Hello all - hoping to get some advice from other s40 owners.

I have a 2005 Volvo S40 T5 manual with 135,000 miles. I recently had my lower coolant hose detach on the interstate and the engine got close to overheating. Temp gauge pinned to red until I slowed down to under 50 mph and drove the last three miles home. Next day, drove another 15 miles to dealership with no overheating, but definitely burned oil. Dealer is now saying that I did enough internal engine damage to the point where they need to replace the engine. The dealer quoted me $12,000 for a brand new Volvo engine and labor - pretty much the value of the car. I'm trying to weigh what options I might have:

1. Get car repaired at dealer with new engine and risk another problem with a car already with 135k miles.

2. Get a rebuilt engine and do installation at another mechanic (cheaper)

3. Get a certified pre-owned car and figure out how to get SOME value out of a non-running s40

Thoughts / ideas? Anyone have experience with replacing a motor in one of these?

Thanks!

 

Just had my engine swapped for $1200 labor including new timing belt & water pump by an independent shop. I have an older car though 1997 v90. But my guess is no more than $2k labor(GUESS). I got a good used engine on eBay with a warranty. Check it out or just google used Volvo engines. There are some bigger companies selling warranties used engines. Hope this helps some......

 

I guess it depends on your appetite for risk and how much cash you have. #1 I would never consider. The dealer is 200% above what anyone else will ask. #2 is a good option if you really like your car and want to keep it. #3 is a very good option if you can part out your 2005. If you can stomach a partially torn apart car you can sell bits and pieces on ebay and make quite a bit of money. Another option is to find someone like me who can repair the car on their own and would buy a car with a bad engine.