The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Engine Shop Buying engines on e-bay

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Is it a good idea/bad idea to purchase an engine like this on e-bay? Anybody had experience with this stuff? :confused:

I would probably do it. If you need warranty work done that might be a problem. He has lots of good feedback on his motors.

Its about the same if you bought one new ,it all depends on accesiblity

I like buying from local sources. Probably for no good reason, other than the seller has to meet with me. When you do a search on ebay, the results are usually returned to you in a list with the item listed first that are about to end. There is a *Sort By* pull down that allows you to specify *Itens Nearest First*. This has been very useful to me for many purchases. When you meet the seller personally, they often have other trinkets that they were thinking of listing which can sometimes be had really cheap. Also, you can save shipping charges if you pick it up. Cheers. - MV

I'd deal with a reputable local builder. If you're in Korea still I'd think the shipping cost would prohibit any U.S. builder. Looking at the feedback I see 27 transactions in 12 months. IF they were ALL engine sales, its not much. I've worked in small shops where we probably averaged 10 per week & that was doing the installation too. Also Ebay feedback has to be left within 90 days of auction end. Reading some of these it seems the buyer hadn't even started the motor yet! Doug

I would buy one locally if possible. What do you do when there is a warranty situation?

I've made some pretty big purchases on E-Bay and come out okay. But it's always a risk. I once bought a used tool off Amazon from a seller in another state. It arrived busted up and I had to send it back. While he did refund my money, I had to pay to ship it back and it was a hassle. Now I buy tools from a local brick and mortar store. That way if there's a problem, I can drive a couple of miles and just return it. When it comes to motors, there are hundreds of builders. My motor head neighbor says your best bet is to just buy a crate motor from the local Chevy dealer. I guess if you live in South Korea this could be a problem...

I have purchased stuff on e-bay and I have (knock on wood) never been burned. But consider this before you buy. How much is shipping? What sort of warranty do you have? how is this warranty resolved? Will you have to box it up and send it back or have it fixed localy and send them the reciept?
Best bet on an item like this is to locate a used short engine and then have it rebuilt by a local machine shop. Then you know for sure what you have and you have someone you can get face to face with in the event there is a problem.

I have made a lot of purchases over Ebay. I try to buy NOS, or original used if I can. If the purchase is over 75 bucks I try to stay in an area I can drive to in a weekend. Plus I look at what the item is. Relatively common items I buy local. Rare or hard to find items I will go to US and Canada. It also depends on the motor you want. Is it new, used, or rebuilt? Then why is it so much cheaper to buy it. and have it shipped over buying locally. You can get a good deal, just use caution. Jimmie D.

Nice looking engine on the out side. But you realy don't know if the inside was done right.
I trusted a seller that sells on ebay.
Purchase a 250 inline 6 Block for 75.00
TOTAL $200.00 After getting it found out the cylinder bore would need to go 80 over to clean up the cylinders. Point is Don't trust anyone on Ebay. Go Local it will be cheaper and better in the long run. Since then I got another engine to work with. Thanks too this form site and another fellow Stovebolter.

Looking at his history he has been a member since 2001 and sold engines before with good feedback.
If you don't think you can get what you want local then it is your call. Just make sure you read the Ebay Fraud Auction Warning page http://reviews.ebay.com/FRAUD-Auctions-WARNING_W0QQugidZ10000000001625942?ssPageName=BUYGD:CAT:-1:SEARCH:1
and make sure you follow their advice about what payment methods you should NOT use.

Buying from a reputable dealer is not air tight either. I initially bought my Chevy 427 big block from Speedomotive as a crate engine. It was a shortblock and I added the rest.

After slightly over 100 miles, the engine threw 2 rods through the oil pan. Oil pressure appeared normal the whole time. I had my machinist perform the autopsy to find out what went wrong and he pulled a piece of wood out of the main oil galley from the oil pump that feeds everything...and I wouldn't have known because it was just after the oil pressure gauge sender. The engine was actually starving for oil despite a normal reading on the pressure gauge. The pins seized on two of the rods and they shattered.

Speedomotive paid for all new parts despite an expired warrantee because they suspected that some disgruntled employee sabotaged a run of crate engines. I rebuilt it, and so far, so good.

So as long as it has a warrantee, you could try it, because that's a pretty good price. Make sure you install it and run it as soon as you can, rather than doing what I did and burn up the warrantee sitting in the garage waiting for the rest of the restoration.