What to do with old car?

[Lalalauren]

My husband’s 2005 Hyundai Accent needs the engine replaced. It only had about 90k miles on it and was a hand-me down from his grandma (so just 2 owners). Our mechanic quoted us ~$3k to fix, however it’s probably only worth about 3k.

We bought an old high mileage Camry to replace it, however, now we have the Accent and I’m unsure what to do with it.

We may be able to get it fixed elsewhere for cheaper, but in order to do so, it’d have to be towed.

We could sell it to a junk yard (I’m assuming, never done this or looked into it before).

Or would people even look into buying a car that needs an engine replaced and won’t run otherwise?

Thoughts? 

[GilesMM]

Donate it to charity. They will come drag it away.

[solon]

I'd fix it up. Because why pass up a $3000 car?

After it's fixed you'll have other options. You might decide to sell it, but you could also use it yourself, keep it as a backup car, donate it as a working car, give it to a friend or relative, etc.

[GuitarStv]

If everything else is OK, I'd replace the engine (assuming you need a car).  That should provide you with years more service for very little money.  If there's a bunch of other stuff that seems iffy though, then it's probably time to scrap it.

[terran]

I think a junkyard will just about always at least take a car away for free. With current higher scrap metal prices I wouldn't be surprised if they'd pay you for it. If the first one you call (if that's what you decide to do) won't pay you I'd another one or two before assuming they won't pay.

[therethere]

If you don't need it, list it for cheap on Craigslist or whatever. Some young mechanic will pick it up real quick and either keep it or flip it. Sure you could get it fixed and get a little more money out of it. But if you just want it gone that's the easiest way to go.

We sold a car with an engine knock for like 1k. Wrote clearly in the ad it was a mechanics special and there were to be no test drives or guarantees or haggling. We had 5 people offer to come by and within a day it was gone.

[ChickenStash]

$3k for replacing an engine sounds kinda cheap but maybe it's a quick process in that car. Did they say what is actually wrong? I am always skeptical when a mechanic says an engine on a modern car needs to be replaced.

Anyways... I'd put it on Craigslist or FB for a discounted price and mention that it isn't running. I'd expect quite a bit of traffic for it and a better price than a junkyard.

[mcneally]

Almost 20 years ago I had a car that didn't run and was going to cost more to fix than it was worth and I put it on Craigslist for $600, sold it within hours and got numerous calls later saying they would have paid more. You can definitely do better than "tow it away for free".

[zolotiyeruki]

I my area, junkyards will pay at least $400 for any car, even if it's not running, and will even come pick it up.  They pay more if you can drive it in.

But I'm a fan of fixing it, partly because I like doing things like that.  The specifics matter.  What exactly did the mechanic say is wrong with the engine?

About six months ago, my brother was in a similar situation.  2001 Honda Civic with 190k miles.  Mechanic said the engine was shot--the piston rings were gummed up, leading to all sorts of blow-by and oil going out the exhaust.  I bought it from him for junkyard prices, and spent the next few months rebuilding the engine with my teenage son.  The parts to fix it were surprisingly inexpensive--I think maybe $200 all in for all the gaskets and seals, piston rings, a bunch of new nuts and bolts to replace rusty ones.  I spent a few hundred bucks to have a machine shop rebuild the cylinder head.  Yeah, it was a bunch of work, but we now have an effectively-nearly-new engine.

[innkeeper77]

I agree with the comments above- it doesn't seem like catastrophic failure is extremely common based on a very quick google search (So I could easily be wrong) - is it running at all? Blowby, bad gaskets, etc can probably be patched up. If you broke a timing belt and crashed all the valves into the pistons, that would probably be uneconomical to repair.

I'm a fan of fixing things properly, but I would say a cheap 18 year old Hyundai is a candidate for "band aids" rather than a proper fix- if that is possible.

I'd personally dump it for a bit of cash, unless you have a lot of free time and want to try to make slightly more. I doubt fixing and selling would bring you much more than selling it as a non running parts car, so if there is no emotional attachment, just spend a bit of time trying to sell it on marketplace or craigslist, and then trying a junkyard if there are no bites.

[ChpBstrd]

$800 is the going price in my area for small cars needing an engine and with a good title. Sell it.

[Car Jack]

Hyundai has come a long, long way in nearly 20 years.  In 2005, they were garbage when brand new.  I'd put the car on craigslist, say that it has engine problems and you bought a replacement car already.  Put in a "buy me" price and let someone come buy it and take it away.  Feel free to tell people you don't know how to fix cars and your mechanic wants to put in a used engine.  Plenty of shade tree mechanics scour craigslist every day.  You'll run into someone with a crashed car that's got a good engine and they'll get the thing going in an afternoon.

[JAYSLOL]

What’s the mileage on it?  What’s the nature of the engine failure?  I probably would do what most others are saying and list it on marketplace for $1000 or something and see what you can get as a mechanic special.  If it’s got low-ish mileage, no rust and is otherwise in excellent shape, I might just spend the $3k to have another motor swapped in to keep it alive, but only if I could see a need to keep it around