Progress! Almost there.

One month later the swap is coming along nicely and is very close to completion.  I don't have hardly any pictures of the progress due to lack of access to a camera.  Therefore, the few pictures that I have are from my cell phone camera.  With a three day weekend coming up I'm hoping to be drive the car very soon.  I'd love to take it to Caffeine and Octane on the 5th. 

The Engine Has Arrived!

The has engine finally arrived and man is it clean.  Below is how it looked when I got it from the freight terminal and into my truck. 

Read more to see the progress I have made.

Gen3 Engine Ordered!

I paid $2000 shipped for a complete swap minus the transmission.  It should arrive Friday or next Monday.  Here are the pictures from the seller.  It has approximately 50-55k miles.  More pictures after the break.

Engine Swap Progress + New Parts

I went by Summit Racing to pickup their engine hoist.  It's somewhat pricey from the I have no more money left perspective but It is WELL worth it.  I will not be able to install the new gen3 engine without this, even though I was able to get old engine out without one.  I assembled the stand and went to work separating the gen2 from the transmission.  I'm doing this because I need to take it off to disassemble the gen2 so that I can part it out but I am reusing this transmission along with the clutch on the gen3 engine.

New Wing and Wire Tuck

The gen2 engine is completely removed from the car.  I spent some time putting the rear suspension and subframe back together.  Now the car is off of the jack stands and has become a rolling chassis.  I also "tucked" the body wiring harness.  This consists of taking the engine bay fuse box and relocating it into the trunk along with the igniter and ignition coil.  The aesthetic appeal is the only reason for hiding the wire harness.  It is still accessible in the trunk and if done properly, takes up no usable cargo volume.

Engine is out

I spent the better part of two nights dropping the engine out of the car.  I've linked to a couple of websites which walk through the process of removing the engine from an mkII mr2.  You'll notice that both sites use an engine hoist to lower the engine to the ground and one site even utilizes a 4 post lift to raise the car up.  I own neither of these useful pieces of equipment nor do I have garage space.  This makes the engine removal process trickier.  It is definitely not impossible but the order in which parts are removed is crucial.  At the very least 4 jack stands, two jacks, and cinder blocks or pieces of 2 by 4 or required.

Cylinder #4 Retired = Time for a Gen3

I discovered that cylinder #4 has a serious problem.  It is most likely a cracked or broken piston ring land.  A compression test showed 160psi but the leak down test indicated a 22% leakage.  There were no bubbles visible in the coolant fill neck nor was there leakage from an adjacent cylinder so that about rules out a broken head gasket.  No sound was coming from the intake pipes nor the exhaust pipes which can rule out the valves.  Along with the fact that it is a common failure point on MR2s, the symptoms and test results point to a broken ring land in cylinder #4.
      It was suggested to me that getting a complete engine swap would be the most cost effective choice.  A rebuild requires lots of work at a machine shop plus the labor from a knowledgeable engine builder who can be hard to find locally.  These labor costs can quickly add up to more than a swap.  Also with a complete swap, I have a 90 day start up warranty and I get a complete set of engine components including the wiring harness.  I have my suspicions with the harness that was on my engine.  This also gives me a unique situation where I can sell good parts from my engine to help fund the swap.  My CT27 was recently rebuild and has 0 miles on it.  These are worth $800 in this condition.  With a rebuild, all costs come out of pocket.  With either choice the blown engine needs to be removed and the new engine installed.  This labor cost is only avoidable if I complete the work myself.  Hopefully a friends shop will be available and I can save over $1000!
     I have decided on a gen3 swap which I can get for $2100 shipped to my door from a well known MR2 specialty shop.  This does not include the transmission because I will be reusing the current LSD transmission that is in the car.  Going this route means I have put all of the good engine parts from my gen2 up for sale on MR2OC.com.  I've already made several sales and I'm well on my way to purchasing the gen3 swap.
     When the engine arrives, I will be doing some preventative maintenance while it is out of the car.  This is the best time to do a few part and gasket replacements because of the ample room.  With the engine inside of the car, some tasks are almost impossible without removing a long list of parts.  Some of the things I plan to buy before installing the gen3 are:
UPDATE: After figuring up the costs, I've had to revise my list.

-Spark Plug Wire Set (includes plastic cover) $76.93
-Distributor Cap Seal $2.77
-Distributor Rotor $7.37
-Distributor Cap $40.00
-HFH and HFHOE both are $13.00 each
-Water Pump $132.16
-Timing belt idler $104.44
-Timing belt tensioner $48.09
-ATS Timing Belt Replacement Kit includes ($104)
-----Timing Belt
-----Cam Seals
-----Crank Seal
-----Oil pump shaft seal
-----Oil pump O-ring
-----Both valve cover gaskets
-Have fuel injectors cleaned and flow tested by Witchunter $80.00
Stay tuned for more updates.  I am shooting for an early May install date but I hope to receive the engine a little before then so I can get started.