Finally Found A Remanufactured Engine!
- Thread starter Paul Land
- Start date
Following this thread as my 4.0 just blew a rod bearing and sounds really freaking bad. You can check my post history.
I just got off the phone with S& J and got the same message about needing a core and about 17 weeks of build time! yikes! I also called russ for some knowledge about rebuilding but he's only doing stroker kits at the moment, and that's more than what i want to pay.
I think i'm going to call Titan and get an order in.
If i had my own garage i think id rip this shit out myself and put in a new one. But apartment living doesn't offer that convenience.
@ArmyRN let me know how youre being quoted on installs. I'm in socal so im starting to call around. ill post up what i'm offered.
I just got off the phone with S& J and got the same message about needing a core and about 17 weeks of build time! yikes! I also called russ for some knowledge about rebuilding but he's only doing stroker kits at the moment, and that's more than what i want to pay.
I think i'm going to call Titan and get an order in.
If i had my own garage i think id rip this shit out myself and put in a new one. But apartment living doesn't offer that convenience.
@ArmyRN let me know how youre being quoted on installs. I'm in socal so im starting to call around. ill post up what i'm offered.
One place was$1600 but was a one man shop and he was booked way out. The place I'm going to quoted $2300 with tax. It is a larger shop that has done engine replacements. I want it done local so if there are any issues I can hopefully get them resolved quickly.
I could probably do it myself if I had to. I built this Jeep other than the axle gears. I've had the transfer case apart doing the SYE and 2WLow thing - I'm not afraid to dive in and get dirty. But this one I'm farming out.
I could probably do it myself if I had to. I built this Jeep other than the axle gears. I've had the transfer case apart doing the SYE and 2WLow thing - I'm not afraid to dive in and get dirty. But this one I'm farming out.
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Just got off the phone with John and paid the balance. Engine is done and ready to ship. I ordered it on 24 Jan, so that's what... nine days to build and package up. He figures five days for it to get out here (SW WA) once it gets picked up by the carrier.
And my new JLU has been built and should start being shipped soon. It is still too close to call which Jeep I'll be driving first - TJ or JLU. Will keep you posted on how the install goes.
And my new JLU has been built and should start being shipped soon. It is still too close to call which Jeep I'll be driving first - TJ or JLU. Will keep you posted on how the install goes.
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That sounds good. I’m still deciding between Titan and ATK. Leaning on getting an ATK just because they offer premium warranty - granted for money.
I got a local shop who quoted me about 1k in labor. That’s engine out and engine in.
Costs goes up if I need to transfer parts which is yes that will happen.
So right now my plan is to get an engine from whomever, and buy a bunch of parts I want replaced so he isn’t wasting time stripping my old engine.
I put an ATK in mine back in 2010. Been running great since. No regrets. At the time, I was able to work with them direct. They were easy to work with and communicate with. I heard that, since then, you have to go through a distributor. Not sure if that is true or not.
This is currently true. I made some phone calls this week.
ATK has a performance division that you can order directly from. Like Stroker engines.
But if you want a regular reman engine then you gotta go through a whole seller like autozone.
Autozone has my ATK engine with new oil pan and timing chain cover for 2,399.00. Free shipping
410$ refundable core charge
4yr warranty
But delivery date is April 1st. I want to call ATK on Monday to get more info.
I've got a tracking number. The engine is in GA right now. But the site says they're currently having inclement weather. Estimated delivery date is 13 Feb.
And today is the 13th... and the shop called me to tell me the engine arrived. So we got the Jeep there this afternoon. It might be done by the end of the week - we'll see. Most likely next week though.
Also got a text this weekend that my new JLU shipped, with an estimated arrival date of 6 March. Don't know if that means to the Portland central distribution hub, or to the dealer. Either way, I'm thinking I'll be driving the TJ before I'll be driving the new JLU.
Also got a text this weekend that my new JLU shipped, with an estimated arrival date of 6 March. Don't know if that means to the Portland central distribution hub, or to the dealer. Either way, I'm thinking I'll be driving the TJ before I'll be driving the new JLU.
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I saw gaskets in the tub. Hopefully they're all there. The exhaust manifold I bought also came with a gasket.
I went by to visit the TJ in the shop yesterday (and to drop off two heater core hoses that finally came in). The shop foreman told me when they drained the oil, they got a ton of coolant too. I figured they would from the strong coolant smell I got when the engine went, and the billowing white smoke that was coming out (I was putting down quite a smoke screen). I asked him if there's any chunks of metal in the oil pan to save them for me (photo op). They've got the front wheels off so the front of the Jeep is lower to make it easier to get to stuff (my Jeep does sit a little high). I thought that was smart.
