You're confronted with a customer whose engine needs major work, maybe a replacement. How do you tell this customer about the huge bill he's facing? More importantly, if he gives you the repair job, how should you handle it?

Automotive repair shops don't face these questions every day, but they certainly face them throughout the year. They're tough questions and the answers aren't always easy.

I work for is a production engine remanufacturer that remanufactures and brings back to life hundreds of dead engines every day. Here's the advice I can give you in sizing up and dealing with these challenges.

The first piece of advice I would give you, the shop owner, is to do something. With the help of top-notch suppliers, you can solve just about any engine problem that hits your service bay. You must do something to help this customer. If you don't, he or she may make the new car dealer the next stop. If that happens, you've likely lost this customer for at least three years (the warranty period). You can offer better alternatives that that.

The second piece of advice I can offer is to do a thorough diagnosis of the engine's problems. A significant percentage of the dead engines we see on our inbound loading docks each day are the result of poor or superficial diagnosis by technicians who just didn't take the time to find out what the engine's real problem was.

The classic example is a blown head gasket, which has caused cool- ant leakage and overheating. Most technicians simply blame the gasket and replace it. But what caused the gasket to blow in the first place? If you don't find that out, you may see that engine again in the very near future, and it will have the word "Comeback" hanging from the radiator.

The third major piece of advice I would give any shop facing major work on a customer's engine is, whatever you do, get the customer to let you do whatever is necessary to protect the engine. The initial engine problem -say, overheating -may suggest additional work such as a thorough coolant flush, or a new radiator, even though the old one still works. This could require some salesmanship. But the penalty for not doing it could again be summed up in one profit-robbing word: Comeback.

Diagnosing the Engine
As I mentioned earlier, the critical point is to get an accurate diagnosis of what is really bothering the engine. Probe beyond the surface cause of the smoking or knocking to find out what started the problem if you can.

Once you have an accurate assessment of what work needs to be done, then you can discuss costs and options with the customer without fear that the diagnosis will come back on a tow truck to haunt you.

In my experience as an engine remanufacturer, by far the most common problem you'll see in your service bay is overheating. At least half of the cores we see on our loading dock suffered from excessive heat at some point. Often, that was what killed the engine.

The key is to find out why the overheating took place. As you know, there are two basic causes of overheating: problems somewhere in the cooling system; and problems relating to combustion.

Cooling system problems, the more common of the two, can include leaks, bad hoses or clamps, failed thermostats, a leaking or failing water pump, buildup in the cooling passages, or a bad radiator.

Radiators are often overlooked. Any radiator with more than 50,000 miles on it should be a prime suspect for an overheating problem. Overheating problems are also more common on front wheel drive vehicles, where tight space and undersize engines often combine with aluminum cylinder heads to make problems more likely.

Combustion problems include pre-ignition and detonation. Generally speaking, these will show up more on individual cylinders; problems affecting most or all cylinders are more likely to be cooling system-related. But again, the root cause may be a bad engine sensor or a fuel delivery problem, and if that cause is not diagnosed, even a brand-new engine put into the car may experience the same problem.

After overheating, the second most likely cause of terminal engine problems, in my experience, is just wear and tear. You know the signs: burning oil, knocking, valve train noises. We find that most engines today start wearing out somewhere around 100,000 miles. Knowing your customer can help you make this diagnosis because general maintenance plays a huge role. Customers who change their oil and filters regularly are less likely to experience severe wear. Therefore, the causes of their engine problems may lie elsewhere. Also, I've found that topping up fluids is especially critical with smaller four-cylinder engines because today's designs don't leave much margin for error.

O il-related engine problems appear to be much less common today that either overheating or general old age.

Another thing that will help you make your diagnosis is knowing which engines are most prone to specific problems. At our company, for example, experience tells us:

• Import engines in general are more prone to detonation problems than domestic engines.

• Chrysler's 2.2-2.5L engine series has proved very susceptible to overheating. The cause is often traced to the radiator, which tends to get plugged.

• Cadillac's 4100 engine has suffered from a series of glitches including overheating, cracks and bottom-end knocking, most stemming from its somewhat unusual design and cooling system requirements.

• Mitsubishi's 2.6L engine has balance shafts that leak at the bearings when worn; major engine surgery may be required to correct the problem.

Making the Decision
All right, you've made a thorough and accurate diagnosis. Hundreds of dollars in repairs are required. Now you have to talk to the customer, who will be looking to you for advice and suggestions.

Assuming the problems aren't confined to the cylinder head, the options are simple: repair the engine; rebuild it completely; or replace it. Remember, we want to keep this customer, not send him off for a new car.

