I don't know if its exactly a rebuild but my 89' Iroc-Z has about 50k miles and burns oil. We want to just tear it down as much as possible without removing the engine, clean it all out and replace gaskets and such and put it back together.

I know its overkill for just burning oil but I'm also looking at this as a learning/bonding experience with my dad. Other than gaskets are there other relatively simple things I need to replace? Can two guys with limited mechanical experience handle this?

 

When an engine is burning oil, usually the piston rings are bad or the cylinder walls are no longer completely round. That's about the only way oil will get into the combustion chamber, and cause the oil to become burnt. An oil leak is also possible. If that is the case, replacing gaskets will help. Also, oil sending unit leaks if bad.

You CAN replace gaskets with the engine still in the car. It would take longer due to space limitations, but it can be done. Father/Son Projects are awesome!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

It can be done, but I wouldn't attempt it without having some good guidance (just my opinion, but there are plenty that have done this without any issues whatsoever with 0 experience). It only takes one minor miscalculation/measurement issue to screw up the whole build. It's not difficult moreso just time consuming. There's no reason you can't figure it out, though.. I just always believe in having the expert hand available so you can always ensure you're doing things correctly before a critical failure occurs.

 

What kind of calculations and measurements are you talking about? I was under the impression we could get away with tearing it down replacing seals/cleaning parts and putting it all back exactly the same way we took it apart.

 

In a two week project I pulled out a 1989 Iroc Z L98 alone and rebuilt it (first chevy 350, and it was easier than rebuilding a big block ford). It wasn't too hard, it was a two person job when reinstalling the motor because you had to line up the engine to the transmission. It does sound like you need new piston rings.

 

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You would have to tear apart the whole motor, then get a re-ring gasket set for around $100-$200 plus more if you don't have all the proper tools. It'd basically be rebuilding the motor. The rings are the worst case senario, could be other things like leaking seals or gaskets. The motor I just got done rebuiling was mysteriously eating oil, it had oil baked on the pistons from the motor sucking in oil from the PCV valve.
http://wiki.answers.com/Q/How_would_...s_a_lot_of_oil

 

When an engine is burning oil, the problem is ALMOST NEVER the rings.

More likely, it merely needs valve guide seals and/or intake gaskets.

You can't really tear an engine down and put it back together using the same parts, anyway. Just doesn't work that way. When bearings and rings are disturbed, they won't ever go back exactly where they were (within ten-thousandths of an inch as they would need to, in order to fit and work right) and so must be replaced. BUT, the parts they work against, namely the cyl bores and the crank journals, must be restored to straight, true, and have the correct finish on them. AND, if the rings were SO bad that they were causing oil burning, then the PISTONS are also bad, AND the cyl bores themselves are no longer straight and the correct size, which requires boring them out, which requires NEW pistons that are LARGER than the old ones.

Replace the valve guide seals and intake gaskets. Put in new valve springs at the same time since obviously those have to be removed. See where that takes you. For like $150 and an afternoon's work, you might well be able to COMPLETELY fix it.

 

When the OP mentioned the burning of oil , the immediate response was "Rings !" ... Now , as a Mechanic , MY first thought was ?WHY? is it burning oil , since anything from a clogged $2.99 PCV breather to the much feared and expensive piston rings will cause a car to burn oil .

I would suggest to the OP , If he's still reading , to read up on the various tests and inspections that will tell him EXACTLY what's wrong with his engine before he turns one bolt in the engine removal process !

It's called "Diagnostics" , Gents , and is usually done BEFORE the engine hoist gets it's workout .

Just sayin .....

 

Thanks for the input guys I will try out some of these ideas and continue researching.