[TimboColo]

My daughter just bought her first car - a 2003 Xterra with 170k miles in great condition. It ran smooth as can be for a month. Then out of the blue it's making a loud clanking noise. She pulled over quick and stopped the car. I started it briefly, then had it towed because I knew that sound was very bad news. Local shop used a stethoscope and it's definitely coming from the bottom end, they say it's a spun rod or main bearing. So that's probably a new crank & rods. Maybe the crank can be saved? I don't know.
A rebuilt engine is $5000 plus $2000 to install, but the car is only worth about $6500 so I am not going that route.
Option 1: Sell as-is for whatever I can get, probably to a mechanic.
Option 2: Rebuild it myself. I have done this exactly twice in my life -- 30 years ago. But I am damn good at fixing things.
Option 3: Pull it myself and pay someone to do the rebuild.

Looking for suggestions here. What would y'all do? Are there after-market engines that will fit in this? Do you know any good places to call about rebuilt engines? Are these a bitch to pull and rebuild, or are they pretty straightforward?

 

[MeToo]

For me, it would depend on the condition of the cylinder walls and the rings. If they're good, you might be able to get away with some new bearings if the crank is still good, a junkyard crank, or have to buy a new crank. (And the bearings, but that goes without saying.) Your comfort level would determine if it'd be worth the risk of a JY crank.

That's likely the simplest, easiest, and cheapest fix.

Any aftermarket engine, if it's not the same as what's in there, will require modifications that run the bill up higher than it's usually worth, especially if the money is just to get a DD back on the road rather than a high-dollar dragster.