Ok i need your guys opinion. I have a 1986 pontiac firebird with the 2.8 with an auto. I bought the car when i was in 9th grade and over the years got it running and halfway driveable. I put new tires, windshield, exhaust, and a tune up and all the little things (hatch struts etc). Well when i got my license i took the car for its maiden voyage and the dam thing overheated and fried the motor. Since the car needed to be repainted and all new interior I just put the car on hold and bought a daily driver. My plans were to just wait til I got my truck done then do a total rebuild of the car during the summer when I am home from college. But being down here at college in TN ( i live in maryland) I need a vehicle and its a long way to drive with 37s and I have been thinkin that my car would be a perfect thing to have as a beater car. OK my question. IYO is it worth fixin the car up to drive or just get rid of it for what i can and buy a runnin car.

 

Honestly I'd probably get rid of it considering not only is the engine shot, but the paint is too. If it was a V8 car I'd keep it, but not the 2.8. Believe me I know. I've been down this road myself. I did the v6 to v8 swap, total interior swap, and repaint on one of mine, and my engine was blown too. After all the money, the time, and the years of sorting everything out if I had to do it again I'd junk it and get another car. If you want a bird to drive just get a running v8 bird and call it done. Anyway that's just my opinion, and we all know how opinions are.

 

Yeah I understand your point. And that point has been running through my head. Ive just got so much money tied up in the car its hard to let it go. Plus the whole thing of its my first car. But thanks for giving your opinion.

 

Well if you are that attached, and I was too, then maybe you should keep it. If you want some inspiration here is what mine looks like now.

I apologize to the regulars who have seen this picture a hundred times. lol

 

You've barely scratched the surface of the problems you're likely to encounter. It's a 6cyl, auto, with a rough exterior, and other issues... You might try listing it in a local cheap ad paper, but it'd probably be easier to part it out on ebay and crush the rest.

 

I would keep it an make a good project car out of it. Even though it may be hard to complete the project it is always worth it in the end.

 

Well I say the car is rough. Here are a couple of pics of the car. I have more but I have to scan them on my roomys comp and then send them to mine. I will get more pics hopefully in an hour or two.

http://i98.photobucket.com/albums/l2.../random002.jpg

http://i98.photobucket.com/albums/l2...andom005-1.jpg

http://i98.photobucket.com/albums/l2.../random001.jpg

 

OK, My opinion................
If the car has a stable place for storage ie:cheap to free, and you have even a small desire I say keep it. This is coming from a guy that built from the ground up, a 1989 T/A in Japan, when i coulda had a skyline, 300z, or rx-7.
I was not to have it though, and though many folks told me to sell it to a Japanese buyer, and get one when i came back to the states, I said hell no. I brought it back!!!! To much emotion/history wrapped up. I would not sell my 1989 Iroc when i went overseas for 4 years. That sucker just sat in a buddies side yard. I now have "the best of both", and am very happy to not have waivered. In time you make grow to regret "scrapping" your frist ride. Six bangers motors are easy to find!! The car is paid for!!!
Good luck, and take my ramblings w/a grain of salt
shawn

 

The pictures don't look too bad. I've seen far worse. It's not too far gone by the looks of things.

 

From the pics it doesn't look bad. Start watching local ads for a used 2.8, 3.1, or 3.4. It's probably worth dropping a good used engine into, you could certainly do worse. Just keep in mind that car in nearly mint condition, still wouldn't be worth more then about $2000.

Swapping in a V8 would be a fairly substantial, expensive, undertaking, that I wouldn't recommend.

 

Yep been there, done that. NEVER again. The final cost and effort were too much.

 

See all I am looking for is to have sumthin reliable while im down here in TN at college. The v8 swap and all that crap would be after I graduate and start makin money. But you think it can be a reliable.... I dont wanna use it this way.... beater car while I am at college? Just sumthin to get me around.

 

Reliable? The only way to know will be to try it. You might replace the engine and then the transmission could go out. Even if it's not something as serious as the transmission going out, you can count on lots of small issues. My 91 3.1L Firebird spent two years in recovery before it finally got dependable. Even then it still broke down on a fairly regular basis.

You're talking about a 22 year old car. Expect any power luxury to fail. Expect fuel pump, water pump, starter, exhaust, sensor, etc issues.

Swapping any non-v8 to V8 will require replacing so many parts, it's always cheaper to just buy a V8 car to begin with. It's not even so much money, as much as it's time and effort... A stock V8 car is worth more then a swapped car. It's never advisable. It's not cost effective, it's not logical.

 

As soon as summer comes I am gonna try. Hopefully I can get all the kinks worked out before fall.