car savvy people: I need tips?

[I Eat the Sun]

(I initially posted this in the garage board, but it's pretty dead. this was my next bet)

I'm looking for opinions on whether I'm getting jipped or not on some work i need on my car. It's a 1999 nissan altima, and the timing chain has slipped. Since it's inside the engine, it requires a s**t ton of work for a s**t ton of money

I brought it to our local guy who I've never heard anything but good things about, and he said in order to get in the engine and fix everything and etc, it'd be about 3500

BUT he knew a guy with an altima with a great engine, it'd just been in a wreck on one side so the body was trash, and he was selling it for $600. We'd get that, and swap the engines for $1200.

Boyfriend is telling me $1200 is ridiculous, but dad is telling me that compared to dealerships and shiz, it's reasonable (plus he runs a handyman business and knows the figures and percentages of how much you charge for labor versus parts, which is a 40/60 ratio)

Opinions? Anything is appreciated.

[chainmailleman]

Swap the engine with the wrecked car. 1,200 for a used engine is about right. Unless you have a garage with every tool known to man and the know-how to use the correctly, forget fixing the current engine. 3,500 is about what I would charge for a top end rebuild on a newer import. Parts, machining, and assembly.

[I Eat the Sun]

chainmailleman

Swap the engine with the wrecked car. 1,200 for a used engine is about right. Unless you have a garage with every tool known to man and the know-how to use the correctly, forget fixing the current engine. 3,500 is about what I would charge for a top end rebuild on a newer import. Parts, machining, and assembly.

Well it'd essentially be 600 for the engine, 1200 for the labor. Totaling 1800.

[Lemmingcide]

How many miles does the totaled car have on it?

[chainmailleman]

I Eat the Sun

chainmailleman

Swap the engine with the wrecked car. 1,200 for a used engine is about right. Unless you have a garage with every tool known to man and the know-how to use the correctly, forget fixing the current engine. 3,500 is about what I would charge for a top end rebuild on a newer import. Parts, machining, and assembly.

Well it'd essentially be 600 for the engine, 1200 for the labor. Totaling 1800.

Damn where do you live? I'll do it for half that so long as I get to keep the old block.

[Vannak]

I'm coming out of a very similar sistuation with my 99 nissan maxima.

The cars are great cars. I would spend the 600-850 for an engine block and look around for a better instillation price. You might also seek out selling your old block for parts or to be refurbished. Once removed the internal timing belts are infinitely easier to access and fix.

I'm lucky enough to live near a automotive technical school who does a lot of work for rather cheaply in exchange for having to wait a long a** time to get work done. an engine block swap seems to fit that profile.

[Heisenbergs Cat]

You can buy a car on craigslist for 1500 that's running lol