Prices for 4.6 v8

[mustang_gt88]

I have a freind with a crown vic that is looking for a 4.6. The car is a 2003. Whats a good price for just the motor? What would someone charge to install for him?

[Stangman]

www.car-part.com

Start there. Great way to find a low mileage engine.

[Dirtyd0g]

expect an engine that is an exact match to be about 15 labor hours and about 20 if it is not.
Alan

[mustang_gt88]

Damn that sounds like alot of work

[chris91]

No way. We had mine out in like 3 hours. Then had it back in and running in like 4. This was a direct swap out too though. If you are looking on sites for mustang engines the prices will be up there. Looking for em outta other vehicles. Keep in mind the Explorer has an aluminium block!

[Dirtyd0g]

That is directly from the labor guide. on an 03 crown vic.
Alan

[1baddlx]

That is directly from the labor guide. on an 03 crown vic.
Alan

Yeah well the labor guide is off!I have checked with local shops and dealers on certain tasks that I know a lot about to see what their labor book said to perform certain tasks...way off from reality on certain ones.they charge you big money and definitely don't pay their employees big money.unless I absolutely can't do it myself that would be the only way I'd pay someone else to do stuff!

[chris91]

And I'm far from a mechanic. A real mechanic could have that whole job done in three to four hours.

[Dirtyd0g]

An engine changed and ready to drive in 4 hours? are you guys serious what kind of hack work do you have planned? The parts transfer with cleanup will take that much time or you just gonna put dirty crap back together and let it leak?seriously? I thought 15 hours was pretty reasonable on the job. In that time you have to drain and refill the ac as well and then get the air out of the cooling system. I hear people talk about changing engines on cars in record setting times but most likely most people would spend a week on a car doing this job, anyone who can really do that job in 14 hrs should be working flat rate for sure, hell I spend 2-3 hours just driving the car looking for leaks etc, after all is done. Being familiar with this engine I bet you'll spend an hour trying to get the heater hoses off without breaking the intake. I gotta say it was good for a laugh but nothing more. When an exhaust stud breaks and you spend 2 hours on it you'll be in a big hurry to meet that 4 hr deadline. I have worked at a dealer I didn't figure in all the add ons the dealer would have added I just figured the motor swap itself. At the dealer the job would become 30hrs.
Alan

[chris91]

Old motor out new complete motor back in and running in 7 hours. No need to lie. They are cake to work on. No shit leaking other than my old plastic intake manifold cracking with the first fifteen minute of run time. Took the old one off in 15 minutes and had it driving again in 20. Its no rocket science..

With a lift and proper tools and experience the time could easily be slashed in half.

[Dirtyd0g]

I won't say it can't be done, but doesn't leave much time for double and triple checks,time to clean any parts (but I guess you could slop it together in a big dirty rush just to prove you can ) time to transfer parts or if any bolts break it will not happen. New cars are way easier to work on than old cars.
Quoting the job to someone at 7 hours of labor would certainly bite you in the butt. Quoting it at 15 is a gamble considering the dealer would get about an hour for road tests, an hour for computer checks, a good 30 minutes for pressure testing the coolant system and probably an hour to recharge the AC. It's been so long since I worked at the dealer I half forgot all the crap they manage to toss in on labor to pad it. One of the things I hated about working at the dealer.
All in all saying 4 hours to evac the freon,remove the engine transfer and clean the parts, put it back in, fill it up with fluids,recharge the ac, roadtest it and check it for leaks is beyond wishful thinking it's dreaming. I've pulled the transmission out of my thunderbird in 15 minutes I know how quickly things can go in the right scenario, but I also know how difficult things can be on older rusty parts that haven't been apart recently. On the 03 crown vic I am pretty sure the engine comes out the bottom so you have front suspension to take apart, well unless you want to take all the wiper cowl apart or I guess if you are in a huge rush to get it done in 4 hours you can just break everything that'll always get you the quick time goal if that is what you are after. Then again rushing jobs like that usually ends up with something like a converter not getting seated and wrecking the transmission pump or something along those lines. To me right is always less hassle than right now. If it were me and I was taking the car to someone and they told me the motor job was 4 hours I would have to be very leary of letting them work on it.
The labor manual was written as a fair way to estimate for both the mechanic and the car owner. It's not perfect and exact sometimes you can beat it, sometimes you can't but on the average it's fair. I'm always happy with my employees if they come close to labor rate with no problems. For that matter I am even pleased with myself to do the same despite when I did transmissions I could usually do the r&r in half of what the book gave. Doing it every day for years has advantages like that.
If you want a fair value of what the job is worth call around and get some quotes, keep in mind 95% of shops will usually end up charging you 25-30% more than the quote if they are halfway fair. Aamco was the worst for giving people really low estimates until they took your car apart then calling you back and telling you it would be 3-4 times what they quoted.
Alan

[chris91]

My engine bay and engine were clean enough to eat off of. A set of hands to help has its advantages. You're quoting shop times we are talking normal people times too though.

[Dirtyd0g]

I don't see how 4 hours is possible with that much cleanup I guess with 4 people working on it, but in labor time that is 16 hours. Personally with used engines if they are over 60k I always like to remove the oil pan and make sure the pickup tube is clean, hard to do in the car but not so bad with the engine out. A little junk in the pickup can make big problems later. I have on several occasions found parts labels stuck in the pickup tube. On these mod motors the timing guides turn into fiber and collect there so it can tell you if there are other problems as well.

Since when do people working in a shop become abnormal anyway?
Alan

[chris91]

Not saying people in a shop are abnormal. I'm saying shops ALWAYS quote a lot longer than the job takes the average Joe that knows his way around a car.

It was me and my buddy working in a cramped garage on mine. My replacement engine was perfectly clean when I picked it up and none of my cars have nasty engine bays but it doesn't take long to clean a empty bay anyways. Roll the car out of the garage, spray the bay down with degreaser, scrub it down a lil and spray it off with the pressure washer, all of 15-20 minutes. And not many people evacuate the freon when swapping a engine, I know I never have. Just hang the compressor somewhere safe and you're good to go.

[1baddlx]

Not saying people in a shop are abnormal. I'm saying shops ALWAYS quote a lot longer than the job takes the average Joe that knows his way around a car.

It was me and my buddy working in a cramped garage on mine. My replacement engine was perfectly clean when I picked it up and none of my cars have nasty engine bays but it doesn't take long to clean a empty bay anyways. Roll the car out of the garage, spray the bay down with degreaser, scrub it down a lil and spray it off with the pressure washer, all of 15-20 minutes. And not many people evacuate the freon when swapping a engine, I know I never have. Just hang the compressor somewhere safe and you're good to go.

Very well put and realistic! some shops over charge and that's why a lot of people do it theirself!

[jeep45238]

It would be interesting to know what shop time to pull a transmission is - I got mine out and clutch/flywheel off in two hours with one set of helping hands, a lift, and a trans jack.

It was also my first time doing it, same with my buddy.

3 Hours to reinstall.

[Dirtyd0g]

I have a labor guide if you ever want labor times just message or call me.
Alan