I have a 98 camaro with the 3.8L motor with 199xxx miles on it. I obviously want to make it faster but I need to at the very least rebuild the motor. My question is is it better to just buy an engine and build that up and then swap them or should I just stick with the original block. I would be swaping it out for another 3.8. I've has the car for almost 3 years and the only issue I've had was the intake gasket last year but that was fixed before any damage was done

 

Depends on how much money you have to spend, how much work you want to do, how much time you have to do it, and how mechanically inclined you are. I rebuilt my engine so I knew exactly what was in it, done to it, and condition it was in. What's wrong with the engine now? You just want to do something to it because it's high mileage?

 

the questions are

how long can you be without the vehicle?

How much money can you spend?

the more money that you have, the shorter the amount of time to wait.

If you pay someone then it could be done within 2 weeks (allowing machine shop time)

If you buy a reman'd engine or long block, even faster.

But, then you get down to cost/benefit. Is the vehicle worth the money that you are spending? Do you plan on keeping it for a few years so you recoup the money spent in the form of hopefully, trouble free driving. The vehicle is 13 years old so what else is coming up due for replacement? If you want more power, and a lot more, then maybe it's time to sell and just look for a more potent vehicle vs spending the money and keeping the sixer. Only you know the answers to the questions.

 

I live within walking distance from my job so not having a car is not an issue. I am not looking for crazy power just put in a slightly more aggresive cam. The miles do concern me I don't want put in say a cam and that messes everything up. I do want to keep this car for a while and the rebuild would be later I am just in the planning stages trying to get all the info I can. I would love to put a turbo or s/c on it but if that were ever to happen that is way down the line. My main thing is I just want her to continue running at peak performance

 

If you're looking to do more 'customization' to your engine, it would probably be better to stick with the original block because it'll have to be torn down and cleaned anyway if you want it done right. A turbo is the easiest way to gain more power, but it also costs thousands extra on top of the engine rebuild itself. I rebuilt my engine on a budget of $3K and used all of it and a little more. I put in a bigger cam and it does cause some goofy things to happen. I have a tune for it, just haven't installed it permanently yet. You can get away with a bigger cam, you just have to find the right one for what your needs are. BIG cams require better push rods, rocker arms, lifters, etc. That stuff gets expensive. I stuck with stock lifters, rocker arms, and push rods for now and it's perfectly fine with the cam. Modding the sixer though will take a toll on the gas mileage though. I used to get 300+ miles to a full tank, now I'm lucky if I hit 260 miles to a tank. I also do mostly 'city' driving though. If you want a better idea of what goes into a rebuild, I have my own sticky of my rebuild to my 3800.

 

id say look for a lower mileage 3800, if you can find one for somewhere around the same cost as a rebuild, i think swapping an engine is easier than doing the rebuild, plus your car wouldnt be down long cuz if you have two engines you can build the spare while you still drive the car, id do that, some people wouldnt, but i would

 

I took the liberty and edited your post to show how you have contradicted yourself.

So what is it? Are you going to be happy with a sixer or do you want the power that forced induction could give to a sixer?

You are at that crossroad with a high mileage vehicle. Now, if the vehicle had 50k miles and was in great shape then go for the F/I. But that is not where you are. You have a vehicle wtih 200k miles and once you put more power in the engine, be prepared for a rebuild of the tranny too as it also has high miles.

So, if you use the $3k budget suggested by Darling reject just for a rebuild, and then add F/I on top of that, and then maybe $1k for the tranny (you do the install/removal) and common sense honestly says that you should be looking to move from the sixer. Sell it for $700- $1,000 and put the $7,000 from the rebuild and F/I into another vehicle and you have $8,000 to get something different and probably newer. Only you know for sure what you want.

But, if you can live with the performance of the sixer then drive her til she dies and then rebuild the engine.

 

I see how it seems that I contadicted myself what I meant as far as the F/I was it was a pope dream something that wouldn't happen till much further in the future. Right now all I really want is to keep the car running strong with some moderate upgrades. I mean I still have to price everything out. I think my main goal right now is a daily driver that I can have some fun with. I know that the 3.8 has more kick than most give it credit for I just want to give it a little more. I have about 2k saved at the moment and I'm still saving money cause I was gonig to have the tranny most likely rebuilt anyway and I want to change out the rear end gears. I realize this is no where near cheap and it's going to take time to get everything together that's why I asked so I can get some honest out side opinions and things to consider.

 

fair enough

the last I checked, speeding tickets are the same cost whether you are in an old Toyota or a Corvette ZR1.

anyway, then you have the right mindset that you know major repairs are in the future. Drive it today as if you are on borrowed time and set aside some $$ each week and with regular oil changes, who knows, maybe you'll get another 50k miles even if it burns a little oil and by then, you'll have more $$$ and maybe your plans will have changed

good luck