I also sent an email to Titan asking for more info on the RV cam they install (like who makes it, part #, etc.) in these 2.5 engines. I figured someone (besides me) would be interested. Here's his response:
We have these cams specially ground by Schreider Racing Cams, 448/448 lift
I have no idea the specs of the factory cam, and I've never gone cam-shopping for one. But in the 2.5 world, folks are always wondering what they can do to make more power from these little four-cylinder engines (other than the knee-jerk response "swap it out for a larger engine") in the normal use RPMs (in my book that means off-idle to about 3500 RPMs). The only thing I'd done to mine before this was add a heavier Centerforce flywheel (think inertia ring).
The foreman also suggested replacing the radiator while they had it out. It IS 25 years old. I told him to go for it. I wish I had thought of it - I would have added it to my Rock Auto parts shopping list.
I also sent an email to Titan asking for more info on the RV cam they install (like who makes it, part #, etc.) in these 2.5 engines. I figured someone (besides me) would be interested. Here's his response:
We have these cams specially ground by Schreider Racing Cams, 448/448 lift
I have no idea the specs of the factory cam, and I've never gone cam-shopping for one. But in the 2.5 world, folks are always wondering what they can do to make more power from these little four-cylinder engines (other than the knee-jerk response "swap it out for a larger engine") in the normal use RPMs (in my book that means off-idle to about 3500 RPMs). The only thing I'd done to mine before this was add a heavier Centerforce flywheel (think inertia ring).
The foreman also suggested replacing the radiator while they had it out. It IS 25 years old. I told him to go for it. I wish I had thought of it - I would have added it to my Rock Auto parts shopping list.
I went and visited the Jeep yesterday. The engine is out. Ouch. Ugly.
Looks like the #2 piston disintegrated. Lots of chunks of metal. In picture #3 you can see a valve head. I'm pretty sure there should be a piston blocking my view there.
They hope to have it done next week. Also getting a new pully tensioner, a new harmonic balancer (the old one has a score where the seal contacts it), and a new belt. It will be nice when it is done, but the costs are adding up.
Looks like the #2 piston disintegrated. Lots of chunks of metal. In picture #3 you can see a valve head. I'm pretty sure there should be a piston blocking my view there.
They hope to have it done next week. Also getting a new pully tensioner, a new harmonic balancer (the old one has a score where the seal contacts it), and a new belt. It will be nice when it is done, but the costs are adding up.
Looks like the whole piston exploded! Thankfully mine just broke the side of the skirt off
I asked a question of Titan engines, and here's the response:
| Question: | With the long blocks (in my case the 2.5 98 Jeep engine), what do you do when rebuild the heads? |
| Answer: | It varies depending on the condition of the cylinder head. The universal experience that every head will go through: new springs, Magnaflux, seats cut, heads are decked for a new surface for the gasket, and pressure checked. Depending on the head, it might need new bolts & new threads. The valves are cleaned and cut unless they need to be completely replaced with new valves. |
They showed me the oil pan. It is intact, but there's a few little dents where the busted engine parts were hitting it on the inside.
The engine is in, and they did the break-in procedure. Everything went well. I got to hear it run - sounds nice. Should (hopefully) be able to pick it up Monday. They wanted it one more day to check for leaks and such.
The old exhaust manifold wasn't cracked, but it looked like it was leaking a bit at the gasket. Glad I got a new manifold (it wasn't expensive).
They ran the intake manifold through their parts cleaner, cleaned out the throttle body, and ran the injectors through their injector cleaning machine. This thing should be running like new! I'm hoping anyways. It wasn't running bad before all this happened. It is the 2.5, so I didn't have high power expectations. Now with a "new" engine with a mild cam, I'm wondering if I'll notice anything different when driving it.
The original install estimate with taxes was around $2300. That was before they started ordering new parts (which I told them to do if anything looked questionable or if while they had it out just put a new part on). Right now it looks like it'll be closer to $3000 or a little more. I'm like "whatever - I just want my Jeep back and not to have to mess with anything under the hood for a long long time". But I'm glad they're taking their time and we're replacing questionable parts and cleaning things up as they go along and overall seem to be "doing it right". Pay once cry once... do it right the first time. This isn't my daily driver.
