getting taken answers , and falling for them , while the good guys here keep screaming "NO, NO , GET YOUR CAR OUT , WE'LL HELP ! DON'T FALL FOR THAT !" But he keeps getting sucked in ! ................Sorry guys , I gotta call BS on this one , either the whole story isn't being told or this is all a fabrucation , or the OP is incredibly naive . ...........I may be wrong , and if I am I will appoligize , but I don't think so .

DK68ss · Jul 29, 2009

X2 on what Vetteman 72 said you cant have 68 Camaro with out getting your hands dirty on less you wonna drain the bank.

Heartbreak

Lexlas

68IslTeal

Calpantera

Lexlas

vetteman_72

dhutton

DOUG G

Kokamo

Eric Kammerer

Lexlas

Mkelcy

69 z11

KMG69

Lexlas

Arch Stanton

Kokamo

vetteman_72

vetteman_72

cheby2

DK68ss

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