yodamomma

hi, and thanks in advance for the help...

i recently had a rebuilt engine (3.0 for a 94 runner) installed in canoga park, ca. two year warranty, it looked good on paper. Anyway, the hubby drove it for 50 miles, and the sucker overheated. I stopped payment on the paypal, and called them. They were furious about the stop payment. I was furious about the overheating. Well, they came and towed the car (nice). Took it back and said that two spark plug wires had melted on the manifold, and that was what was causing the car to miss and to overheat. OK, beyond the fact that these supposedly professional idiots had installed my lifetime guarantee spark plug wires over the manifold...i mean, wtf?...the check engine light was on. He apologized, supposedly changed out the wires, and cleaned an 'egr' valve. dunno what.

he tows the car back, supposedly working. i drive it, it appears to be fine. i check the spark plug wires, he has replaced them with used wires. this makes me wonder about the rest of the work that he supposedly did on this rebuilt engine. I leave my hubby in LA with his rebuilt engine and his new job. DRove to norcal. Hubby calls me next day, check engine light is back on.

I call the idiots, he says i cleaned the egr valve, and that's what's making the check engine light come on. It's not my fault, it's not part of the engine. he says to drive it to the 500 mile oil change, and he'll change the valve no charge.

I was going to release the money, but i'm thinking, a 3.0 overheats in the break-in period for the engine. This does not bode well for the headgasket down the line. He screwed up on the wires (if that was all it is), replaced good wires with really ˟˟˟˟ty used ones, and there's still a check engine light on that he doesn't even want to look at for another 400 miles

Would you trust the guy? Give him his money back? Trust that the warranty is worth the paper it's written on, and did we really get a rebuilt motor? And is that overheating during the break-in period the problem i think it is?

Any input would be appreciated, and thanks again.

Jkelley429

iTrader: (1)

First of all, melting plug wires would not cause the car to overheat. That should be your first sign that the mechanic is trying to pull one over on you. Did you get a warranty when they rebuilt it? With the already weak HGs on the 3.0 I would definitely be worried about problems in the near future. This whole situation sounds pretty shady to me.

yodamomma

it had a really good warranty, on paper, 6 months parts and labor, then two years parts. Problem is, if the guy is just doing cosmetic work, then the warranty isn't worth much. i don't feel good about this...

derockus

iTrader: (1)

Sounds awfully shady to me too... Do you know any other trustworthy mechanics who could look it over and tell you what they think, maybe pull the Check Engine code and see if it has anything to do with the emissions system or if the rebuilder is blowing smoke up yer... (pun intended). Does the engine look rebuilt? Painted block? New FIPG gasket material on valve cover or intake manifold?

There's a lot that could cause it to overheat, but if it wasn't overheating before the rebuild then you gotta figure out what changed. Did he plumb the hoses back on wrong? Put the thermostat in backwards? Not burp the cooling system (to get rid of trapped air)? I have a 4cyl but I've read all over this forum that the 2 headgaskets for the 3.0 can be switched from L to R... they look similar but there is a hole on one that's not on the other. Could be a problem too.

86STLRunner

If it was rebuilt, was the shortblock rebuilt? Did it have machine work done? Check for new freeze plugs in the block. If machine work was done, it will have new freeze plugs

yodamomma

I'll get back to you about the freezeplugs...have to wait until hubby is off work...

Gamefreakgc

If they are honoring the warranty, make 'em fix it. Yes, it sounds really shady and I think they just want 6 months to pass so they don't have to work on it anymore.

What are your options though? If you deny payment, won't they take the engine back? Then you've got a truck with no engine? It sounds like to me that it'll be a huge hassle and then you have to go through the whole process of getting a new engine and hoping that one works just fine.

yodamomma

further conversations with the mech. he says the problem is a 71 code, which is the egr valve, or, further vacuum troubles. he says it's not the engine, that it is extraneous to the engine and not his problem. I research on this fine forum the code, and see that it is indeed 'extraneous' to the replaced engine. The engine s/b driveable for awhile.

I endeavor to have a conversation with him about his business model. I said, 'just assume that all we want is a running car, so my husband can get to work safely'. I understand that you just lost a couple hundred for the tow, and i am not adverse to paying for new parts. Just work with me, let me know how much it's going to cost, and I'll say yay or nay.

He says, give me my money first!...I reiterate that all i want is a safe husband while he's working on production in LA. Perhaps he is foreign, and unused to our ways, and is as honest as he says. I just wish he hadn't changed the name of his business recently. And yes, i researched the business name before i bought the package. The installer was a different name. Should have cut and run then, but we were on a deadline.

brianh699

If it is truly an egr problem, he may not be at fault. Egr does drop combustion temperature though I've never seen overheating, but the wire issue alone makes me question his knowledge as a mechanic.

wyoming9

iTrader: (1)

What I don`t like about this whole mess is unless you neglected to tell us doubtful.

There should also be a bill stating just work was included in this rebuild.

Now if I am doing this engine install and I even think the egr valve should be replaced I will mention it to the customer let them say nay or yea.

Another thing it should have all new belts and hoses Pcv valve .

So just what did you get ??

In any case good luck

scope103

Are you going to call the engine vendor and say "A bunch of completely anonymous strangers on the internet say you don't know what you're talking about"? No, that wouldn't help.

IF what you bought was a rebuilt engine installed, and nothing else, it really is up to you to figure out why it is overheating. There are plenty of ways to overheat a brand-new engine that have nothing to do with the engine itself, and so shouldn't be covered by any warranty. They never warranted a "safe husband." And I doubt they warranted that everything "other" than the engine on your 4runner was in good shape.

So as much as you hate to do this, you're going to have to scoot this 4runner to another mechanic for a clear diagnosis. Code 71 probably has nothing to do with the rebuilt engine (but then, it has nothing to do with overheating, either), so you're going to have to get it fixed whether you like it or not. But another mechanic might be able to tell you if anything is wrong with the engine.

Sorry about the replacement plug wires; but if you didn't PAY for new plug wires, I'm not sure you can demand "new and shiny." And the others are right; they were not the CAUSE of the overheating. But unless you can get someone with a license to say that the ENGINE is the cause of the overheating, you really need to pay for what you bought.

wyoming9

iTrader: (1)

That is the question just what did you buy??

Did you buy a Brand X rebuilt engine installed by garage Y Or did Garage Y rebuild a engine ??

Then the other thing just how much did you pay $$$$ for this ordeal???

We all buy pigs in a poke at times learn the lesson and move on.

Discombobulated

I would like to know how much was spent and unless I have been living in the dark ages or something why was this Paypal? I have a couple good reputable shops around here and never heard of PayPal being used for labor parts or anything. As said above best bet is to bite the bullet and take it for a second opinion and find out what was really done.