my cost effective choices are:

1>drop $4000 on an atkins 12a rebuild

2>rebuild it myself, impractical given my facilities/expertise

3>drop $3800 on an atkins 13b rebuild, and use my OEM carburator and so on, or go with a holley. Is this possible?

4>drop +$6000 on a v-8 conversion (blasphemy!)

 

1) holy crap thats a fregin expensive *** engine!!!

2)???? You don't have a 17mm wrench and a 5 gallon pail? (ok you also need a 10,12mm as well)

3) Why is it $200 cheaper for a 13B? Still *** expensive.

4) Where did you get that figure? MIG's cost about $500 (for a REAL nice one). And V-8's can be had for dirt cheap.






EDIT: ok realisticly

1) get a B2000 engine from the junk yard $500

2) get a 13B from a junk yard and intake mani/headers $1000

 

Used engines are everywhere and if your careful and don't just jump at the first one in the classifieds you can get a couple years out of them.

That said, if you have a basement/spare room/garage/outdoor dining tent, you can rebuild an engine. I've spent the money on a shop built engine and then was left wondering where some of my money went. A lot of the work I could have handled and what I couldn't would easily be farmed out and still saved money. On top of that there were some things I would have liked to have done but just ran out of money due to the cost of the build as it was. That's not to say I'm unhappy with the end product but my money would have gone farther and I would have learned something valuable in the process. I now need to build a spare engine just so I have one and know how to do it.

Spend $1K on the rebuild kit and the better designed seals from newer engines, get the assembly balanced and lightened, port it a bit and a few cans of engine paint, your still sitting a grand under a shop build and you can say you did it yourself. I can't say that about my engine. Bit of a kick in the *** considering all I have done with the car.

 

Quingdao, last time it took me from halloween to thanksgiving to do a straight 12a to 12a swap in the apartment parking lot, and get everything right. Now I made a bunch of dumbass mistakes, but the rate determining step was the water pump housing went "ping". As in where the bolt went in cracked. Thank god for e-bay!!

Also I hear busting that flywheel nut is a real bitch! Speaking of which, as single guy as in I don't have a bitch do drive me around. My car is a daily beater. As such, at 30 years old, it has been awesome!!

Now in this website, I know I'm lower than whale **** mechanically, but to my pot head, crack head, meth head, alcoholic neighbors, and apartment managers, I am god reincarnate as a mechanic.

 

Replace nieghbors with coworkers and I feel your pain.

 

Apartment parking lot... I'd consider doing another 12a to 12a swap if yours blows a seal. It would be the cheapest route (normally) and the easiest. Rebuilds take time, money, patience, and space and tools aplenty and it would be darn near impossible unless you have a storage space or somewhere similar to that.

 

You can get a replacement engine (like I did) in a junkyard. I picked mine up (a 12a w/ 84000 mi) for 200.00, and man does she run good with my RB Holley intake system (that I picked up for 200.00 also)

 

I think you are understating your abilities and overestimating the complexity of the rotary engine. But if you aren't confortable you aren't confortable.


So I take it you have a 12A sitting around because you just swaped it? Why not crack it open? The flywheel is a pain in the rump without the proper tools, but with the right tools it comes right off regardless of how long it was on there before. A slide hammer is a MUST!!! (you can borrow one at most automotive stores)


As for pulling engines in parking lots... Ever heard of a "shade tree mechanic"? My buddies' grand dad was a true to life shade tree mechanic in the 40/50's. Every weekend when he was going to college he would drive home with another students car/truck and pull under a big oak tree. Friday night he'd pull the engine out with a chain fall from the oak tree. Saturday morning he'd rebuild the engine. Saturday night he'd put the sucker back in; just in time (what he says) to cruise to the beach. lol







EDIT: and don't feel bad about taking a while to swap a motor. Like everything it takes time to get used to stuff. First car I tried to pull an engine on took me a LONG time... and eventually I gave the F up.. But I learned and aged and the next time it took me a week or so. Then the next truck took about a day... Now (and the vacency/simplicty of the 7's engine bay helps) it takes about 45min.

 

quing,
doing the pull and swap took me about 3 hours. I returned the rented engine hoist within 12 hours. Getting everything right was about 30 days. Granny's v-8 torque said I was talking about $6K for a v-8 upgrade. I got the 12a to 12a swaps quotes form Atkins.

I dread getting another car because I know how to fix everything on this car because I've done it 3 or 4 times already.

 

Stick with the rotary. Keep it classy san diego.

 

With the money you save by sticking with the rotary, you can easily afford an engine crane.

 

That makes sense as well, would be an easy job on pavement or cement.

 

 

then I would be tripping over an engine crane.

last time I rented one, something like $20. rental place is making a killing, they retail for less than $200