The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Engine Shop Rebuilding my 216

Ok guys, here's my situation:

My '53 3100 needs a motor rebuild. I have gotten a quote for $2,700 to pull the motor, rebuild it, fire it up, and install back in the truck.

-or-

I can pull it in my garage, rent a cherry picker, take it to the shop complete, rebuild it, and bring it back home and install myself. I did not get a rough quote on this.

Which would you do? Is $2,700 a deal?
Im just worried about the shop because I dont want my truck scratched and banged up.


Also, anyone know how much it is to rebuild the original 3 speed? Figured it might be a good time to do this too since I'll have the motor out.

Thanks!

You should get a lot of replies here. Some will say to rebuild a 54 or up 235 and put it in. I understand staying original, for sure. If you don't want other people messing with your truck then pull it yourself.

How well do you know the rebuilder? One thing to ask would be about machining the rods for insert bearings. There are few out there who can do the proper job on a set of babitt bearings.
About the price, I've seen numbers like that bandied about here, so how good a deal it is, I don't know.
If you are worried about your paint, and want the entertainment, do the R+R yourself. I've seen some ugly stuff happen in a shop. Our PT had some recall work done, and when I went to pick it up I found all 3 windows on the driver side destroyed by spark blow-by. The car wasn't shielded from the work being done on the next car. Got it back a week later with new glass....

I've decided that I'm going to pull the motor myself and take it to the rebuilder to rebuild.

About pulling the motor: I've heard that the hoods on our trucks are very hard to put back on and align, so I'm planning on removing the radiator, grill, front bumper and splash apron and pulling the motor out through the front of the truck. I think all I need to do is tuck the generator up against the motor and move the horn, unbolt the motor, and it appears that it will fit between the front fenders.
Any experience pulling a motor this way?

rebuild it

That price doesn't mean much unless you get a complete list of what will be done (as opposed to "checked").
Very common for one of these two things to happen:
1. the price was kept, he just shortens the list of work and parts to make whatever profit he decided on (frequently used when a problem comes up, like he breaks or loses something that he has to replace out-of-pocket)
2. he discovers the motor is in worse shape than he thought, and does more work - but adds $1,000 to the price without getting authorization

For a complete rebuild in the truck that's a pretty good price, but does it include cam bearings? Surface both the head and block? Grinding both mains and rods? Re-aligning the dipper system? Rebuilding the rockers? New valves, or just re-faced? You get the idea.

Yes I understand that there are many things to consider when 'rebuilding' an engine.
The cylinder head is brand new...I still need a correct set of rocker arms (the rocker arm assembly on it now has washers under it, shimming it up a little bit. Truck runs, but very rough.)

Although it may look like it will fit between the front fenders the radiator core support is what holds them up. If you want to change engines and leave the hood in place I would suggest removing the front clip as a unit.

I would consider removing the front clip as a whole except I dont have room for it. Im going to have to take the pieces upstairs in an extra room as it is and since the truck has an expensive paint job on it, I can't sit it outside either.

The engine in the 53 was only made that year. I found that out from Patrick's.

I would pay to have the engine taken a part (or do it yourself) then check the cylinders and crank for wear and if they have been ground or bored to the max before making the decision. I would also have hardened seats installed.

I was going to rebuild my 53 216 until I found out it was worn out. The cylinders had been bored .080 and the crank shaft had been ground to the max. Taking it a part by the machine shop and mic'ed cost around $100.

Sad. My engine number matched the plate on the cab.

I hope this helps

Ouch.
From what I understand, it is the orig engine in this truck but I know its time for a rebuild. Truck only has 77,000 on it, so hopefully its never been rebuilt. It may be time for a 235 or even a 261 even though Id rather keep the 216.

Last weekend, I drained about 12 quarts of fluid out of the oil pan...very wattery and reaked of gasoline.

Rocker Arms are not correct.

Cylinder Head and all exterior components are new or rebuilt.

Don't give up. You may have a good candidate for a rebuild.

Guy at the shop told me the fuel pump diaphragm could be bad, even though its a brand new fuel pump. This would let all the gasoline run into the oil (he said its common on 350's)
We got full compression on all 6 cylinders a few years ago when we checked it. Its got less than 1,500 miles or so on it since then.


Thanks for the replies guys...stay tuned, I'll start a thread wtih pictures of the whole story. I took a few last weekend, just havent posted them yet

Instead of carrying everything upstairs you could do the following in an afternoon:


1. Remove all bolts/support rods yourself so the front clip is just resting on framerails and supported under fender bottom. This means only the radiator support bolts and the ones at the back as well as wires.
2. Call buddy/neighbor to help you set clip on plywood on driveway.
3. Connect hoist, remove mounts, and move away.
4. Re position clip on front of truck and slip core support bolt thru to keep it there.
5. Remove bumper and brackets first to make it real easy and avoid dings.

True, I could set it off temporarily while I jerk the motor, then set it back on the truck. I'm not sure what I'm going to do; I need to find a engine hoist before I can do anything.

Check the rental places in town. One of them will have it. I bought mine at Pep Boys after I rented one. I use it all the time. The legs fold up for easy storage.

Yea I did both yesterday.
Engine hoist is $200 bucks from Autozone, but Im not sure it will lift my 216 up into the bed of my truck. I've got a half-ton 2wd Ford.
Rental place wants $44/day; (hourly rates avail too)

a friend of mine just had his 53 216 rebuilt. Runs like a champ. Had the block boiled out, etc. He and another guy did the work. But getting a shop to do it is not bad idea either. Just look to see if the shop is clean or if there is a lot of junk sitting around. My buddy paid about $2200 for the parts and machine work, but he did the labor.
He exchanged the rods for machined rods to except inserts. I think that is a good improvement for the older engine. all of my trucks have the older low pressure engines(3 216's, 1 235) they all run great and have plenty of power for the original driveline.

I would keep it unless you want to pay for a later pressure engine and then also pay the rebuild fees as well.

Yelostn:
Id rather do the work myself just because I dont want my truck all scratched up; pulling the motor doesn't look that difficult; there's only so much to these old trucks.
I got a quote of $2,600 for parts and labor to completely rebuild it, inserts,etc, and to test the oil pressure and compression. They made it clear that they will not crank it and run it.
Id like to see your friends '53...sounds like a nice truck