So once it is all said-and-done, I'm figuring I'll have around $6,000 into this whole engine thing. Ouch. It adds up. I planned on keeping this TJ for a long time before this all happened. Now I really plan on keeping it for a long time!
Here's the place that's doing the install:
https://northwestautospecialist.com/
We'll be sending back the old engine, but I doubt I'll be getting much back for the core. The block is cracked on the inside. Their words were "there's window inside the block now". I figured as much with all the coolant mixed with the oil. I've got a new radiator (it looked like the old one might have been starting to leak in the bottom corner), and they flushed out the heater core till it came out clear.
And my new 2023 JLU Jeep? It is in Portland (OR) at their central collection hub. The dealer figures 10 days or so from there to get to the dealership (the dealership has no control over when it gets to them). So early March is our best guess.
So the original question of which jeep will I be driving first? Looks like the TJ.
The engine is in, and they did the break-in procedure. Everything went well. I got to hear it run - sounds nice. Should (hopefully) be able to pick it up Monday. They wanted it one more day to check for leaks and such.
The old exhaust manifold wasn't cracked, but it looked like it was leaking a bit at the gasket. Glad I got a new manifold (it wasn't expensive).
They ran the intake manifold through their parts cleaner, cleaned out the throttle body, and ran the injectors through their injector cleaning machine. This thing should be running like new! I'm hoping anyways. It wasn't running bad before all this happened. It is the 2.5, so I didn't have high power expectations. Now with a "new" engine with a mild cam, I'm wondering if I'll notice anything different when driving it.
The original install estimate with taxes was around $2300. That was before they started ordering new parts (which I told them to do if anything looked questionable or if while they had it out just put a new part on). Right now it looks like it'll be closer to $3000 or a little more. I'm like "whatever - I just want my Jeep back and not to have to mess with anything under the hood for a long long time". But I'm glad they're taking their time and we're replacing questionable parts and cleaning things up as they go along and overall seem to be "doing it right". Pay once cry once... do it right the first time. This isn't my daily driver.
So once it is all said-and-done, I'm figuring I'll have around $6,000 into this whole engine thing. Ouch. It adds up. I planned on keeping this TJ for a long time before this all happened. Now I really plan on keeping it for a long time!
Here's the place that's doing the install:
https://northwestautospecialist.com/
We'll be sending back the old engine, but I doubt I'll be getting much back for the core. The block is cracked on the inside. Their words were "there's window inside the block now". I figured as much with all the coolant mixed with the oil. I've got a new radiator (it looked like the old one might have been starting to leak in the bottom corner), and they flushed out the heater core till it came out clear.
And my new 2023 JLU Jeep? It is in Portland (OR) at their central collection hub. The dealer figures 10 days or so from there to get to the dealership (the dealership has no control over when it gets to them). So early March is our best guess.
So the original question of which jeep will I be driving first? Looks like the TJ.
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Picked up the Jeep today and drove it home. Parked it in the shop and will mess with it tomorrow (it needs to be cleaned - still dirty from the trip it was on before the engine went). So far so good. Felt good to be driving it again.
Core should be picked-up tomorrow. Don't know how much of a core refund I'll get considering the block has a hole in it on the inside. I'll let you know.
Heater works well, good oil pressure, no new noises, etc. I'll drive it easy (and non-highway) for the first 50 - 100 miles so it can break-in properly. Then at 500 miles I'll bring it back to the shop for an oil change and they can give it a final once-over.
Engine had 168,250 miles on it before it blew up.
Total cost for install (with other parts replaced too) came to a bit over $2,800 (not including the parts I got from Rock Auto earlier). And then add the cost for the engine itself - we're talking close to $6,000 once all said-and-done. Here's the receipt:
Lemme know if you have any questions.
Core should be picked-up tomorrow. Don't know how much of a core refund I'll get considering the block has a hole in it on the inside. I'll let you know.
Heater works well, good oil pressure, no new noises, etc. I'll drive it easy (and non-highway) for the first 50 - 100 miles so it can break-in properly. Then at 500 miles I'll bring it back to the shop for an oil change and they can give it a final once-over.
Engine had 168,250 miles on it before it blew up.
Total cost for install (with other parts replaced too) came to a bit over $2,800 (not including the parts I got from Rock Auto earlier). And then add the cost for the engine itself - we're talking close to $6,000 once all said-and-done. Here's the receipt:
Lemme know if you have any questions.
Notice any difference in the initial power? I know you can't get on it or rip it for a while but just curious if you noticed anything about the RV cam?
