Engine Rebuild

[Kizzle]

Hey guys, I took my 85 ranger 2.8 to get some oil leaks checked out. It’s leaking pretty bad but only when driving. They said the valves and some other seals are leaking pretty bad and the truck is taking oil in the intake. It idles poorly. They recommended I get it rebuilt. Getting a quote from a machine shop soon.
This truck only has 105,000 miles but did sit for a while, it also still has the original carb and EFI situation. The truck is rust free and everything else is in great shape. Just looking for some advice on whether this is a good idea to do the rebuild and if I should go ahead and do the Duraspark conversion at the same time.

 

[MikeG]

Well it isn't going to leak less oil over time... so.....

If it's the valve guides, then you just need the heads rebuilt. No way to know without pulling the heads off, although a compression test might yield some insight.

 

[Kizzle]

Ha right. Yea they said the compression was off. I know I was seeing oil coming out of a lot of places or could oil just be leaking from the heads and getting everywhere?

 

[Kizzle]

Sry I just spoke with the mechanic he said it’s the pistons that are shot...

 

[Kizzle]

New here, have to get my lingo straight.

 

[Shran]

"Pistons are shot" is not a diagnosis. Is that what he said, in his exact words or is that your translation?

From your first post it is possible that it's tired and has some blow by. I'd be shocked if it didn't. But I'm concerned about what your mechanic allegedly said... someone with experience would say "you've got low compression on 1, 3 and 6, you have oil leaking past the valve seals, your plugs indicate excess oil consumption, etc.................."

I'm just trying to get the whole story... I've met a few backwoods tweakers who could do a half ass spray paint job on a rusty engine block and call it rebuilt. Would hate for that to be the case here.

 

[Kizzle]

That was definitely my translation, It’s a Hispanic mechanic shop so there’s a little language barrier. They are very honest and do great work. I specifally remember him saying things about rings and pistons Being worn and oil mixing with the gas which is why the truck has a hard time starting and remaining in idle but once it is heated up it is able to burn off the oil and rides better... He said they pull out engines all the time and there is a machine shop on the same block that does quality work as well and they take it to them...
As for oil consumption I probably had put in 5 quarts in the last 3000 miles, (since the last oil change)

 

[RobbieD]

Having an engine properly rebuilt is not the simplest of jobs, and it's not inexpensive.

They are very honest and do great work.

You seem to comfortable that you're dealing with a good garage that's honest and does good work. They are out there, but there's also a lot of places that aren't. I hope that you've got a good one.

I specifally remember him saying things about rings and pistons Being worn and oil mixing with the gas which is why the truck has a hard time starting and remaining in idle but once it is heated up it is able to burn off the oil and rides better... He said they pull out engines all the time and there is a machine shop on the same block that does quality work as well and they take it to them...

On a major and expensive job such as an engine rebuild, it's always a good idea to get in writing what will be done, how much it will cost, and what the warranty will be. For example, "pistons are shot" makes it sound like you're looking at a set of new oversize pistons and the block being bored.

I also would hate to see you hand over a lot of hard-earned cash and get a half-assed rebuild back. Or worse, going down a rabbit hole where your motor gets taken apart, and then more and more "needed" things come up which keeps jacking up the rebuild cost.

An honest, good garage shouldn't have any problem giving you a written estimate.

And again, just my opinion, but if it were me I'd do the Duraspark conversion before rebuilding the engine. If it's converted and working properly before the engine is pulled, it'll work with rebuilt engine and there's no chance of screwing up your rebuild warranty by "modifying" the truck on a newly rebuilt engine. There'll be a lot less crap in the engine bay, and you'll get some experience on the truck before pulling the motor.

 

[Tim russell]

Having an engine properly rebuilt is not the simplest of jobs, and it's not inexpensive.



You seem to comfortable that you're dealing with a good garage that's honest and does good work. They are out there, but there's also a lot of places that aren't. I hope that you've got a good one.



On a major and expensive job such as an engine rebuild, it's always a good idea to get in writing what will be done, how much it will cost, and what the warranty will be. For example, "pistons are shot" makes it sound like you're looking at a set of new oversize pistons and the block being bored.

I also would hate to see you hand over a lot of hard-earned cash and get a half-assed rebuild back. Or worse, going down a rabbit hole where your motor gets taken apart, and then more and more "needed" things come up which keeps jacking up the rebuild cost.

An honest, good garage shouldn't have any problem giving you a written estimate.

And again, just my opinion, but if it were me I'd do the Duraspark conversion before rebuilding the engine. If it's converted and working properly before the engine is pulled, it'll work with rebuilt engine and there's no chance of screwing up your rebuild warranty by "modifying" the truck on a newly rebuilt engine. There'll be a lot less crap in the engine bay, and you'll get some experience on the truck before pulling the motor.

