# Curiosity about Registering a Car with a Swapped Engine



## andreselby1 (May 12, 2019)

I was thinking of rideshare driving and I was just curious but would Uber or Lyft accept cars with a swapped engine? I figured since I’m going to be putting many miles on the car that maybe it wouldn’t be such a bad idea to swap the engine. I understood that they wouldn’t accept cars with a rebuild title but would a car with a swapped engine be considered a rebuild? I just wanted to make sure.


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## dauction (Sep 26, 2017)

Of course you'd have to check with them ..But yeah..good idea ..especially if you are able to save another $1,000 and put it in yourself.

Obviously $2,500 for a rebuilt engine is a lot less expensive than getting a new vehicle


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## 25rides7daysaweek (Nov 20, 2017)

Changing the engine wouldnt cause it to be rebuilt. Rebuilt is a change on the title that implies the car was totalled and needed a recertification to be roadworthy. If you are pulling an engine you should consider the trans too. You'll probably have problems w it 2 times as often..


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## Nats121 (Jul 19, 2017)

dauction said:


> Of course you'd have to check with them .


It's none of uber and lyft's business if a driver swaps engines. It's not in their contract.

As far as your auto insurance policy is concerned, you'd have to read the fine print.


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## OldBay (Apr 1, 2019)

Wait for the engine to fail THEN swap.

Preemptive swap is just a waste of money, especially when you could get 300K miles with frequent oil changes.


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## CarpeNoctem (Sep 12, 2018)

My guess is the only way they would know an engine was changed is if it was reported and they pull a carfax or something.

Anybody know if U/L pulls a carfax?


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## Youngaug305 (May 12, 2019)

andreselby1 said:


> I was thinking of rideshare driving and I was just curious but would Uber or Lyft accept cars with a swapped engine? I figured since I'm going to be putting many miles on the car that maybe it wouldn't be such a bad idea to swap the engine. I understood that they wouldn't accept cars with a rebuild title but would a car with a swapped engine be considered a rebuild? I just wanted to make sure.


The DMV may find out and your insurance or dealership would if your financing a car, but Uber wont.


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## Wrb06wrx (Sep 20, 2017)

First of all wait until the engine fails to swap anything... 
Second it's none of uber/Lyft's goddamn business if you swap your motor out 
Third unless you're swapping a stolen motor/transmission you shouldn't have any problems as it will not show on a carfax which they dont check 
I have swapped motors in a car but for performance reasons (kswap in an EH chassis hatch) and had no issues with dmv which is much more thorough than U/L. 
The problem is not having it done, people need to learn how to not offer up too much information its very simple unless you are trying to sell the car if anyone asks everything is factory and that's the end of the story


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## Speedwagon98 (Sep 24, 2018)

Swap usually means you are changing the original engine out with an engine that is not originally offered. This has some legal repercussions, and is not always allowed.

If you mean you are just changing the engine out with an original replacement, then nobody cares. The only way anyone knows is if you tell them or show them a maintenance record in this case.


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## UberLuxbod (Sep 2, 2014)

andreselby1 said:


> I was thinking of rideshare driving and I was just curious but would Uber or Lyft accept cars with a swapped engine? I figured since I'm going to be putting many miles on the car that maybe it wouldn't be such a bad idea to swap the engine. I understood that they wouldn't accept cars with a rebuild title but would a car with a swapped engine be considered a rebuild? I just wanted to make sure.


Why would the first thing you are thinking about is the engine?

Are you buying a car with a broken engine?

I know loads of people that have put 200k or 300k miles on a car doung this work or Courier work.

None have needed to replace and engine.


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## amazinghl (Oct 31, 2018)

Does the engine pass compression test? If so, leave it alone.


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## The Texan (Mar 1, 2019)

Youngaug305 said:


> The DMV may find out and your insurance or dealership would if your financing a car, but Uber wont.


Why on earth would you do it on a leased car?

How in hell would any of this happen?

You change out an engine, like at home, small garage, etc. DMV, Uber/Lyft, etc.- WILL not know!
None of my titles have the engine block # on them!!!

If the VIN is run, it should have the engine block # on it. So it's been changed, so what?

You all overthink things so much.

AND- it doesn't matter anyways! Swap an engine is a rebuilt title? Where?

Now, buy a vehicle at an Auction- it's usually a salvage title


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## amazinghl (Oct 31, 2018)

CarpeNoctem said:


> My guess is the only way they would know an engine was changed is if it was reported and they pull a carfax or something.
> 
> Anybody know if U/L pulls a carfax?





> What that means is that *Carfax* is only as good as the sources sending them information. They have three primary sources: State title agencies, police *reports*, and repair shops.


Repair shops as in body repair, not mechanical repair.


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## CarpeNoctem (Sep 12, 2018)

amazinghl said:


> Repair shops as in body repair, not mechanical repair.


I know it depends on who does it and if they report it. The carfaxes I have seen show maintenance records from the dealers and repairs they may do - not just body repairs.

I'm not sure but I think Carfax may also pull from insurance claims too. I had minor repairs done to a truck (about the deductible amount) and I doubt that the body shop reported it but there was an insurance claim. It showed on the Carfax.


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## Youngaug305 (May 12, 2019)

The Texan said:


> Why on earth would you do it on a leased car?
> 
> How in hell would any of this happen?
> 
> ...


Not leased, financed. Meaning you'll get the title when you're done financing it. Plenty of driver's finance their cars, how else would there be young people driving a Toyota Corolla of the year for uber... Furthermore, the computer of the car, once the engine wire harness is plugged into the engine, would read the miles of the swapped engine on the odometer once you drop it in. If you sell the car, the title given to you would say xxx amount of miles which won't match up to the title you give to the future buyer that would have to read xxx amount of miles. The DMV inspects the car when the buyer asks for a license plate. They pop the hood, read the odometer, and check for any safety violations. That's how he/she would get caught. And the reason why one would swap a engine while still financing a car is I don't know shit happens maybe he only has 5 more car payments left and the engine broke due to him not changing the oil and driving like a woman, you just never know. My friend has 1 car payment left and now needs a ****** swap.


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## 1974toyota (Jan 5, 2018)

andreselby1 said:


> I was thinking of rideshare driving and I was just curious but would Uber or Lyft accept cars with a swapped engine? I figured since I'm going to be putting many miles on the car that maybe it wouldn't be such a bad idea to swap the engine. I understood that they wouldn't accept cars with a rebuild title but would a car with a swapped engine be considered a rebuild? I just wanted to make sure.


how the F are they gonna know you swapped an engine????????????????????? doesn't effect title, Vin # etc, are U in the usa? jmo


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## Merc49 (Apr 30, 2019)

Swapping engines is like reporting cash earnings, you dont tell ANYONE and no one will know but you.


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