worst nightmare came true.....

[89blkvet]

well my baby has a loose rod bearing. It hasn't spun yet, nore will it since I am not driving it. I took it to this vette doctor (san jose) and he said I had a few options. A bearing kit, short or long block. Of coarse the bearing kit is fairly inexpensive, but very labor intense as he said he would PROBABLY have to pull the engine to replace the rod bearings. Anyone else have any other ideas. my $$$$$$ is very low.

 

[DkBG]

How many miles are on your engine ? Has your oil preasure dropped at idle ? Cliff

 

[Eagle85C4]

www.paceperformance.com

they have an L-98 short block for 1399.39
part number 12510735

 

[89blkvet]

the engine only has 77k on it and i have had it for 7 months and yes, it recently started to drop in oil pressure and the noise is getting louder and louder. luckily the engine hasn't seized up. about the crate engine, how labor intense is it to swap engines as due to the lack of $$$$$ that i have, i don't think i can afford to have someone do it for me. and what about the crank kit?? thanks for the help

 

[Eagle85C4]

The short block already has the crank, lt-4 rods and pistons in it.
Just remove the rest of the parts from your existing engine and bolt them on then put it in the car....

 

[DkBG]

As for putting in the new bearings , the hardest part of the job is pulling and replaceing the motor . I'd hate to go to that much trouble and not end up with a fresh motor but if money is really scarce , just do the bearings . Heck , we'll talk you through it and answer any questions you may have . You know that ! ....Right ?! Cliff

 

[SPANISHVETTS]

I ´ve to go with Eagle’s advice. By the time you pay the labor to disassemble the lower end, have the crank turned and put it all back together you will be into the job for almost as many $ as the short-block and you will still have old rings, rods, pistons, etc., etc.

Also there is the time factor. With the short block you will be back on the road in a couple of days.

 

[89blkvet]

I will take that advise, does anyone know a good mechanic in northern california??

 

[89blkvet]

Well I managed to pull the oil pan off myself, not too difficult. The good news, none of the bearings are "spun", so I assume that at least they are worn. Would it be ok to just replace the bearings??

 

[SPANISHVETTS]

Get some Plastigage, pull the caps, and follow the instructions for measuring the main bearing and rod insert clearance.

Compare the plastigage results with the wear limits in the manual.

This is the only way to know what is going on inside the bearings when they are torqued down.

While you are at it have a good look at the crank. Any sign of scoring on the crank means a re-grind.

Good luck

 

[89blkvet]

Thank you. I will do that.

 

[Edmond]

Gentlemen,

Please pardon my lack of knowledge, but what is the difference between the long and short block?

I checked out that site that Eagle recommended and noticed that the motors said for pre-1973 cars that don't require emissions? So would it be illegal to put them on a post 73 that needs to meet emissions?