- Joined
- May 6, 2009
- Messages
- 39
- Reaction score
- 9
- Points
- 8
- Location
- NW AZ
- Vehicle Year
- 85
- Make / Model
- Ford
- Engine Type
- 2.8 V6
- Engine Size
- V6
- Transmission
- Manual
- 2WD / 4WD
- 4WD
I bought my Bronco II sometime around 2010 and it's been a great 2nd vehicle. I live in the desert and it's a great little offroader too...
On the way home from work last summer it stalled out on me (happens frequently when coming up to a stop sign) and I pop started it and something happened, loss of power and a rattle. I was less than a mile from the house and made it home ok.
Working on getting the engine pulled since it's not really possible to pull the oil pan and poke around. Already peeked under the valve covers and nothing obviously wrong. I figure the problem is probably something like a bad rod bearing, but it's all speculation until I can pull the 2.8.
I was reading about engine swaps and happened to find a 1974 302 on craigslist for 75 bucks (no intake manifold or carb). The guy said the engine would only rotate about a 1/4 turn and then it stopped. I bought it anyways and pulled the heads, the cylinders were pretty damn dirty (carbon buildup) but one had some rust on the valves and valve was stuck. Crankshaft rotated nicely with no heads on it... Squirted some oil on it and a couple of light taps with a mallet got it moving again, put the heads back on and now it all rotates like it should.
I'm not going to do much more than some cleaning on the 302 until I get the 2.8 pulled and opened up and find the problem. If it's gonna be a pricey rebuild I will most likely condemn that engine and put my money into the 302 instead and track down the parts I need to make it work with what I have. Based on the list of stuff on the 302 swap page it's not an overwhelming amount of stuff to find but I could be wrong! If the 2.8 looks like it's not too bad I will try to do a quick and dirty rebuild to give myself a little time to work on the 302 so I can drive it in the meantime. It's just a bit cheaper to drive around than a 3/4 ton diesel.
I was curious if anyone has been in a similar situation where their 2.8 crapped out on them and what they did (rebuild or swap in a different engine) and had some thoughts about pitfalls or things they wish they had known beforehand.
Thanks
On the way home from work last summer it stalled out on me (happens frequently when coming up to a stop sign) and I pop started it and something happened, loss of power and a rattle. I was less than a mile from the house and made it home ok.
Working on getting the engine pulled since it's not really possible to pull the oil pan and poke around. Already peeked under the valve covers and nothing obviously wrong. I figure the problem is probably something like a bad rod bearing, but it's all speculation until I can pull the 2.8.
I was reading about engine swaps and happened to find a 1974 302 on craigslist for 75 bucks (no intake manifold or carb). The guy said the engine would only rotate about a 1/4 turn and then it stopped. I bought it anyways and pulled the heads, the cylinders were pretty damn dirty (carbon buildup) but one had some rust on the valves and valve was stuck. Crankshaft rotated nicely with no heads on it... Squirted some oil on it and a couple of light taps with a mallet got it moving again, put the heads back on and now it all rotates like it should.
I'm not going to do much more than some cleaning on the 302 until I get the 2.8 pulled and opened up and find the problem. If it's gonna be a pricey rebuild I will most likely condemn that engine and put my money into the 302 instead and track down the parts I need to make it work with what I have. Based on the list of stuff on the 302 swap page it's not an overwhelming amount of stuff to find but I could be wrong! If the 2.8 looks like it's not too bad I will try to do a quick and dirty rebuild to give myself a little time to work on the 302 so I can drive it in the meantime. It's just a bit cheaper to drive around than a 3/4 ton diesel.
I was curious if anyone has been in a similar situation where their 2.8 crapped out on them and what they did (rebuild or swap in a different engine) and had some thoughts about pitfalls or things they wish they had known beforehand.
Thanks