res1bxh3

does anybody know any great reputable shops that i can take my car to have the engine completely rebuild it has a nasty knock and i would say undrivable because of it, I think previous owner ran it without any oil. ive searched and so far i have found taylor engine out of whittier but from what i understand i have to take them the engine only i would rather tow the car there and drive it back.
thanks for your time.

Russ-So Cal

I noticed your post, but held off to see if anyone else knows of anyone in So Cal. The only one I know of that I would trust to build an engine would be Don. Unfortunately he is busy with the move right now and the last I heard he was doing 3 engines already. You might try contacting Paul (f1ls1 user name on tgo board). I don't know if Paul does engine rebuilds, or if he just installs engines. With So. Cal labor rates, it is less expensive to buy a crate motor than to pay for most shops to rebuild your engine. The Mr Goodwrench crate motor is pretty reasonable, but low performance. If you want better performance, order a zz4 short block and have your l98 heads rebuilt and installed on it.

Frankly, shops that do really good work rebuilding are going to be expensive. Their labor rate will be closer to $100.00 per hour than $50.00 per hour, and a correct build will require a lot of assembly to check clearances, disassembly, and reassembly all along the way. The inexpensive rebuilders, build the engines on an assembly line type set up. The difference between their assembly line and G.M. is that the G.M. crate engine will be built up with all new parts that are spec'ed to the engine they are building. The local rebuilders will assemble the engines with new rings and bearings and the rest used parts. One of the local guys bought a 383 engine from Speed-O-Motive. When he couldn't get it working, he took it to Don. I don't remember exactly how much Don found wrong, but 2 things I remember was that they didn't clearance the block for the longer stroke, which was VERY fortunate because they had installed a roller cam with flat tappet lifters. Had the engine started, the cam would have been flat in seconds.

langss

Unfortunatly with the "Tow It In" "Drive It Out" rebuilders, what your going to get is just the very limit of performance if thats what your looking for.I shopped all the ad's in the recycler for my "Wifes" car and even for it I refused to consider that option.Sure the price was just great,but I dont need the trouble when it starts to have problems down the road.Thats all I saw when I went to those places.Just my

sixpackmtrspts

yeah, stay away from speed o motive, i know of a couple people that got screwed pu engines from them. most shops i know of will put in a crate motor but no rebuilds, they dont have the manpower usually. also crate motors from gm usually come with a warranty. thats the best route to go, crate motor form gm and have a repital shop do the swap

Russ-So Cal

It isn't so much a manpower issue as it is that a good rebuild requires a lot of assembly/disassembly to get everything right. The labor adds up fast and suddenly the new crate motor from G.M. is 50% less expensive than the motor built by the shop. The G.M. crate motor is built with new parts that are to spec, so they don't have to assemble/disassemble. They build it on a production line, fire it up and run it before they ship it, and then you get the warranty as well as Lang mentioned.

f1ls1

iTrader: (2)

I'd be interested in doing it for you PM me. Paul

BretD 88GTA

Definitely stay away from the local "rebuilders".

I had a bad experience with a local shop a few years back. I took in an 81 Olds Cutlass with a V6 to have the engine done. The car was also going to be painted by a local Car Coa paint center. The rebuilder was recommended by the paint shop.

Anyway, both places burned me. The engine guy charged $1600 to "rebuild" the V6. A look at the invoice showed he only replaced what he considered was worn. It looked like they just cleaned and painted most of the parts.

To add to it, there was a metal tube for the smog system that ran to the back of the intake. When I got the car back, the tube was missing and what was left at the intake was crushed shut with pliers.

The shop NEVER said anything about it. I saw it and took the car back. They then ordered a new tube. I told them I would install it. They clearly had no intention of mentioning it and hoped no one would notcice.

The final nail was that the car never ran much better than before it was worked on. The oil came out pitch black when I changed it.

I ended up trading the Olds in for an 86 Cadillac at a local Chrysler dealership. The guys at the dealership said that the Olds was on it's last leg.

Bottom line: as Russ said, go with a crate motor or spend the money to have a reputable engine builder do the work. No such thing as a "cheap" rebuild.

Kevin91Z

iTrader: (1)

If you're not able to wait for Dyno Don, then try Jim Grubbs Motorsports. All the local magazines have used them and they're one of my customers at Manley Performance.

res1bxh3

thanks everyone i understand exactlly what you are saying, im not trying to go cheap at all i understand that most of the time you get what you pay for. i will definattly check out jim even though i would like to wait for don's experience but will check out all options
Thanks

sixpackmtrspts

what i meant by manpower, is alot of shops cant tie up a tech on an engine rebuild since it is so time consuming to do it right when other work could be piling up in the shop. my freinds shop in temecula area is so busy with repairs of everything that they dont even do engine swaps, let alone rebuilds.