Leaky headgasket, chatty rods, 335K. Gonna have to buck up and build it or kill it. Looking for:
A solid 4YE or info on how much it's gonna get me to rebuild it myself.
As an option, a 3YEC sounds like a do-able swap but with loss of power.
Ideas?
Leaky headgasket, chatty rods, 335K. Gonna have to buck up and build it or kill it. Looking for:
A solid 4YE or info on how much it's gonna get me to rebuild it myself.
As an option, a 3YEC sounds like a do-able swap but with loss of power.
Ideas?
I have a 4y in a wrecked van (89 LE auto 4wd). It has about 175k miles on it and is supposed to be good (it was obviously running when the van got t-boned). I already took the gas tank and the transmission out (both were good) and the front suspension is gone. I would want $300 for what's left of the whole van (it's getting pretty stripped), or $400 for just the motor (if you want it pulled and ready to load). I can load it for you with my forklift when you get here. PM me if you're interested. I have title in hand. Tim
Sweet, thanks for the quick message. Any issues with Auto/5sp difference in motor? More/less power or economy? That makes it pretty easy on me, though the 175K makes me gulp a little. Anything you would do to it other than standard clutch/pp/flywheel attention?
You've got mail.
I had plans for that engine, but since we've decided to move I doubt I'll have time for the project I was going to use it for. The block, head, power, and economy are the same on both. There are differences with some of the other "bolt on" parts, but those can be swapped from your old to this one. Since yours is an 87 & mine is an 89, the intake manifold along with the injectors will need to be swapped over (just swap the manifold, fuel rail, injectors as an assembly). You will also want to swap and re-use your existing coolant filler neck with it's sensors. You could put the 89 stuff in your 87, but then you'd need to change out the ECU and rework your engine harness. That's more trouble than it's worth, so I'd just stick with the 87 stuff. As far as auto vs manual, the auto has an oil cooler mounted under the oil filter. It has engine coolant routed to it from the bypass port AKA "hose of death port" on the back of the head. I guess they thought the automatics needed it, but that doesn't make a lot of sense because it gets cooled by the engine's cooling system.........and we all know just how trouble free that system is. The oil cooler and the bypass parts could probably get left on there, but for simplicity's sake, I'd probably just swap that stuff out with the components from your manual trans configuration. After that, there's just the flywheel and pilot bearing, but you probably already knew about that stuff.
FWIW, I transplanted the automatic transmission that was in that van and it was nice and tight. I know nothing about that van's history other than a carfax report, but everything else I took off of it was in good working condition.
If you think you want the whole van you'll need to bring a flat-bed with you. All the front suspension and wheels are gone, but I can pick up the whole thing with my big tractor and put it on the trailer for you. Tim
Forklift, Big Tractor, 13 TVs??? Oh man Tim,,, you've got a killer playground for grown up kids!!!
"When the power of love overcomes the love of power, the world will know peace." - Jimi Hendrix
Yeah, well it's all getting liquidated for the move. I do enjoy playing with the stuff, but you can end up being a slave to it as well. Everything mechanical breaks at some point and the older stuff needs constant attention. When I do get time off from work, the last thing I want to do is change a head gasket or a magneto on an old tractor. So often times the stuff sits broken, then when I really need it (like right this instant), I need to fix before I can use. Frankly I think I'll be glad to be rid of a lot of the stuff........then my free time will be just that. Tim
Noooooo, say it isn't so! I thought you lived where a vortex existed that caused mechanical devices to fix themselves and TVs to gravitate towards.Originally Posted by timsrv
I hear ya on the weight caused by having to take care of multiple "toys." Guess I'll end the thread hijack here.
"When the power of love overcomes the love of power, the world will know peace." - Jimi Hendrix
I figured this would be a good place to document yotamog's engine swap so I'm posting some pics of it coming out of my parts van. I took the passenger side door off the van, rigged the chain/hook on my cherry picker to the lowest setting & set the chain up on the engine with very little slack. Here it is before lifting:
I knew it was going to be a tight squeeze, but wasn't sure just how tight until I got to the door opening:
Check it out.......close-ups of the top & bottom of the door frame:
It came right out without any contact with the van body:
Here's the engine after a solvent wash:
Yotamog came by the next day and I loaded it into his Sprinter van with my Toyota forklift......and yes, my forklift also happens to be powered by a 4y).
