Buying Used Engine.. Check List?
01-03-2012, 06:47 PM
#1
Buying Used Engine.. Check List? if the guy wasnt bsing me and my buddy, i might be getting an 01 ls1 with 75k miles on it for cheap. he said he just doesnt have time for the swaps and his wife wants the stuff out of his garage. he has a t56 swap, 10 bolt and the engine that he is selling us for about 300 bucks (my guess is it came from a wrecked camaro) he pulled up to my friends work and offered him the stuff after talking to him for a while. the guy has a supercharged ls7 trans am..
but what are some things i should check when looking at the stuff? i know its cheap but i dont wanna buy a giant piece of scrap aluminum
but what are some things i should check when looking at the stuff? i know its cheap but i dont wanna buy a giant piece of scrap aluminum
01-03-2012, 08:15 PM
#2
dont be surprised if it needs intake gaskets and other gaskets. Drop the oil pan on it and run a magnet through it for good measure if that is doable. other than that it is a real crapshoot. if your pondering over 300 dollars on a motor when the cold air intakes alone as a noob mod are going for that you may want to reconsider a more economical means of travel.
01-03-2012, 11:03 PM
#3
Oh no if its good I'm definitely gonna get it. I just want a checklist to go through when I'm looking at it. I was probably gonna take off the heads and see how the cylinder walls are but i was just looking for other advice. I've got the money for it no problem, but I don't wanna waste that money on a trashed engine and pay to get it completely refreshed to the point where I could have gotten something else with less trouble
01-04-2012, 02:14 AM
#4
I recently purchased a used 4.3L V6 for my 1997 Blazer. I found it on Craigslist. I asked the guy who was selling it where he had gotten it and why he was getting rid of it. He stated he had bought it from a Junkyard for his Blazer when he believed his motor was on its way out, but found the problem to be much more simple to fix. And since he no longer needed it, he placed the For Sale ad.
When I arrived it was on a Crate Pallet, covered in plastic in the dude's backyard. Once he uncovered it, there was no doubt he was telling the truth. The motor still had all its accessories on the front of it. Alternator, Power Steering Pump, A/C Compressor, Water Pump were all right there, as well as all the brackets. The exhaust had been cut with a torch just past the Flanges and the remaining pipes were still attached to the Manifolds. Also, rather than disconnecting each Electrical Connector, the Junkman had simply cut the Wiring Harness at the fewest points to allow him to free the motor from the engine bay. And to top it all off, the new owner still had his original Junkyard Receipt. So that part of his story checked out.
Mechanically, all I did to check it out was to be sure it turned over and still had what I believed was good compression. I also checked the oil, which was dirty, but free of metal shavings and it didn't look milky (like it had coolant in it) so that checked out. That was it, man. We haggled a price and I brought it home. It now rests between the fenders of my Blazer and runs fine.
The only other thing I would think a guy could do in this situation would be to put it on an Engine Stand that has provisions for Fuel Hookup and a Starter so you could hear it run. There aren't too many guys out there with this luxury, so I wouldn't count on being able to do this.
My advice is to get as much info about this drivetrain from the owner as possible. Where did it come from? Why is he selling it? (I know you mentioned he said his wife wanted it gone, but be sure he sticks to that story and doesn't change it on you. If he does, it could be a sign that he's not being completely honest.) Does he have anything to support the "Low Mileage" Claim? Did he ever hear it run? If so, how well did it run? Once you've done this, it comes down to whether or not you believe the guy and if the price is right, you take a leap of faith.
Hope this helps. Good luck, man.
When I arrived it was on a Crate Pallet, covered in plastic in the dude's backyard. Once he uncovered it, there was no doubt he was telling the truth. The motor still had all its accessories on the front of it. Alternator, Power Steering Pump, A/C Compressor, Water Pump were all right there, as well as all the brackets. The exhaust had been cut with a torch just past the Flanges and the remaining pipes were still attached to the Manifolds. Also, rather than disconnecting each Electrical Connector, the Junkman had simply cut the Wiring Harness at the fewest points to allow him to free the motor from the engine bay. And to top it all off, the new owner still had his original Junkyard Receipt. So that part of his story checked out.
Mechanically, all I did to check it out was to be sure it turned over and still had what I believed was good compression. I also checked the oil, which was dirty, but free of metal shavings and it didn't look milky (like it had coolant in it) so that checked out. That was it, man. We haggled a price and I brought it home. It now rests between the fenders of my Blazer and runs fine.
The only other thing I would think a guy could do in this situation would be to put it on an Engine Stand that has provisions for Fuel Hookup and a Starter so you could hear it run. There aren't too many guys out there with this luxury, so I wouldn't count on being able to do this.
My advice is to get as much info about this drivetrain from the owner as possible. Where did it come from? Why is he selling it? (I know you mentioned he said his wife wanted it gone, but be sure he sticks to that story and doesn't change it on you. If he does, it could be a sign that he's not being completely honest.) Does he have anything to support the "Low Mileage" Claim? Did he ever hear it run? If so, how well did it run? Once you've done this, it comes down to whether or not you believe the guy and if the price is right, you take a leap of faith.
Hope this helps. Good luck, man.
01-06-2012, 01:23 PM
#5
Take the oil pan, intake manifold and valve covers off and take a look inside. Look for excessive gunking and stuff like that.
Also, for sure do a compression/leakdown test. While it's not perfect to do them on a cold engine, at least you will know roughly what sort of condition the engine is in. Unless you can take the heads off too, there's no way I would buy a used engine without doing those tests.
Also, for sure do a compression/leakdown test. While it's not perfect to do them on a cold engine, at least you will know roughly what sort of condition the engine is in. Unless you can take the heads off too, there's no way I would buy a used engine without doing those tests.
Trending Topics
01-17-2012, 10:53 PM
#10
TECH Apprentice
**** I bought a 5.3 with 862 heads and a broken rod for $100 sight unseen. I tore it apart once I got home and it turned out that the rod must have broke when they tried to crank it because there is absolutely NO damage to the cylinder at all, guy gave me a brand new GM rod(he told me before hand that was the problem). I got an extra oilpan, a extra windage tray with a hole in it from the crank end of the rod, and a few other odds and ends. You were silly not to jump on it right then and there, I may have to eat ramen for a month but if someone rolled up and offered me that, they wouldn't be leaving with it. Like said above, if all parts were messed up, you could sell the oilpan and heads and make up for your losses then take the leftovers to the scrap yard and be a few bucks ahead. Oh damn you're in j-ville, who is the guy? What's he drive? Yellow T/A? Give me his number, I'll be down there spring break and pick up the stuff, I'll have a buddy go pick it up for now lol.
