Wednesday, March 16, 2011

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.

1 comment:

  1. Particularly important is the timing belt replacement because his break to overhaul the engine and huge costs.

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