Guys,

I need some advice on having the engine in my calais turbo rebuilt, I have searched this but didnt find what I was looking for.

Basically I have a factory stock standard manual calais turbo and want to know;

1) What does it typically cost for a standard rebuild, ie drive in and drive out (I want to leave it stock)

2) Must be a brisbane engine builder, does anyone have any previous experience or can recommend a shop I can talk too that wont give me the run around?

I have been too see 2 shops, one said he wouldnt touch a vl, and the other one quoted me 8 grand for a standard rebuild, needless to say I thought was ridiculous.

I guess I was a little detered by the 2 shops advice, but I like my calais and dont want to see it turn into ****, Its in (in my opinion) very good condition and I want to keep it that way.

I dont see many vl turbos anymore, and I dont want to make it one less

Thanks very much

Good to hear such a positive attitude. :D

It definately shouldn't cost $8000!! I would think that $4000 is even getting excessive.

Thats what I thought, I was thinking probably somewhere between 2 and 4

grand to drive the car in, have the engine rebuilt and drive out again, but

having never done it, I can only guess

Put it on a palette and send it to James race engines, they do anything from a standard engine rebuild to high perfomance race engines, professional, friendly and honest guys. Should cost 4g roughly.

Check out their website, best thing is it will be back within two weeks!

http://www.engineaction.com/

it will be more than 2 - 4k for a drive in drive out job. Also comes down to what pistons u wanna use, rods, heads gotta be decked block re-machined to suit pistons ect...I think reallistically your looking at maybe close to 5k for a good rebuild, something that will last a while

Its not hard to pull and engine out, only takes a couple of hours at the most. Thats maybe $200 in labour.

True and for the extra cost hypertech (spelling?) pistons will cop alot more abuse with out costing much more than standard cast crap. Contact Scott and Headley they will give you a ball park figure over the phone, but is impossible to accuratly quote a job untill they pull it down first.

Even 5 grand is acceptable, I just thought 8 grand was a little excessive

I didnt pay 8G for full forged bottom end and big head work and cam, so yeah 8G is a tad over the top.

My engine was built at James Race Engines and I couldn't be happier with the service I recieved.

Any drive in drive out job is going to cost you alot more dollars, because it takes time taking out an engine. Labour is the killer when it comes to cost. If you want an engine that will be reliable and hold up to some abuse, send it to JRE.

Remember that when you do an engine rebuild it's not just the bottom end and head that needs doing. You will need to reco your radiator, replace hoses...

the list goes on, especially because the VL is 20 years old. Prepare for the cost factor. If you do it on the cheap it wil cost you more later on.

it will be more than 2 - 4k for a drive in drive out job. Also comes down to what pistons u wanna use, rods, heads gotta be decked block re-machined to suit pistons ect...I think reallistically your looking at maybe close to 5k for a good rebuild, something that will last a while
He only wants standard specs so that makes it a lot less costly- 8 k yeah maybe with decent rods and some cp's or somethin- a hypertech rebuild with shotpeened stock rods head studs and the likes should still only cost 4k imho

Remember that when you do an engine rebuild it's not just the bottom end and head that needs doing. You will need to reco your radiator, replace hoses...

the list goes on, especially because the VL is 20 years old. Prepare for the cost factor. If you do it on the cheap it wil cost you more later on.
very true,
that is the killer even if you do it in your own shed it adds up like a psycho

Yeah the rebuild might be $4-5k... but not many places want to put motors in and out... and when they do its usually $80 per hour including lunch, cigarette and toilet breaks.

Yeah the rebuild might be $4-5k... but not many places want to put motors in and out... and when they do its usually $80 per hour including lunch, cigarette and toilet breaks.
yeah no ****, and also while they are working on other cars!!!

Thanks for all the help / info fella's, at least it gives me a ballpark figure to work with

If you want to spend $5000 on your engine build I would be talking direct to the engine builders and then once you fing one you like get them to hook you up with a mechanic that is willing to remove your engine for you thats what I would be doing seems there is something wrong if you can't find a mechanic that won't do a rebuild for you !

my rebuild was 4k drive in, drive out with venolia forged pistons, my first 3 oil changes and a few little things like hoses, starter motor etc. so 5k max for a standard rebuild i'm guessing, like 575hpi said, find a really good engine builder, then get them to recommend a place that will do a drive in drive out job for you. i'd recommend PLR engines at brendale for a rebuild, they only do motors not cars, but they'd be able to sort something out between another shop for a drive in drive out job. they've done it for my m8's VR turbo. good luck, let me know how you go.

my rebuild was 4k drive in, drive out with venolia forged pistons, my first 3 oil changes and a few little things like hoses, starter motor etc. so 5k max for a standard rebuild i'm guessing, like 575hpi said, find a really good engine builder, then get them to recommend a place that will do a drive in drive out job for you. i'd recommend PLR engines at brendale for a rebuild, they only do motors not cars, but they'd be able to sort something out between another shop for a drive in drive out job. they've done it for my m8's VR turbo. good luck, let me know how you go.

4k for a drive in drive out? Was that just the bottom end with no head work, no cam ect? What power is it making? That seems stupidly cheap to me.

It is stupidly cheap. You're almost halfway to 4 grand just buying a set of forged pistons...

how much did you guys pay for ur pistons? cause i overpayed at $1430, can get them now for $1080. it would of been closer to 2k without the pistons.
standard rebuild doesnt cost much in parts, its mostly made up of labour.
Pistons - $1430
Rings - $193
Mains - $74
Big Ends - $65
Head Work - $250
Bore & Hone - $78
Crank Finish - $60
Oil & Filter - $60
Coolant - $40
Labour $1300

They didn't charge me for starter motor, throttle body hose, gaskets and my next 3 oil changes, as well as dyno testing and diagnostics.

I payed just under 4k which included the following:

ACL forged pistons
ARP rod bolts
o-ring block with copper head gasket
crow cam stage 2 + valve springs to suit
all new bearings, lifters and balance engine

They didn't charge me for starter motor, throttle body hose, gaskets and my next 3 oil changes, as well as dyno testing and diagnostics.

This is why it's stupidly cheap then. I don't know why they were feeling so generous but I dare say that's not what happens to most people.

In reality engines cost what they cost. Wether one is dearer than the next is no true way to compare them as the quality really comes from the machining and the assembley work. There is more horsepower gained in experienced hands with high tolerancing than an engine that is just machined and slapped together!

If those 2 things are not done correctly the parts no matter how good they are, are worth nothing cause in a short amount of time they will be junk, no matter what they cost you!

So in short, speak to as many people you need to until you feel comfortable that you find the right guy for the job. Dont simply shop on price!

l could ask my bro he has an engine shop his built some tuff motor most recent was a sr20 wich made 520rwhp on 30 odd psi on c16his done the engine and current head on richies car