Which of these options the customer finally selects will be based on several factors:

• The general age and condition of the vehicle.

• The age and condition of the engine. This will include whether the engine is a known troublemaker like those listed above, and also what you know of how the engine has been maintained in recent years.

• How the customer feels about the vehicle. It will probably not be based on the customer's budget. This customer is going to be spending large amounts of money on the engine regardless of which option is selected. The best long-term solution for the customer is the one you want to recommend.

Repairing or Rebuilding the Engine

Figures will vary with different geographic areas and customer bases. However, in our experience, once the prospective bill for engine repairs reaches the level of $700 or $800, it may be more effective and more economical for the customer to have a complete rebuild or a replacement of the engine. The higher cost is generally outweighed by the prospect of significantly longer life for the powerplant.

In reaching this decision with the customer, you, the shop manager, must keep your potential profits in mind. If the engine will be repaired, then you will likely not be taking it out of the vehicle; profits can come from parts and your labor. If a rebuild or replacement is selected, there will be three sources of profit for you on the job:

• The labor of removing the engine and replacing it in the vehicle.

• The cost of the rebuild or the replacement engine, in both parts and labor.

• Various auxiliary parts that you will have to install to get the rebuilt or new engine running - belts, hoses, plugs, filters, oil, coolant, etc.

There is a fourth possible profit source that should be mentioned: work that may not be directly related to the engine. It may make sense to do some unrelated repairs while the engine is out of the vehicle because costs will be lower for the customer. This type of job could include:

• Clutch replacement -Always a candidate, especially with trucks and sport utility vehicles.

• New water pump - Not generally included with an engine rebuild or replacement, but often highly recommended.

• New radiator - Also not generally included with a rebuild or replacement, but often recommended.

• Thorough cooling system service.

• New motor mounts.

• Transmission tuneup.

If you decide to rebuild the engine, you again have two choices: you can do most of the work yourself, having a machine shop mill the head, bore the block, etc.; or you can send the entire job out to the machine shop and take your markup on their work. Your costs and profit margins on these two options will vary widely, and will also depend on the quality and brands of parts used in the rebuild. Many shops make this decision based on the skill levels of technicians on their staffs, on the types of equipment they have on hand, and on how much work is backed up waiting to be done.

Replacement: The Ideal Option?
Engine replacement frequently stacks up as a favorable option compared to rebuilding a tired old motor. The payoff is years of extra life for a vehicle.

In most cases, you will find a remanufactured engine to be the most economic alternative for your customer. New engines are obviously available, but expensive, and a quality remanufactured engine from a reputable supplier can often match or exceed the warranty offered on a new powerplant.

Costs for a remanufactured replacement engine will obviously vary depending on vehicle and engine. They might range from $1,700 to $2,200 for a fairly straightforward replacement of a four-cylinder or V6 engine in a domestic front wheel drive vehicle. The same price range might apply to a V8 in a rear wheel drive car or truck. These price ranges would include the engine, the labor and such services as a minor tuneup. Engine replacements in import vehicles will tend to be more expensive, perhaps $3,000 to $4,000 for a similar job including the remanufactured engine itself.

Finally, I would offer several cautions when shopping for remanufactured engines.

Make sure the engine is remanufactured, not just cleaned and reassembled. A quality supplier of remanufactured engines will take an engine apart, test and examine every part, recondition or replace it as indicated, clean everything, reassemble the package and then test the engine before it goes out the door. That's why it s called remanufacturing.

Be sure to ask questions. Ask your remanufactured engine supplier exactly what is done to the engine. How many times does the technician clean the block? (Where I work, it is cleaned it up to six times.) How many parts in the engine will be new, as opposed to cleaned or reconditioned? What operations will be performed in the remanufacturing? (Look for crankshafts and camshafts being recentered, reground and polished, align boring of all main bearing surfaces, and machining connecting rods and matching them by length, alignment and weight.)

Check the warranty. Warranties can vary. For example, Recon's warranty starts at one year and 12,000 miles and includes labor as well as parts. You can also ask if extended coverage is available.

Look for acronyms. These short abbreviations can tell you a lot about a remanufacturer. The most important one is OEM specs, as in the engine and all its operating components being returned to OEM specs. Are the technicians working in the remanufacturer's shop National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence (ASE) certified? Does the remanufacturer conform to ISO international quality standards? Better yet, is he certified and registered in the QS-9000 quality program?

With planning and care, you can deal with the customer facing terminal or near-terminal engine problems. You can solve his or her problems and earn a solid profit. And you can keep that customer for years to come.

Vincent Mancini is chief executive officer at Recon Automotive Remanufacturers Inc. in Philadelphia, Pa.

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