I don't understand why 216's are more trouble, but they have a stigma about them.. The rebuild is not much different than a 235. All the machine work and assembly is the same as far as I know. The Babbitt bearings are fit the same as inserts using plastic gauge and the mains are already inserts, the oil line to the head is an interesting wrinkle, but even that is not that a big deal. In my situation, it was either me or the machine shop that got something wrong causing things to be too tight during assembly. Once running, the 216 is a strong engine that will run forever. This one I am talking about has run for up to an hour with decent oil pressure and stable cooling. I have not been able to get a decent compression test done because it has not been on the road and run under load. I have done two others and a 235 with no major issues, and all turned out to be very good strong engines.
