Hi everyone. I was doing 90 mph on the Garden State Parkway with my 1979 L82 when I seized the original engine. I was too impatient to have it repaired so I replaced it. I kept the engine and two years later its still in the box. I intended on having it repaired but I'm no mechanic so I'd have to get the work done. Is it worth repairing or shoud I sell the engine? The car isnt mint and I dont plan to get it that way. I have a few other repairs to do so repairing the original engine is low on the priority list.
Thanks!

 

ultimately one day in the future the engine will be worth something. but a seized original engine from a 79 today is not. if I was buying your car, I would prefer a more fresh engine. plus, most 79 corvette buyers are entry level buyers. they don't have garage space and will have to expend extraordinary effort to take it with them as part of the total car package.. and it needs a total rebuild probably.

you could get it fixed, rebuilt, cleaned up and looking real nice on a stand in your garage, but the incremental that the engine will increase your car's price will be less than the money you have to put into it.. unless you wait 20 years when an original engine in a 79 means more $$$...

also a seized 79 SB chevy engine is probably worth less than a boat anchor. not even worth the shipping price.

 

Did you ever determine what damage was done to it? That could make a big difference in terms of whether it's worth trying to rebuild it. At the very least, if you know it's rebuildable and can prove it, you could hang onto it as is and get a little more for the car, because of the matching numbers, if you ever sell it.

 

Sounds like the perfect chance for a learning experience.
Get a digital camera, a box of heavy duty zip lock bags, and start tearing it down. Document every step, bag and tag the nuts and bolts,
Ask questions here when you need the help.
Once you get inside and find out what happened, you will then know what the value of what you have left will be.

 

If you're anywhere near Cartaret, NJ, look up Pat Musi....he'll know what to do with the original engine!

 

I see a money pit in that box, $2000/3000 to get it back to stock, how much added value will that add to the car if you sell it?

 

Several years ago, I had a 1979 that a lady had owned for about 10 years. Neat car, mostly original (I replaced seat covers and carpet and it had an aftermarket radio) with the original engine. Basically, no one cared. It took forever to sell it and I sold it way too cheap.




I agree with C68vete, this is a chance of a lifetime if you want to go for it. Coat it in spray engine degreaser, haul it to the local car wash, and clean the heck out of it. Take it home, put it on an engine stand, and begin school. A small block Chevy is a great learning tool.

If it seized, two things come to mind first - seized bearing or broken rod. Often the broken rod won't seize solid, but it makes a very quick stop before it eventually rolls over again.

Very basic - either will involve removing the crank, getting it turned if not too badly damaged, resizing the rods, installing new bearings, and installing new rings, along with the normal clean up and gaskets for the rest of the engine. You could have the engine back together with learning on this for $500 or so maybe. I don't know, it has been awhile since I priced any of this.

Go for it. Good winter project next winter.


Value-wise, it is a 4 bolt main small block. Heads, cam, pistons, etc are not worth much, so you are basically looking at a $150 chunk of iron how it sits. Running after rebuilding it could bring $1000, depending on a lot. With the car, it might be lucky to add that if it is running and ready to drop in, should the new owner decide to.

 

Toss it out like the scrap metal it is ..

 

This is what I would do. Would love to take one totally apart without any concerns of ruining something.

 

I had a similar situation when I bought my 74.
It was running, but had a truck engine in it. It came with the original engine that was running when removed, but it had a rod knock, smoked badly, and many other issues.
I rebuilt the motor but the only original piece I used was the block.
Do what you want to do, don't do what others want you to do. If you don't rebuilt the motor at least hang onto it, the next owner may want to rebuild it with the original engine.

 

 

pull the pan, take pictures, post pictures here and send to Car Craft's (Hot Rods?) "blown up part of the month" file. Scrap the motor.... seized means you'll spend far more fixing it than you can replace it for... were it something super rare, fix it.... it's not, scrap it.

but don't forget the pictures

 

Thanks folks for all your replies and advice. You made my decision to get rid of it even easier than I thought it would be, espeically since I don't have the time or facilities to even attempt to do the work myself.

BTW, anybody want a busted engine? It's yours if you can come and get it but only if you're going to try to fix it, or else its to the scrap yard.

 

It is tough throwing away an original block. I know it seems like it isn't worth much, and with almost 54,000 1979s built, it isn't like they were rare. But people have known they aren't rare for a long time and have disposed of original engines much of that time. One day, they will be rare to have an original engine.

Still, will that be in 10 years or 20? Who knows with how the economy is going. If the economy improves greatly, then interest in collectible cars will increase and drive up prices of cars like yours. If the economy stays down, there will be no collector market for lower end cars. Is it worth it for you to keep? If you are keeping the car for a long time (some plan to keep them forever, others plan to sell in change in a year or two), then keeping it might be worthwhile if you have the room. Even if selling, the next owner may or may not want it, but it is an option to explore.

After all, lots of originals were removed and disposed of through the '60s and '70s and today many of those owners would love to have the original back again.

If it were me, I'd drop it under a bench in the garage and put something really nice in the car to play with. What little I could get out of it selling as junk, on Craigslist, or at a swap meet wouldn't be worth the potential I could see in the future.

 

Toss it out? I disagree...

Take that worthless POS to the recycler and get a few bucks for it!

Life is too short to be tripping over that boat anchor for who knows how many years.

 

Keep it for the next owner, put it in the corner and cover it up. It might not be worth anything to you, or some others on this forum, but if my 74 didn't have the original engine I would not have bought it.
Sorry, just my opinion.

 

Scrap it, get a few dollars for it and free up a little garage space.

 

 

Mate, clean the block up, get a sheet of safety glass for one end, and whammy! A cool table/wine rack combo!

 

Throw it up on craigslist or ebay. Managed to get $350 for a freshly rebuilt 327 that dropped out cam lobes from improper assembly from previous owner.