NutriaforBreakfast wrote:are you taking the heads to the machine shop or reworking them yourself
or getting new ones?
Hey Nutria - I'm poster child for bad luck with used engines. I'm beginning to think the replacement engine is only slightly better than the one I replaced. Both have compression issues. The old engine picture looks clean on the inside. The guides look to be in great shape.
My son is good friends with a family who owns a local machine shop. I think they will machine the heads. He wants to polish the intake and exhaust ports. We'll be taking apart the engine that is out of the car in a practice run to get ready for working on the one in the car. I would like to use the best heads of the two engines. Right off the bat, one of the old heads had the cross threaded plug issue. I'm uneasy about using a head where the plug threads have been tapped to clear up a cross threading issue. Somehow I need to evaluate which engine has the better block.
The replacement engine had 77,000 miles on the speedometer before it was rear-ended. However, it has the compression issues. I'm hoping the compression issues are from the engine setting for a long time with the valves open. I'll need to see what it is like once I get it taken apart. There are two cylinders on the replacement engine that show disturbingly low (~90 lbs) compression numbers. The Infiniti Master Tech (now independent shop owner) who did the replacement was concerned about the compression issue and indicated I only stood a slim chance of the engine ever running smooth without a rework. That was a gamble I took with a salvage yard engine and lost.
NutriaforBreakfast wrote:
Are you using OEM or other parts on the timing chain rework?
I'll need to look at the guides and check out the tensioner to determine if I need to buy new or replace. The guides on the old engine look to be in very good shape. I had bought a new tensioner to go in the replacement engine -- but the tensioner design has changed and to replace it requires all new guides. The guy who did the replacement removed the tensioner and inspected it and said there was no reason to replace it. If the guides on the replacement engine show more wear (or damage) than the guides on the original engine I will know that 1) the engine most likely had more than 77,000 miles on it, 2) the owner did not change the oil at a decent interval, or 3) the engine may have run hot or was having some other issue at the time the car was rear ended. The injector rail had been removed from the replacement engine when I bought it. I took a chance on lost. I do know the old engine did not burn oil as the plug pictures confirm. That engine seemed to run ok even with the two orange plugs. I'll post some pictures of the replacement engine and maybe someone here with more experience can help guide me in the decision. I would like to keep the replacement engine in the car since the transmission clutch and all were working great.
NutriaforBreakfast wrote:
Are you getting a new water pump too?
A new water pump was installed in the replacement block as part of the swap. That another reason I would like to keep that block in the car.
NutriaforBreakfast wrote:
Do you have some pictures of your car on blocks now? I would like to see
as i am curious as to how far you have to raise the car up to get the
engine and transmission out of the car.
The car is still at the dealership after having the ECU replaced and keys reprogrammed and having the TPS and IACV set. The dealer took consult and ran a "Power Balance Test" and found cyl #5 not functioning. They tried swapping coils with no luck. So I have the #5 issue to deal with. I'll get AAA to tow it home on Friday. Once I get the car home, I'll try to run it with the O2 sensors removed to see if there is a cat flow issue contributing to the "breathing problem" it seems to be having. I'm sure I'll need some coaching along the way. Maybe Scott and other folks around here will offer comments along the way.
I plan to make pictures and publish "step by step" instruction for whole timing chain, heads replacement, porting, and other enhancements as a series. I've figured out a way to publish a PowerPoint presentation to PhotoBucket that will make the publishing part build much easier than narrating separate pictures.
If I use any non-OEM parts it will be Standard Motor Parts (a.k.a BWD) Intermotor or Hitachi (top shelf) depending on the item. I'll need to do some research on a source for valve guides, valves, and head and engine parts. I've had good luck with gaskets and seals made by Federal Mogul as well as anything made by that company. Since I've been out over $2,700 so far with the bad replacement engine, misc parts purchases, installation, ECU replacement, and dealer ECU diagnostics, I really need to be careful and check things first hand before throwing more money into it. If this wasn't a NICE black on gray 5-speed with good body, paint, interior, sound system, and new suspension, its new home would have been Pick-and-Pull back in November.
Does anyone have an opinion on how the old engine internals looks from the pictures so far?
What I can tell you about it is the previous owner let the engine run hot, then used stop leak to fix a radiator leak before selling the car to me. Soon after we started driving the car the radiator stop leak broke loose and it ran hot with my son on the way to work. When I replaced the radiator, I found the stop leak and figured out the previous owner must have know about the issue when selling the car. That running hot issue from the previous owner is the reason I was ready to move from the old engine to the replacement. I just didn't trust it after seeing all the stop leak. I think they did a good job of changing the oil on schedule -- but neglected some other critical issues (like a new radiator) as the car began to age. Maybe using Mobile 1 synthetic oil protected the engine during the times when it ran hot.
