So my 3.8L Series II engine in my Monte has 150,000 miles. I realize that if you take care of a car it will run forever but expect the unexpected right? Well I am just waiting for it to quit on me so I am looking for either a new(er) L67 engine or a L36 crate engine. I think the crate engine would be better in the long run so that's what I am looking for but I am unable to find one. There is one on ZZPerformance.com but it is 3,000 dollars at least and I do not have it. Any links on engines or opinions on what I should do would be great. Thanks in advance!

Originally posted by Oaksy5115

So my 3.8L Series II engine in my Monte has 150,000 miles. I realize that if you take care of a car it will run forever but expect the unexpected right? Well I am just waiting for it to quit on me so I am looking for either a new(er) L67 engine or a L36 crate engine. I think the crate engine would be better in the long run so that's what I am looking for but I am unable to find one. There is one on ZZPerformance.com but it is 3,000 dollars at least and I do not have it. Any links on engines or opinions on what I should do would be great. Thanks in advance!

While I've never looked into actually purchasing a crate motor, I think that may be around what you would expect for a new one. For that cost though, have you looked into sourcing one from a performance shop? Quite possibly, for a little extra, you could get a whole step up performance wise and get one built.

Originally posted by ROCKYSDS

While I've never looked into actually purchasing a crate motor, I think that may be around what you would expect for a new one. For that cost though, have you looked into sourcing one from a performance shop? Quite possibly, for a little extra, you could get a whole step up performance wise and get one built.

Is there like a website that will let me build my own and order the parts to a performance shop? I know of two shops I can trust in my area and I know both of the owners so I think they will give me a little discount. One is an actual performance shop and the other is an auto shop but the auto shop guys I trust more. The ultimate dilemma haha.

I agree, $3,000 seems actually on the low end for a crate engine. You could save a bunch of money by sourcing an engine from a junkyard and having one of the shops do a tear down and rebuild it for you. Things like pistons, rods, block and crank are the big ticket items for the bottom end, and for the most part wont really wear out unless something is off with the tune or it was oil starved or something else catastrophic. Things like rod bearings, main bearings, piston rings are relatively cheap and one a tear down each item can be measured and machined if tolerances are out. Then basically you have a brand new engine on the cheap. Plus if you want a bit more performance you can get the block bored out, buy a stroker crank, getting higher compression pistons etc. It is completely up to you how you want to change it.

Originally posted by drxlcarfreak

I agree, $3,000 seems actually on the low end for a crate engine. You could save a bunch of money by sourcing an engine from a junkyard and having one of the shops do a tear down and rebuild it for you. Things like pistons, rods, block and crank are the big ticket items for the bottom end, and for the most part wont really wear out unless something is off with the tune or it was oil starved or something else catastrophic. Things like rod bearings, main bearings, piston rings are relatively cheap and one a tear down each item can be measured and machined if tolerances are out. Then basically you have a brand new engine on the cheap. Plus if you want a bit more performance you can get the block bored out, buy a stroker crank, getting higher compression pistons etc. It is completely up to you how you want to change it.

Good stuff. When in doubt, re-build The performance shop should certainly be able to handle a full-rebuild, at least know exactly where to go for what. I would recommend that route for a performance application. Keep in mind that's what performance shops do for a living, they re-build engines, swap engines, etc. You may trust your guys at the auto shop, but unless they have knowledge and experience in accomplishing your task, they may take much more time actually installing because of the learning curve.

Originally posted by ROCKYSDS

Good stuff. When in doubt, re-build The performance shop should certainly be able to handle a full-rebuild, at least know exactly where to go for what. I would recommend that route for a performance application. Keep in mind that's what performance shops do for a living, they re-build engines, swap engines, etc. You may trust your guys at the auto shop, but unless they have knowledge and experience in accomplishing your task, they may take much more time actually installing because of the learning curve.

I agree, most places can do a rebuild, but to be done right everything needs to be measured to make sure it is still in tolerance. Most auto shops will just throw the parts in and it may run, but you will have reduced performance and excessive wear. A good performance shop will take everything to the machine shop to be on point. The good thing about american engines for the most part is the tolerances are a lot more lenient that most high performance japanese engines.

Alright. Thanks for all the info guys. I appreciate it. The re-build idea is good too. I did not think of that.

Well dang you guys are all over it! I almost figured GM's 3.8 series II would be a little less expensive. Their basic 350 is only like $1300-$1500. But then again it is a 350... Yeah a rebuild by the performance shop could possibly be they way to go. Might save you some coin in the long run.

I think 3800s are pretty darn common as well. I dont know much about domestics, but I do know there is a fair bit of talk about them in a lot of the corners of the internet that I frequent. Should be pretty easy to get a junkyard one, or even a decent built one from someone who is parting out their weekend warrior.

3800 Series II Supercharged for the win...