Top end went--part out or project car? Need advice

[bojangles]

I've had my 2001 Saab 9-5 for the past three years, ran it up to 176k and it finally went. Broke down on the side of the road and had it towed to a shop. Once inspected the mechanic said that the belt tensioner had shredded the serpentine belt, sending pieces into the timing belt and a pulley for the water pump while also damaging the valves. Price tag for a top engine rebuild? Three grand...more than the car is worth, so it's totaled. He said I could get 200-300 for the steel if I scrapped it. The interior is still beautiful (leather, heated seats), new tires from last year. There are so many usable parts from this car: radiator, cat, exhaust, interior, windsheild, panels, tires etc. I'd hate to scrap it. The only thing is i've never parted out a car before, but would be willing to put the time and effort in to do so. I have 2-3 months for this project. Would you advise parting it out or selling it on CL as a project car? Which do you think would be the better deal?

[roblistens]

Hello! You do have several options. Testing the waters on CL is a place to start. Just to see how much interest the car gathers. I expect you would come out further ahead, financially, if you part the car out, especially if you have time (and space!) for doing that. If you really like your car though, a third option comes to mind: replace the engine. Even though your current motor now has bent valves, you still have numerous other parts to pluck from the engine for future use: alternator, starter... ignition cassette! I could be of more help to you if Manitoba wasn't so far from where you are, since I have a driveable, 100 K 9-5 wagon that our provincial insurance authorities have deemed irreparable. (Two broken headlamps, and a slight curl on the leading edge of the hood. Unbelievable!) Did the timing belt four months ago! For my part, I am now on the look-out for a chassis to place this motor in!

[nordwulf]

I've had my 2001 Saab 9-5 for the past three years, ran it up to 176k and it finally went. Broke down on the side of the road and had it towed to a shop. Once inspected the mechanic said that the belt tensioner had shredded the serpentine belt, sending pieces into the timing belt and a pulley for the water pump while also damaging the valves.

Does it have the 2.3 4-cylinder or 3.0 V6? Either way, a broken serpentine belt won't damage the timing belt in the V6 because it is behind a cover. The mechanic's explanation doesn't add up. How did he determine the valves are damaged?

[bojangles]

Thanks @rob_listens

@frank
It's a V6 so yes there is a cover over the timing belt however the shredded serpentine belt got sucked into the crankshaft pulley and up and under the cover-- so the timing belt skipped 4/5 teeth. Turns out the belt tensioner had seized and thats what caused all this mess. He determined some of the valves were busted just based off of listening to it but to determine how many and how far gone the damage was would require more labor hours which im just not down to pay for at this time.