forgive me if this is a stupid question... this isn't my strength

I'm getting a 3.4 V6 from a friend for free. The story is he put this 3.4 in a blazer for his son, but right after that the 4WD transaxle went out, and the car has sat for a few years. the truck isn't worth the money it would take to get it running, so he's going to give the entire thing to me for free

Supposedly, the 3.4 only has 50K miles on it, and runs great, but it has sat for a while

Before I do the 2.8 to 3.4 swap into my car, what can I do insure that the engine hasn't locked up or something while it's been sitting? I worry about the rings and other things like that.

I'm going to put the engine on a stand after I pull it out of the blazer, clean it up, paint it, ext... but there's no reason to do all of that if the engine is trashed and it's only good as a rebuild or a core charge

thanks

 

See if you can turn the motor by hand ( breaker bar ).

Pull valve covers & see how the top of the heads look.

While the valve covers are off, turn the motor & watch the lifters for uniform valve action.

Listen for compression as you turn the motor.

It will be easier with the spark plugs out.

Check the oil dip stick for coolant // gas.

 

would I be able to check compression with a gauge if I'm turning it by hand?

After I do all of that, should I turn it over, take off the pan, and look at the journals and crank?

 

I don't think turning it by hand would build up enough compression for a leak down or compression test..?..

DOH!!
Yes, check the crank & rods. Get the info & check rod & crank specs-- thrust distance ( front to back ) & space between the rods, and between rods & crank journals.

IDK if you can hook up a starter to turn the motor on the stand?? If that could be done ** safely,** you could do the compression // leak down on the stand. Flex plate or fly wheel included? You would need it IF you go about it this way.

 

i'm getting the entire truck, so yes, I'll have all of that.

thanks!

 

Good luck with it!!

 

Do the compression // leak down test before pulling it.
You probably had that in mind.

( I can't edit from my phone- BOOOO!! )

 

Aaaaa-wait a minute.You don't need to run the engine for a leak down test.Just TDC on the compression stroke to get the percentages.It certainly is much better to have done the test on a hot engine.The O/P can save a bunch of work not being in such a hurry to pull the engine and get the engine running while still in the truck.


Which engines have you had the flexplate on the engine and it in a engine stand??.

 

I could try getting the engine running, but I figured the gas in the tank would be Carmel by now and it would be a pain

 

1gary,
Thanks for the education, & as I said--
" I don't think turning it by hand would build up enough compression for a leak down or compression test..?.. "
An open ended response so someone would be able to give a definitive answer.

Right now I have my Bigblock on a stand with the flexplate still bolted on.

I KNOW it's not safe to start a motor on a stand, I never said to start it on a stand. I said
" .... IF that could be done ** safely, ** you could do the compression // leak down on the stand... "

How much torque // twist would there be? Is that an un-safe action to do on a stand? I'm not wanting to come off as an **s, just curious.

( edit )

PM me your email & I'll MMS you a pic of my Bigblock

on a stand

( available from Jegs, Summit, JCWhitney, etc )

with the flex plate bolted on.

 

this might fall under a different thread, but is there anything I can do to protect the engine on initial startup? I'm worried starting the engine after sitting for that long could hurt it before the oil starts pumping.

I'm hoping the gas tank is empty, but that's probably hoping too much

 

It is more of a pain if the engine is junk to have taken it out...........again check it out in the truck even if you have to drain off bad gas.

 

If it's junk, I still want it to use as a core charge trade on on a rebuilt block, or i'll have this one rebuilt. I think it still has value.

Its tempting to just punch a hole in the tank to get the old fuel out, or it possible to siphon most of it out?

 

Siphon of course.