Worth repairing our Blazer???
 

We picked up a 98 Blazer LT 4x4 about a year ago, with 130,000 miles, for a little over two grand. Its been acting up lately so we took it in and discovered the front differential had been removed in the past and put in wrong (just bolted to the frame). The frame repair shop we took it to estimated it would take 8-10 hrs to take it out and put it back in right, at a charge of $600-800 (roughly). The vehicle also needs a new front sway bar put in and is leaking coolant from the intake manifold and the thermostat. Bottom line, it may take almost $2,000 to repair.

We like the vehicle otherwise, but can't decide if its worth it to get it fixed... Any advice?

Thanks!

That's a tough question. It would be worth it to me, I love my Blazer. What else could you buy for 2,000? I know 130,000 may seem like a lot of miles, but there are a lot of people here on the forum with much more than that on their trucks. The leaking intake is fairly common, but I don't think it should cost close to a thousand bucks to fix it. The sway bar is an easy bolt in. When you say "acting up", what exactly was it doing?

Welcome to the forum, btw.

Your situation is not so different from my own. Here's the thing, you've been driving it for awhile now. You know the vehicle pretty well by now. You know what your problem is. I would get a few more quotes because that sounds kinda high to me. If you were to get another used vehicle you may just be trading problems you know of for other or more problems further down the road. If it's been a good reliable ride I say fix it. Good Luck whichever route you go.

Sounds like two weekends worth of work and that is if you are slow like me. Personally I would keep it. Talk about a good truck. This is my first truck and I am quite happy with it.

I am fix it and keep it kind of person. I am able to do a lot of the work myself. For me it comes down to not what the vehical is worth but more importently what is it going to cost to replace it, especially if the vehical is paid for. You can do a lot of repairs for 6 months worth of car payments. I also like having a decent interior, clean sheet metal, I can live with some scratches but no big dents. If the car is not a rust bucket and everything works and otherwise a decent running vehical I would fix it. Now if you can not stand the car for whatever reason then get rid of it. I have only purschased one car that I could not stand and it was a Ford Futura and I hated it. I got rid of it pretty quick.

id do the intake gasket with a couple buddies (its a fun job) and just go without 4x4 till you save up to fix it.

Thanks, here's some more info
 

Thanks!
So here's the deal: Started smelling the coolant leak awhile ago, also hear constant squeaking (maybe just a belt) and just started hearing a big ol' clunk clunk in the right front (bent sway bar) when going over all these giant bumps in duluth, minnesota. intake manifold leak and thermostat leak was quoted at $500. sway bar, ordered from out east and installed, $400. differential work was quoted between 600-800 dollars at one business and a little cheaper at another. They said some differential bolts were rubbing against the bell housing (and the improperly installed differential caused the sway bar to become bent). I was also wondering, even if this were fixed, would it make the vehicle more susceptible to problems in the future?

Once again, thanks so much!!

got a few questions for you about your issues.................

just how was the diff put back in wrong? it's either installed correctly or not. it's not like it can sit up on anything, and not be bolted in. also, why would you take it to a frame repair shop to get it fixed, and not a mechanic?

now this is one that i'm surprised no one else has asked..........how the hell do any bolts from the front diff end up touching the bell housing? it's not even possible! how can the diff cause the sway bar to be bent?

thanks for the help!
 

Ok, here goes: We took it to a mechanic first, who noticed the front diff had been put back in without the use of a bracket, just bolted straight to the frame. He said it probably contributed to the sway bar bending and also made some bolts rub against the bell housing (I thought he said differential bolts). He referred me to the frame shop. The frame shop said they'd have to cut the diff out, make a new bracket, and put it back in, which may take them as much as 8-10 hours...

Fun stuff!

Pictures?? I highly doubt that things would have to be cut out.