The economy may be sluggish and the rupiah may be declining, but business keeps thriving at Dua Sekawan Motor, as well as a handful of other used car engine dealers in Jakarta.

From a small garage located in Joglo, West Jakarta, good money is being made from selling engines that others may consider junk.

'€œThe increasing number of secondhand car sales works to our advantage. People with small budgets come here to upgrade their vehicles with imported engines at a relatively low price,'€ said Agus, the workshop owner.

Agus, who is known among buyers as '€œPak Haji'€, started his business in 1981. His hobby of tampering with engines and modifying cars led him to choose this line of business.

'€œI believed my job should be related to my hobby, so that I could enjoy every second of working. That'€™s why I chose this business,'€ he said.

He now receives calls every minute from customers asking for specific kinds of engines and says the customers come '€œfrom Sabang to Merauke'€ (from the west to the east of Indonesia).

Some also come directly to his garage. With high interest from automotive lovers, Agus'€™ business can reap a daily turnover of around Rp 100 million (US$9,727).

'€œHere, we sell used engines particularly from Singapore and Japan,'€ he told The Jakarta Post. '€œBut regular customers sometimes still call me for machines from other countries. If we can provide it, we will take the order.'€

Used car engines are an alternative for vehicle modification lovers who want to upgrade their automobiles but at a low price. The service is casually referred to as an '€œengine swap'€.

Engine swaps are the process of removing a car'€™s engine and replacing it with another, and may be from the same brand or class. This is done either because of the failure of another engine, or through the desire to install a different engine, usually one that is more powerful or more modern and maintainable.

Agus said his business could continue as motorists in developed countries usually used cars for no more than five years.

'€œThese are used engines, but the condition is 90 percent good,'€ he said.

Agus ships the engines himself directly from the countries of origin and conducts repairs here and there, if necessary, in his garage before handing them to customers.

Agussasi'€™s Berkah Motor workshop in Pasar Minggu, South Jakarta, offers a similar service. His place offers an engine swap service and sells machines imported from European countries.

Agussasi'€™s business has been running since 1984, said one of the staffers, Ana. Many other workshops in the city are offering similar services as the industry seems to have a lucrative market.

The other garages include PT Alam Indomesin Utama in North Jakarta (Japanese car engines), PT Julian Jaya in Central Jakarta (BMW car engines) and Berkah Putra Jaya in South Jakarta (Volvo and European cars engines).

One of the customers, Martin, 37, said he first became familiar with used-engine sellers from the street.

'€œMy friends and I used to modify cars. I know about these places through my friends,'€ he said. '€œAfter several purchases, we usually stick to one seller if we are satisfied with his service.'€

The junk, he said, was sustainable and relatively cheap.

'€œIt is good for racing and modified cars, let alone for daily use,'€ he added.

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