I came up with three options for my engine problems:
- Do nothing.
- Rebuild the current engine. starting with the valves and new piston rings.
- Find another engine in better shape.
Doing nothing doesn’t seem challenging (ie fun) and would leave me wondering if the car will suddenly break down. An engine rebuild would be interesting, but I was concerned about cost. A few minutes on the internet led me to conclude that machine shop work alone would be on the order of $1,000, and parts could be in that neighborhood as well.
What about another engine? They are around. I contact
ed the man in Pennsylvania who sold me bumpers and other parts over the summer. He didn’t have an engine available. I then saw one on the Sunbeam owners forum that was in
Baltimore, with a $1,500 asking price. It was advertised as having been completely rebuilt, with $1,200 in machine shop charges alone. It was sold withing a few days.
I kept looking, and spotted one the forum in Jupiter, Florida. It was advertised as having been rebuilt professionally. Why was it for sale? The seller said that a rubber fuel line had broken and caused a fire. The pictures of the engine itself didn’t look too bad, and given the price 
I decided to make an offer. At a minimum, the machine work on the engine block would be worth the price, including shipping.
What could go wrong?
Sunbeam 