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Enthusiast Joined Nov 28, '06 From NW Oregon Currently Offline Reputation: 0 (0%) ![]() |
Son called one day, said he's stuck on the freeway. It seems he has a loud knocking sound coming from the engine.
After doing a leakdown check (#3 and #4 cylinders looks suspicious) we pulled the heads. Shop said valves and the top end were fine; head gasket was not blown either. Engines has 125K miles on it. Upon cycling the pistons to TDC it seems we can push #4 DOWN about .020" at the start of the down stroke... this indicates piston pin or rod bearing problems. Soooo... thinking 'bout removing the rest of the engine and installing one of the "used, inspected/tested" Japanese pulls out of Seattle that they ship over. They have a 1 year unlimited milage warranty and you use your existing manifolds/engine-mounted accessories. I plan on replacing the timing belt, water pump and thermostat in the "new" engine when I install it. QUESTION - has anyone done a swap with one of the "used" engines? I'm pulling a 7AFE and replacing it with a 7AFE... don't want to go modding right now. Can this engine be pulled OUT THE TOP? I've dropped the tranny before to do a clutch and hate working under the thing in the pit; it looks like if I finish pulling the accessories off and yank the water pump I might just have enuff room to unbolt the engine and slide it to the left to get the transmission input shaft out of the motor. Any tips from someone who has been down this goat trail will be appreciated... |
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Enthusiast Joined Nov 28, '06 From NW Oregon Currently Offline Reputation: 0 (0%) ![]() |
Did the swap...
Unfortunately a 7AFE wasn't available, so I opted for the cheaper (and readily available ) 4AFE. Yes , I know it's a step down in displacement, but I have to get this project rolling and I don't have the bucks for a rebuilt engine... besides, nobody in the Pacific Northwest even HAD a rebuilt. Found a place in Portland, OR and picked up a good 4AFE for not much $$ w/ a 1-year, unlimited-milage warranty. ![]() Flywheel and clutch installed on "used" engine... beat-up oil filter will be replaced once it's installed: ![]() Once you have it down this far you really have no reason not to install a new timing belt; BTW, we also replaced the rear main oil seal and the crank seal (2-minute job with the engine sitting on the bench), and the valve cover seal and spark plug tube seals. ![]() The hole left by the dearly departed 7AFE - we pulled the engine from the top.. if I had to do it over again I'd have pulled the hubs, half-shafts, then taken the engine and tranny out the top as a set: ![]() Another view of the 4AFE w/ flywheel & clutch installed, ready to go in: ![]() Back together: ![]() A few notes: Make sure you have a shop manual, a digital camera, and plenty of tools and time. Don't transfer ANY of the old accessories or sensors off the engine you bought - use the ones that came off your engine. This includes the pulleys for the water pump, crank and idler arm. If you are putting a 4AFE in you will need to modify two brackets - the power steering pump adjustment arm needs to have the top bolt hole (where it bolts to the head) hogged out a bit (lengthened or made into a slot in the UP direction); same for the intake manifold support bracket - we slotted the mounting hole on the bottom of the bracket where it bolts to the engine block. Look at your distributor carefully - it only goes in one way. Matchmarks might help get you close, but use a timing light and follow the instruction on the sticker under your hood for the installation of the bypass jumper and timing. Most of these engines have a timing of 10 degrees BTDC; to make it easier to see w/a timing light strobe use a white paint pen to highlight your timing mark on the crank pulley. IF YOU HAVE AIR TOOLS, USE THEM; THEY WILL SAVE YOUR A$$ (and a lot of time) AS LONG AS YOU DON'T OVER-TORQUE/STRIP SOMETHING. Buy a torque wrench - learn how to use it. The car was test-driven and the engine runs excellent - to mainain the warranty you have to change the oil the first 200 miles, then every 2K (not a big deal, 15-minute job). I can certify the oil changes myself and the shop where bought the motor will honor the warranty... interesting thing - they said UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES TAKE YOUR CAR TO JIFFY LUBE OR WALLY WORLD - this will void their warranty. Hehe - guess they know what I've known for years... every rig I ever took to those places has oversized oil drain plugs from the flying monkies stripping them. Make sure you follow the "ECU Relearn procedure" so the computer figures out the new engine. When buying a timing belt, put matchmarks on the old belt and the pulleys; take the old belt in to the parts store and COUNT THE NUMBER OF TEETH as well as comparing length - it took the bozos at Schucks THREE TIMES to get it right, then I finally had to verify it myself. My partcular belt for the 4AFE was 117 teeth. One follow-up note - if you elect to pull the engine from the top w/out pulling the transmission, disconnect the shifter cables (this car has a C52 5-spd). Three of the four engine mounts are hooked to the tranny, only one really attaches to the engine. By the time you get all the mounts off and wrangle the tranny around pulling and re-installing the engine w/out removing the tranny you can tweak one of your shifer cables. That's what happened to us... now I'm waiting on a replacement cable... the problem showd up a couple of days after the car was back on the road. I'm confident this will fix the problem (difficult to get into 2nd-4th-reverse) . All in all I'm surprised how (relatively) easy it was... This post has been edited by Rangemaster: Dec 18, 2006 - 11:25 AM |
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