28K mile motor DESTROYED

my 2006 C4 has 28,000 miles on it and I was just told by mechanic that cylinder 5 is scored and un-savable without a rebuild. Somewhere deep down I knew this was the call I was going to get when I dropped it off because I brought it in with the following symptoms. Oil consumption seemed a little high, drivers side exhaust tip is blackened, cylinder 5 spark plug is black and gummy. Engine made a ticking noise. So I guess my two options are rebuild and replace motor. Looking for advice... Estimated rebuild costs? Best way to source a motor if I go that route? Sell car? and best way? how to get it to the right person who will get the most value from it, i.e. a racer who wants to upgrade parts of the motor anyway and this is a cheaper way to start. A hug would be great. Thanks, Adam

Dang Adam, Really sorry to hear this man... **Inserts BIG HUG** I work at a shop and my advice would be to source a good used engine over a rebuild. Because you need a block the costs are not going to be cheap, especially to do it right. Figure a used block will set you back $3K if you can find a good one, or you step up to a nickies setup for like $5500 and that is just for the big part. LN engineering advertises a rebuild for $21K but that likely does not include the block, maybe sleeving your existing block. Either way $21K gets you in the door. Motors can be found on Ebay but probably better off trying a dismantler like DC Auto in NC. Haven't seen any lately but and locating a lower mileage one may be tougher, but probably $10K~ for a used one so probably half of rebuild cost. Also figure in a few thousand bucks to swap it, plus there are always the "while you're in there's" which add up. Selling the car will require the right buyer or possibly someone will just buy it to part it out... with a bad motor it is definitely worth more in parts. Also by the time you buy a motor and have it installed etc. net value to you will be about the same as selling it with a bad motor. Sounds like a nice car with only 28K miles so you should be able to get $10K+ as-is, hopefully more. At the end of the day if you drop $25K+ into a motor build it will be worth more but will incur a lot more time/hassle. If I didn't have so many damn cars/projects right now i'd take be interested! Best of luck~ **ANOTHER BIGGER HUG** John

Hit up 9XX Motors in Southern California. All he does is rebuild motors. If you want to just go stock, you can get well below the $25k mark. Don’t make a decision until you’ve got some solid estimates

Sorry about the engine failure. Put your wants and needs in first place, and the cost/resale calculation in second. These cars will not give a positive return on investment. I would consider the LN long block program. If you buy used-insist on a bore scope inspection and an oil analysis-preferably by speed diagnostix. Those stray molecules in the oil have a lot of information about the condition of the engine. Give the car what it needs to please you!