Hey so i somewhat recently bought my H3 back in November of 2011 and it ran fine until just recently when i moved from Montana to Maryland. My engine light came on and i took it into a hummer dealership which they told me i have a loose ball joint and the cylinder head needs to be replaced. Its going to cost about 3000 to fix it all but i was looking online and found someone say i should just swap the engine out for a 2007 3.7L? I have the 3.5L with about 110,600 miles on it. I have no idea which to do so a little help please. Thanks

 

First I'd get another estimate on the cylinder head repair? $3,000 sounds high. Then I'd get a couple of estimates on a new engine and compare everything. Sorry to hear about that. I have a 2006 H3 also.

 

well the cylinder head that i have now is supposedly ones the GM didn't make right and the GM dealership that i took it to replaces it with a harder one. but is it possible to put a 2007 3.7L engine in the 06's? I've found some used ones with not too many miles online for like 1300

 

Yes you can swap the two... Should be fairly straight forward. But not exactly bolt and go. You'll probably need a new PCM too and sync it all up. But it will mate to the tranny.

The ball joint should not be a huge contributing factor to the bill.

 

If it is an upper ball joint they must replace the entire upper A arm due to the fact that the upper ball joint is not a serviceable item.

 

Just FYI.... The S/Ns affected is any 2006 H3 lower than 287591 .... the first one started with 100,001, your truck build date will be Nov. 06 or earlier. Not all have the problem, but some could. The head issue affected not only the I5, 4s and 6s were subject to the same issues. Call GM with your vin# and build date (from the sticker in the driver's door jam) and ask.

Just in case you're gonna say, wow they didn't even build that many 3s? The VINs are assigned at the same shreveport plant building Colorados and Canyons. Their VIN sequence unit #s are mixed in and subject to the same TSB re: the head/valve issue.

 

You will need an 07 PCM and reprogramming at the bare minimum.

 

After you replace your head with the updated hardened head, the newer 3.7l will offer no durability advantage over what you currently have.

The advantage would be the extra h.p. and TQ.

3.5L- 220 hp 225 ftlbTQ

3.7L- 242 hp 242 ftlbTQ

 

Try calling GM and as about their goodwill program. They have been known to split the cost of repairs in some cases. Can't hurt.

 

well what would everybody suggest? i still haven't gotten a chance to call GM or look for other places that would be cheaper for a cylinder head just because of work but idk which would be worth it more.. a new cylinder head or a whole new engine. I've found somewhat used engines for like 1500 online with half the amount of miles than mine but what exactly would i have to do to put a new engine in it?