The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Engine Shop Blown 235 Engine rebuild advice

Well, the engine blew this morning. Drove it for 100 miles and that's all she wrote. Problem is, I'm an idiot, I should've kept a close eye on the oil, I ran it dry, it burned through a gallon of oil in 2 days. Oh well, the engine needed to be rebuilt anyways.

I'm having a guy take the engine out and rebuild it.

So my question is, what else should I do to the truck while the engine is out. I assume transmission clutch and throw out bearing would be an easy fix, is there anything else I should do while I'm here?

If all the other systems worked well up to that point, I'd leave them alone except for checking fluids like rear, trans, and brakes. See any leaks? Fix them.

depending upon the yrs/mileage it has, now would be a good time to replace the clutch and clean up the pressure plate.

Whatever you were planning to do in the empty engine bay, now is the time.

well if it burned thru a gal in two days I would have parked it but,

you might considering looking for a complete one for sale vs
rebuilding yours, probably a lot cheaper and might have
more good stuff in it.. just a thought...

might be time to do some of the other stuff you were asking about
in other forums..

If you ran it out of oil and blew it up I'd think twice of rebuilding it. It depends on what failed but I would think if it ran out of oil the crankshaft is junk.

What do you mean "it blew"? threw a rod?Hole in the block?If something broke and the engine jabbed,you probably have a bunch of scrap metal.As said already the crank will most likely be cracked,and the rods bent.Even it didn't break anything.The heat will have ruined the rotating assembly.

Be sure to forewarn your engine shop about what happened. Have him check everything carefully including block cracks, etc. Have him magnaflux, acid bath, the works on the block, then make sure he can bore the cylinders no more than 40 thousands over. 60 is really the very limit. Be prepared for bad news.

Then have him check the head. LOTS of these old engines have cracked heads. Hardened valve seats are a good idea at this point. This is gonna cost you, so make sure what you are starting with is worth the expense. If not, there are plenty of other blocks/heads out there to get it right.

I save about $400 by doing all the assembly myself. All I have done at the engine shop is the initial cleaning/testing and machine work.

They are rebuilding it top to bottom and giving me a 3 yr warranty.

So what is the rebuild advice your looking for?

How much $$$$$ ????????

What else to deal with?

Front and rear engine motor mounts?

Make sure the builder does a complete block flush/clean-out, especially at the rear of the block.

Will you get a new oil pump?

Tclederman, great questions. This company is highly reputable in Houston, 80 yrs of operation, including a family member of mine who has used them before. They stand behind their work, they said they would do a complete tear down and rebuild and wouldn't charge labor for other parts that are easy to change out (clutch, throw out bearing, motor mounts, belts, ect). This is why I want a list of parts that I should strongly consider changing at this point.

I didn't think about the oil pump, but I will add that to the list of things to ask about this week.

sounds like the kind of place that's really doing re-manufacturing, they'll know what needs replacing regardless of its condition [like the oil pump, timing set, and likely water pump and carb], and replace any other things that are "out of spec", it'll be a "turn key" item when they're done

Bill

What would be considered a rebuild? New gaskets, rings and the like or replacing entire valve train and movable parts?

In the engine bay proper look at your brake and fuel lines. Esp rubber parts. Clean up your grounds and as mentioned new motor mounts might be wise. Take care of any rust and have the radiator boiled.