Engine Rebuild

[will it sho?]

Hey all,
I've had my 92 for about a year now. I've always had problems with burning oil. Originally I thought it was the rear main seal. I had that replaced and I'm still going through a quart of oil every fill up. Some people that I have talked to recommend just finding another SHO. But to a guy who looked almost two years to find the SHO he has now, those are just not the words I want to hear. I'm a college student and will be definitely be making some money this summer. I've thought about maybe doing the rebuild myself. Back home, I know a few people who could help me out. I'm pretty sure it's got to be the piston rings, so it's probably going to be one **** of a job.
I was just wondering what your thoughts are. I love my car and have already put a bit of money into it already. The oil problem is the only major thing I have, everything else is in pretty decent shape. Thanks for reading the long post.

Paul

Also, has any one here successfully rebuilt an SHO motor before? If so, how were the results?

<small>[ February 19, 2004, 10:03 PM: Message edited by: will it sho? ]</small>

 

[Mr Anonymous]

A SHO motor rebuild is no more or less difficult than any other motor as far as I'm concerned, but IMHO, it may be more economical to find another motor (maybe even a 3.2) and rebuild it over time and that way when you do decide to do it, your car is down for the shortest amount of time. Good used motors can be readily found in the $200-$500 range, and figure about $500-$700 in rebuild parts depending on how far you decide to take it. Then your wallet isn't hit for everything at once and you can do things one at a time when your budget permits.

Honestly, if the car is running well and is just burning oil, it's probably cheaper just to keep the oil level up until you have to do something.

FWIW, you'll want to do a compression and leak down test to figure out where the oil is going. It could be valve stem seals which can be done with the engine still in the car. You should also check your front main seal, cam seals, valve cover and plug well seals to make sure they're not contributing to the oil loss.

 

[Woodyb1]

I am moving back to Michigan and would love to help you....Virginia your home state?

 

[will it sho?]

Virginia is home for me. But I go to SMU in Dallas, Texas. So I will be here until May. Thanks for the offer.

 

[will it sho?]

Virginia is home for me. But I go to SMU in Dallas, Texas. So I will be here until May. Thanks for the offer.

I have also been giving a lot of thought to buying another motor. I do a lot of my shopping on ebaymotors, so I run into those 200-500 price range motors. I think I will definitely probably get one to have as an extra early this summer.

Paul

 

[will it sho?]

Mr. Anonymous,
Where do you get those compression tests done? Also, I'm under warranty from the place where I had the rear main installed. I will have them check their work out as soon as I return to Virginia. I know the mechanic pretty well and I usually just call him up to ask questions and all. He said that it may be possible that the seal may not be fitting properly.
One thing that is interesting, I can smell oil by the front wheel wells after running the motor for a while. I encountered the same thing even before I had the rear main seal job done. My thinking was that maybe oil is still leaking somewhere and getting on to the exhaust system. Let me know what you think.

 

[sdpatt]

Paul, I can do a compression test for you. I have a tester.

 

[SonicRiot]

By every fill-up, you mean what, exactly? Are you burning .5-1 QT every 3-5k miles? If so, this is normal and nothing to worry about. It is just an old engine with high compression that loves oil.

And if you do the rebuild, get a 3.2L block and bore it to 3.3L (or 3.4L if you are a risk taker). You can also stroke it to 3.6 or 3.8L for one STRONG N/A setup.

Personally, if I could afford it, I'd get the 3.2L and bore it to 3.3L and make it a screamer and then dump it in when I'm done. That way, the car would only be down for a weekend, broken in by the next weekend, and then getting tuned and flogged at the track in a matter of 3 weeks!

Good luck.

 

[Rockledge]

If it were me, I would take Scott (sdpatt) up on his offer to poke his well-informed head under the hood of my SHO and help me out with a compression test. Then I would respectfully request his opinion on the results of that test, as well as anything else he cared to comment on...

 

[will it sho?]

Hey Scott! Glad to hear from you. I hope your trip is going well. I would like to do that compression test when you get back.

Rockledge, I know exactly where you are coming from. Scott has already helped me out a number of things and it's been first-rate. thumb

Paul

 

[AutoSHO]

will it sho?:

One thing that is interesting, I can smell oil by the front wheel wells after running the motor for a while. I encountered the same thing even before I had the rear main seal job done. My thinking was that maybe oil is still leaking somewhere and getting on to the exhaust system. Let me know what you think.

Sounds like a possible Front Main Seal or front pan gasket leak.

I definately would let Scott take care of your troubles. All he will ask in return is money!

 

[Zap]

Engine leaks a ton of oil, and around and in the bay smells like oil after going for a drive, eh?

Take your hand and run it along the bottom of the camshaft position sensor (CID). It is the round, black sensor with a wiring harness on the passenger side of the engine, near the firewall. If your hand is all oily when you pull it back out from under there, you have a camshaft seal leaking. My leaky cam seal on the '95 eats up a ton of oil. It drips on the exhaust and the engine, and burns off, thus giving the engine bay a noticable oily smell. That is why, as soon as she's back on the ground from having the clutch job finished, that I will be changing the camshaft seal!