V6 4.0 Rebuild Question. PLEASE HELP

[1995_Ranger_Splash]

Hello, sorry if i posted this to the wrong forum, this is like the second time i've posted to TRS.

I am "restoring" a '95 Ranger Splash (i know, i know, thats my user name)

....Anyways, long story short, im the original owner of this truck, ive repainted the exterior the same color (elec. current red), ive reupholstered and restored the interior, and ive redone the suspension on it. so pretty much, everything is new... except the engine and transmission, which have a WHOPPING 357,000 miles on it.

the transmission was rebuilt at about 340,000, so it should be good for now, but the engine has NEVER been taken apart, EVER!!!

right now, the engine is running pretty good for having all of those miles on it, but i need to take it on a road trip to Idaho and i doubt it would make it there the way it is.

SO, my question is, how much would a complete rebuild cost?
and when i say complete, i mean COMPLETE, like;
rings, bearings, pushrods, lifters, gaskets, sensors, and anything that can break-down which would directly effect the engines performance and mileage.

i have been, still am, and will be using this truck as my daily driver for years to come **knock on wood** and want to keep it as original as i can (so crate motors and high-performance bolt ons are out of the picture for me, unless its waaay more affordable that way).

so can anyone give me a good estimate of what shops might charge for this, and exactly what parts that should be replaced when rebuilding.
i was thinking of rebuilding it myself, but i have no time to do so.


also, i have pictures of the truck if anyone wants to see it.

 

[hank857]

you are probably looking in the $2500 range if not more. I asked the mech I use the same question and that is the basic answer, does not include the labor etc. I just did head gaskets as I thought I had a leak, gasket from autozone alone were about $130, another $30 for a pan gasket, then you will need a new water pump, timing chain etc. He recommended Jasper rebuilt engines they run about $2500 for a long block, then add in the labor to pull, exchange the needed parts and reinstall. I looked at it a month or so ago and figured with engine from autozone, rebuilt trans from the smae place that it would run approz $5K to be done. I already have autozone lifetime parts that were to be swapped out, but with the leak I had all were redone. My engine has 312000 and this was the first time I had any work on it. Trans is another story.

go to autozone.com and price their parts, will not include any machine work for valves, crank if needed, boring of cyls etc. Heads will I was told run about $300 to rebuild maybe a little more. but AZ has all the parts you would need I think an engine rebuild kit is almost $1500.

 

[adsm08]

Honestly, the days of rebuilding engines in the field are pretty well over. A few of us do it as a hobby or because we can and it is cheaper to do for ourselves, but I've been pricing a re-build set for my own 4.0 and it's starting to look like a long block would be about the same price as parts for a rebuild. Then you still have to worry about decking heads, valve work, cylinder honing, etc.

Crate engines are the way to go these days. And since it isn't a classic muscle car or anything like that having a replacement engine instead of the original does nothing to the value of the vehicle.

 

[killj0y]

Wow is it really that pricey to rebuild an engine these days?

 

[daniel3507]

Ive seen people ask mechanics and they always say its not worth it to rebuild it and to just swap in a remanufactured motor. Not sure what they run though.

 

[kryptonitecb]

Considering the availability of the rbv engines I would hunt for a truck on craigslist, swap the engines, then relist it. Finding one with a good engine for less than $2500 should be easy.

Sent from the road while ignoring traffic