Hey, I am a total newb when it comes to car repair, but I love my 82 T/A, so I am willing to learn somethin. Doin 90 on the freeway, I blew an oil gasket. I didnt see any smoke or hear anything, so I just kept on driving. I keep an eye on all my gauges, so when the oil pressure started to drop, I pulled over. As I got over to the breakdown lane, the engine seized up on me. I got it towed, and the mechanic says I busted some lifters, the oil gasket, and the camshaft bearing. He says I am better off just getting a new engine or scrapping the car. I am trying to get a reliable used 305 to replace it (im a broke college student, so i cant exactly afford a nice 350 and I dont have any place to put it in myself, so I would have to pay for labor too.) How hard would it be to replace the parts myself, and how much would it cost. Also, if anyone in the Bath, ME area knows a good place I could get a used 305 for a decent price, I would appreciate the help. Thanks for the advice guys.

 

Any junkyard would be your best bet. Find one that will warranty the engine for "X" number of days (the biggest "X" you can find ) and go from there.

Any reputable mechanic should be able to do this for you, for a nominal fee.

 

find a nice residential area with a lot of houses and drive down the back allys looking for one left next to a dumpster. kidding. if you want a great price on a block why don't you go to a swap meet or a pick-your-part. you'll have to get your hands dirty with the latter choice but you won't pay an arm and a leg; plus you can probably end up getting the block and all the goodies attached to it (alternater, fuel pump, distributer...) for next to nothing. Personally, I'm not a fan of junkyards, because I know they're not the absolute cheapest deal, but try there as well.

 

if your on a low budget i would either park it until you had some money, or get rid of it. i am a sindle parent, living on my own. i understand what its like to have no income to fix these things. for guys like us, an older spoets car just isnt the way to get reliable transportation.
these cars will nickel and dime you to death. i love mine, it is awesome, but spendy to keep.

 

did your mechanic strip the engine down or is he guessing at your problem? it may or maynot be as bad as you think. look around it shouldn't be hard to find someone to give you a 305 so they don't have to pay to have it hauled off.

 

That's very true. I'd be more than happy to give you mine if you were closer.

All I want is the serpentine belt system off it, and you can have it. You can even have the flexplate since you have the old style one on your car and would need it for the 305 in my car.

 

Thanks a bunch guys. I am starting to look around in some junkyards, and I may have found a winner, the guy just needs to get back to me with the mileage and VIN so I can make sure. *crosses fingers* Here's to hoping...

 

If you get tired of the '82, or working on it, I'll take it.