29 March 2008 - I found a 1996 Saturn SW2 with a bad motor and bad exhaust system. This car was chosen because I like the styling of the S-Series Saturns and because it had power windows, power locks, cruise control and was really clean inside and out.

I drove it 40 miles on three cylinders to get it home, it was a noisy and smoky ride.

5 April 2008 - I borrowed my neighbor's engine crane and pulled the motor. It was a bit of a tight squeeze. If you're not planning to save the motor, you should take as much off of the motor as you can while it is still in the car.

You can see the wet exhaust port for cylinder number three. This turned out the be a burnt valve, but who cares at this point.

It was a sloppy stinky mess. I thought that I had drained out all the fluids, but a lot of liquid was still sitting inside the engine and the hoses and is now all over my nice clean floor.

12 April 2008 - The car was rolled outside and the engine compartment was pressure washed.

Steel and aluminum can be recycled into cash at the local scrap yard. I think it's better to get rid of your scrap metal when you're done since some of the metal can be used to fabricate the new parts -- and more importantly, some of the stuff that initially went on the scrap pile shouldn't have been thrown on the scrap pile. It's also good to have the motor block around to take measurements.