Just had mine rebuilt via its a 74 block so smaller cam journals and a diffrent water pump. If you are doing a stock rebuild they have kits but if you up grade to performance stuff the price goes crazy especially looking for some parts.74 2.8l weir

Having an engine properly rebuilt is not the simplest of jobs, and it's not inexpensive.



You seem to comfortable that you're dealing with a good garage that's honest and does good work. They are out there, but there's also a lot of places that aren't. I hope that you've got a good one.



On a major and expensive job such as an engine rebuild, it's always a good idea to get in writing what will be done, how much it will cost, and what the warranty will be. For example, "pistons are shot" makes it sound like you're looking at a set of new oversize pistons and the block being bored.

I also would hate to see you hand over a lot of hard-earned cash and get a half-assed rebuild back. Or worse, going down a rabbit hole where your motor gets taken apart, and then more and more "needed" things come up which keeps jacking up the rebuild cost.

An honest, good garage shouldn't have any problem giving you a written estimate.

And again, just my opinion, but if it were me I'd do the Duraspark conversion before rebuilding the engine. If it's converted and working properly before the engine is pulled, it'll work with rebuilt engine and there's no chance of screwing up your rebuild warranty by "modifying" the truck on a newly rebuilt engine. There'll be a lot less crap in the engine bay, and you'll get some experience on the truck before pulling the motor.

Just had mine rebuilt. If your going to rebuild they have kits but if you want performance parts then fiding parts is hard find and gets expensive.
Weisco forged pistons
Schneider cam. Port and polished heads
2.9l valves offy 4bbl intake to a 2bbl carb converter to a holley sniper 2300.

 

[19Walt93]

No shop can give you an accurate estimate until the engine is apart so they can know what it will need. 2.8's had frequent valve cover leaks which are easy to fix. At 105,000 miles I would plan on new timing gears, the nylon teeth on the cam gear usually end up in the oil pan at about 100k. As stated, an engine rebuild is an expensive process but it should yield a better result than some of the remans out there. If it's done properly, it's possible for a good, honest guy to get in over his head. Ask questions. If they give you a ball park estimate before teardown you should expect the number to change once they have it apart.

 

[Tim russell]

Yeah so my rebuilb.74 block stayed with standard crank bearings ended up using the cam and valve springs cause the motor had been rebuilt and it had a Schneider turbo cam and dual springs. Found some 9 to 1 .030 weisco forged race pistons all metal timing set port polished the heads had 2.9l valves put in a 4bbl offenhauser intake ( having to trim my valve covers were they sit on the manifold so they will seal properly. Then I went with a sniper 2300 on a conversion plate. Got a dura spark 2 distributor sprung for the motor profile and brass shimmed. Running threw an msd 6 efi ignition. Timed it yesterday with the valve covers off thats how I found out about the valve covers hitting the intake manifold.

 

[Tim russell]

Glad I caught it b4 I start it

 

[Tim russell]

So upon further investigating and looking at other offey intakes it looks mine wasn't machined all the way were the valve cover sits

 

[kimcrwbr1]

Hey guys, I took my 85 ranger 2.8 to get some oil leaks checked out. It’s leaking pretty bad but only when driving. They said the valves and some other seals are leaking pretty bad and the truck is taking oil in the intake. It idles poorly. They recommended I get it rebuilt. Getting a quote from a machine shop soon.
This truck only has 105,000 miles but did sit for a while, it also still has the original carb and EFI situation. The truck is rust free and everything else is in great shape. Just looking for some advice on whether this is a good idea to do the rebuild and if I should go ahead and do the Duraspark conversion at the same time.

These little engines are bulletproof. If it running good just pull the intake manifold and replace the gasket. It leaks oil out of the valleys between the block and heads. You can change the valve guide seals without pulling the heads the old seals turn to powder. There is a write up in the tech library for replacing the valve guide seals I used a palm spring compresser you can have if you pay for shipping. Intake manifold, valve guides and valve cover gaskets is all you need for the upper end. The rear main could be an issue easy enough to change if you drop the tranny. Before you pull the timing change cover do the engine a favor and flush the block. Just pull the water pump and with a high pressure hose flush the rust out of the block until no rust comes out. If that is the stock engine the valve guide seals are gone. The biggest improvement to my 2.8 is putting the thermostat in the intake manifold. There is a two piece thermostat housing fo the intake that was put on the 85 engines with air conditioning just plug the bypass fitting on the intake and run it from the thermostat housing.

 

[kimcrwbr1]

Sry I just spoke with the mechanic he said it’s the pistons that are shot...

There is no shop around gonna have the knowledge to get it running good even after a rebuild. If you have the time i would recommend fixing the oil leaks ad do the duraspark upgrade. That alone will bring that engine back to life.