Im about to buy a used engine..but not exactly sure wat to look for..its out of the car so it wont run..how or what should i do to make sure its mechanicly in good shape?

 

Well, you can never be completely sure; but there are alot of things that will give you a pretty good idea.

You can tell how it ran by looking at the spark plugs and the exhuast ports. Obviously you want to see dry plugs that are tan or gray; no oil on them, no sign of oil in the exhaust ports.

Look inside the valve covers, and in the oil pan if you can. You want to see no sludge build-up, no metal shavings, stuff like that. That's the main thing; that's the best indicator of an engine's overall condition. If the rings are bad, you'll see lots and lots of ash and other combustion products in the oil.

From the outside, you'd like for it to look like it's been taken care of; things like clean antifreeze with no rust and scale and crap in the cooling system; no leaks; no sign of damage like scraping the ground, hoses and wires and sensors in good shape. You don't want to see stuff that looks like some hilljack has been rigging stuff on it, like wires cut & spliced.

 

ok well i just found out its a :

its about 1 year old
has between 2300-1000
its a 1976-4 bolt main block /bored over
its been magnflux
has 400 crank/rods
flat top pistons runnin 9:6:1 compression
cam is 444lift/323dur

What kind of compadibilty issues am i going to have with the old block? or any other issues?

 

That all depends on what it needs to be compatible with.

If this is going in a 91 with a 5-speed, you'll need a flywheel from a 83-85 305 5-speed car (either the light one from a L69/TPI car, or the heavy one from a low-perf LG4) that's been "unbalanced" to the 400 spec; or an aftermarket flywheel of similar specs. You will need to have the inner bolt hole drilled for the starter, if it isn't already there.

 

ok it needs to be compatable with a 91 5speed..is that the only major compatibility issues.. and also those seem fairly easy?

 

The oil pan is going to be different and the side that the dipstick is on will be different as well. If the motor is still running in the car I would want to hear it with full exsaust. I would also want to do a coolant preasure test- very important. anyone can say the word magniflux but a preasure test puts the money where the mouth is.

 

A 400 will also be a 2-piece rear seal, but the flywheel for your '91 will be for a 1-piece rear seal. You'll have to find a way around that.