Anyhow, it will be interesting to see how this project comes along. Yotamog has agreed to take some pics and document the engine swap here in this thread.
Thanks for the photos, Tim. I have so many good excuses for not starting yet, maybe I could just share a couple...Like DeNiro said, "I gotta get organizized!"
Yeikes! That was a close shave. Guess that's the way mine is gonna go too. The van repair manual says to lift 3 feet, mmmmKay...
Got any ideas on engine stands? Trying to find a couple to beg, borrow or steal.
Last edited by YOTAMOG; 12-07-2010 at 12:43 AM.
I would have sold you one for $40. You should have said something when you were here(I ended up with an extra one when I bought my cherry picker). Let me know if you're coming back down this way and we'll make it happen. They are kind of heavy so shipping would be a waste.
I would only lift the van just so you have access enough to crawl under there to remove stuff, then use a cherry picker through the passenger door like I did. Unless you have a hoist/rack, picking the van up 4' isn't practical. Good luck and keep us posted. Tim
Not going that way anytime soon...
I like your new avatar. I want one of those for Christmas!!!
Tim, do you think it will be easier to pull the trans before removing the engine or is there room enough with radiator and such removed? I think the donor van trans was gone, right?
I had previously pulled the automatic transmission on this donor van. You don't need to completely remove your tranny, but you'll need to remove all the bolts from the bell-housing and support the front with a jack or something. Move the engine straight forward until the input shaft on the transmission clears the pressure plate, then you can lift and remove the engine. With the manual transmission I will usually pull with the flywheel, clutch, and pressure plate still attached to the engine. If you want the tranny out too, then drop it out from underneath before pulling the engine. There's definitely not enough room to pull the engine up through the top with the tranny attached. Tim
PS: I want to see pictures!
Glad I didn't tear it down yet, got my big van and trailer with 2500 lbs of sod super stuck today in the back yard- wife asks for a garden, she gets a garden. Sorry, no photos available for that mess. Just 8" deep ruts to fill.
Last edited by YOTAMOG; 05-03-2011 at 11:09 AM.
Okay Tim, here we go! A couple images for the beginning: Engine bay with most lines clear, now to unbolt and hoist. Was pretty intimidated with this project for the obvious reason of access but once I started simply clearing stuff out of the way it gets easier to see the remainder. Hope the rest goes this smoothly. And a shot of a successful broken exhaust stud extraction!
Awesome! I'll be watching with interest. I'll be doing this same job on one here soon. Tim
A successful day- engine came out without much struggle (that hidden bolt behind the clutch hydraulic made me scratch my head for a bit). And those pesky injector-clip-connectors! I split the loom lengthwise and clipped them, butt connectors later... You probably have a secret technique from your years of effort on these rigs, right? Right.
Using a similar setup as Tim, you can see the hook attached without any chain links to the arm of the hoist.
With minimum clearance over the valve cover by the chain, like you said Tim, there was at least an inch above and below the engine on the way out the door. E-Z squee-Z.
The worst part was navigating the hoist casters over the nasty cold joint and flatwork on the floor. Screed it and call 'er good, boys!
Now I have them lined up (borrowed stands) and swapping parts will continue tomorrow. I thought about just plugging the end of that cooler line on back of the head as you suggested, Tim, instead I went for the quick swap- glad I did because there is no gasket on that plate and the sealant on the replacement motor was iffy. No more "hose of death port" worries for me.
Had to make a run to the hardware store for those m12x90x1.25's- 3 bucks per bolt, ouch!
If you splice, do it with solder & shrink tubing or put high quality waterproof connectors there (Like Delphi or Weatherpack). Regular butt connectors are not recommended. I used to remove the top half of the intake manifold to undo the injector connections, but anymore I usually just cut the harness where it goes from the van body over to the engine, then build a new injector harness with a removable connection point. Here's a picture:
Looks like you're making good progress.........almost 1/2 done! Good luck with the rest. Tim
Ahh, yes, much better technique. And what about torque on those upper-inner manifold nuts? Pretty hard to get an accurate read with a universal on a long extension.
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