Donuts & Pealouts

Hello. I'm starting a side business to help fund my way out the hood and start my family up?.

I've seen a niche market. As other have too. I will be pulling LS's from the junkyard and re selling them. But I want to be good at it, and I want to be able to give my customer a quality engine. I have a couple questions for the pros out there.

Some background about me. All my experience with engines is from a chevy 350 FI unit that was swapped to carb, I have all the tools for pulling engines, I took one class at the community college for auto tech ......

So my questions??

1. How can I get a junkyard moter to crank over so I can perform a compression test on it? Any links or videos will be helpfull.

2. How do you tell the difference between a 4.8 & a 5.3?

3. When separating it from the trans will it be just like a 350/th350 combo, as far as the bolts go in the bellhousinh?

4. Will it be Faster to pull the whole engine and trans then separate the two on the floor. Or will it be Faster to pull the engine strait and leaving the trans in place?

5. Besides a visual test on the plug, smelling the oil, and pulling valve covers to look for sludge what else can I test on it?

6. What size socket it mostly used on the removal?

7. What's the hardest nut to crack or access?

Thanks so much, and you don't have to answer all of my questions but to me the #1 question is the 1st one I asked about getting a compression test?

Thanks Everyone.
God Bless.

rpturbo

iTrader: (47)

Nothing is going to substitute experience. Part of it is your just going to have to get out there, and do it, but I can provide this:

Cranking over for a compression test is easy, your just providing 12 to the starter. Its a basic circuit. You need a good strong battery to check compression over all 8 cylinders.

The easiest way to tell the difference is either the RPO code in the glove box, or run the vin. I am not sure where your going to pull engines from, and make extra $ on them, but it can be done.

Separating the trans/engine is the same as a sbc/t350. Bell housing bolts, and torque converter bolts.

This is going to depend on each specific application. Vans/Yukons/Tahoes/2wd vs 4wd, they are all different, and each person will have their own preference. See my 1st statement.

You can do a leak down test.

Next, again, see statement #1. All personal preference. Depends on the tools, and the size of your hands/flexibility. Nothing substitutes for experience.

A word of advice, your always going to find someone who you just cant make happy. There is nothing you can do. You could give them a brand new LS3 525HP crate engine, and sell it to them for $400, and they will still say you ripped them off. You HAVE to find a way to part with them, and give them their money back, or they can destroy your good reputation. Its a tough business, and you will work your a$$ off and somedays, you'll loose $ and parts.

Donuts & Pealouts

Thanks for taking time out to help me. I appreciate your advice. I'm gonna go out there and get to work

JoeNova

1. At the junkyard? You better have a brand new battery with you.

2. Buy a cheap $5 ebay bore scope and stick in a spark plug hole. Assuming gen 3 iron block, flat tops will be 4.8 and dished will be 5.3. Works well if the RPO codes are gone.

4. Always been faster for me to pull the engine. If its a 4x4, take off the intake manifold to help get the oil pan to clear the front differential.

5. Pull the spark plugs and turn it over with a breaker bar. If it doesn't move, you don't want it.

6. 7mm to unbolt wiring harness from fuse panel or PCM. 8mm for intake manifold bolts, valve cover bolts, rocker arms, fuel rails, etc. 10mm, 13mm, 15mm for damn near everything else.

7. Torque converter bolts. If you try to separate the engine and trans in the vehicle and pull just the engine, this will be a PITA. You'll have to drop the starter, and constantly get out to spin the engine over to find access to the bolts. GM thought they were being funny and put some rounded head bolts in the torque converter that take an 8mm Allen wrench, and they almost always strip when breaking them loose. Just one of the reasons I prefer to pull the trans too.

G Atsma

To tag onto what JoeNove said(GOOD info Joe!) You would be ahead to ALWAYS get the tranny and ALL the electrical harnesses and sensors that go with the engine/trans. This way you are way ahead of the game and won't come up short on parts required for a swap(That will be a lot of your business) Best of luck and God bless you too!

dewchugr

Take a Milwaukee Sawzall.

rpturbo

iTrader: (47)

My local PAP has a torch service for $20 for up to 30 min. I have had them cut out a few engines. I use up every ounce of the 30 min, and 99% of the time, they cut everything loose as long as I have the engine hung on a lift to support it.

BTW, if you can't bring a sawzall, at least a battery powered impact driver, with a 3/8" socket adapter on it, will get the intake bolts/fuel rail off in a hurry.

Donuts & Pealouts

To cut what?

Donuts & Pealouts

My junkyards don't allow batteries. But I can take my 18volt drill. It's a Makita. Will that work? Will 18volts overload the circuit? Would I have to run a voltage regulator or something similar inline? And do you think that little lithium battery can handle all 8 cylinders. And how the heck do you rig the drill battery?
Is this the style you guys recommend?

Donuts & Pealouts

Thanks man keep your head in the Bible and your eyes on the prize.

Donuts & Pealouts

Can you please clarify what you wrote. I'm not being dumb just I don't get it, and read it over. In #4 you say it's easier for you to JUST pull the engine.
But in #7 you say (or I'm reading wrong) your saying pulling just the engine is a pain in the acura. Lol.
Please let me know.
And sound like the those torque converter allen bolts will be the most time consuming. What do I do if I strip one, or one is striped, how much pounds of torque do you think they are tightened to.

Donuts & Pealouts

Those torch service mean they let use the a saw for 30 mins? What all is included in that service?
I have a driver that's good news. Why would you want me to take the intake off? Would that be for me to check the valley? And did you mention the fuel rail because I would need to take that off to access the intake? I'm still tripping on the saw lol

JoeNova

Sorry, I meant to say pull engine and trans together. I'm almost always on my phone and probably got autocorrected or something.

Its hard to get to the bellhousing bolts and torque converter bolts with the trans in the vehicle. Remove the 2 trans mount bolts, cut the shift cable, and pull the trans too. Then you don't have to unplug with wires either.

If there is a transfer case attached, remove the entire trans crossmember. Still quick and easy.

Torque converter bolts will be tight if they've never been removed.

4EyedTurd1

iTrader: (1)

Sawzall for exhaust pipes because I haven't found the trick to unbolt the manifolds from the pipes. I think the torque converter bolts might have locktite on them

dewchugr

exhaust pipes, floor if you need, anything else that gets in the way.

tracetrimble

Get the PCM, entire harness (uncut if possible), all sensors, and gas pedal and harness for drive by wire donors. Don't mix & match parts with other donors - keep it all together as a package. I'd avoid 4x4 donors too - less demand and more hassle.

Also work on the marketing end - ebay, craigslist, the classifieds here, etc.

Donuts & Pealouts

thank everybody for helping me out. I'm planning a trip to the yard just to go practice on pulling them. If you like those exhaust pipes going to be pain. Anybody got any other tips besides Sawzall

G Atsma

When it comes to exhaust, keep what's right behind the manifolds, thru the converters, then SAWZALL!