broken connecting rod!?

How much would I be able to sell the current motor for? I mean someone can rebuild it so it doesn't have to be scrapped right? Would the place putting a new motor in take it as a trade in of sorts? Thanks again for all the help I'm looking everywhere for Motors right now because I always assumed rebuilds were just as expensive if not more than used ones and I guess I could try and do a quick fix but it wouldn't feel right to me because I like things done proper but I guess if I had to and there were few other options under my circumstances then I would

 

salvage yards don't do trade ins or anything like that but you can sell the engine as-is but I cant say what its value is, I would guess you could get a couple hundred, the head should be worth that much and the rest is a crap shoot so no one will want to pay too much more then that.

im guessing $200-$300 is reasonable but I really have no idea of the values of things in your area and the harder it is to find parts the more someone will pay for yours.

 

Beat me to it of course. I would say get an engine from a truck that was wrecked. As he said, you can pretty much be sure it was running. Pull the oil dipstick and smell the oil for sure.

What I would suggest, if you buy a salvage engine, is to keep this engine and take your time to learn and rebuild the entire thing. Then you have a spare "just in case" the replacement engine doesn't last. That, and you learn something to boot! I have a ton of experience and knowledge with the 2.7 that I would be glad to share if you take this on. Just check my build threads and it will show how easy the engine can be to build and rework.

 

^^^^ this is a great idea unless you absolutely need the money or don't have time of place to work on it in your spare time.

people are always shocked and amazed just how easy it is to work on and rebuild your own motor with basic tools but the hard part is getting over the fear of trying.

here you have an engine you will have a spare engine you don't need right away so its a great opportunity to learn how to rebuild engines with no fear and nothing but time to lose over it. if you find its too far gone, you still learn a lot from it and then sell the good parts of it

 

thats actually exactly what i was thinking i mean theres nothing to lose right? i have a 1 car garage filled with stuff but i think ill make space anyway and just come back and forth to it whenever i feel like i want to do some work.. to me if the best i could get out of it is like $400 id rather keep it and work on it, i love learning about these things and for the most part I'm self taught because no one else in my family is very interested in mechanics… anyway we drove it down to a guy about 9 miles away who works at a honda dealership (he offered to look at it on the side at his house) at this point i knew what the problem likely was but my parents wanted reassurance that i knew what i was talking about haha. he said it was the connecting rod in the 3rd cylinder and also mentioned my catalytic converter was no good… thats the update on it for now still looking around for engines and might stop by a salvage place soon. i was reading your forum on a rebuild actually, bama, and it seemed so simple the way you put it, i realize it probably won't be as easy as id want it to be but it sure made me want to give it a shot and would you stay away from the 2.4's? because someone mentioned that they are a bit cheaper than 2.7's ill probably end up getting another 2.7 but i was curious how those would work out in there.. all i know is that the 2.7's have balance shafts and for some reason the 2.4's don't and the stroke on the 2.7 is a bit larger..

 

the only thing is you should invest in a good set of tools, box end open end combination wrenches in both metric and sae, 6 point regular and deep socket sets in both metric and sae (avoid the 12 point sockets if you can because they aren't as strong), and quality screwdrivers make life so much easier.

all that cheap Taiwan stuff just strips screws and rounds of the heads on bolts

for now you can just get the metrics and get the sae stuff later when needed but its often cheaper to get a high quality complete set that has it all, snap on, craftsman, Stanley are the names I trust and bama probably knows some more

 

Time for a V-8 conversion, or maybe a diesel If you're going to do this yourself in your spare time, take alot of pics as it comes apart and mark EVERYTHING.
Good luck.

 

I wouldn't waste time or effort in putting a 2.4 into a truck that had a 2.7 engine. Just not worth it.

 

Oh trust me I have PLENTY of sockets/wrenches/screwdrivers/ratchets but I need torque wrenches, a hoist of some sort if I'm gonna hold it up (right?), calipers, ring compressor, motor stand of some kind, tons of other measurement tools, probably some air tools, I have basics but I need the tons of other small stuff I feel would be necessary for a nice clean build and I'd do a v8 swap if I could lol can't beat a 4 cylinders reliability though.

 

and a sheet of plywood, always put heavy metal stuff down on wood not concrete wood doesn't scratch but gravel and whatever on concrete can scratch mating surfaces

 

hopefully ill have the space if i choose to rebuild.. how heavy are these things anyway? would moving it around be a pain?

 

you wont have any trouble rolling it over and spinning it around by yourself but you will need help to pick it up and carry it somewhere.

if you got big balls you might even be able to lift the empty block by yourself but don't, one slip and you can crack the block

you will find unless you need to move it to different locations you can do it all yourself and if you are creative get a furniture cart and set it on that so you can roll it anywhere you need to go with it.

once its all stripped down its not that heavy, its all the crap attached to it that adds the weight

 

Listen, OP, do not get distracted...you need to get your truck back up and running. Either you pull your motor, put it on a stand, put a new crank and bearings in OR let a shop do the work (my recommendation), or find a good used motor. Motor swaps are always a PITA when things don't fit.

Replacing a motor with the same motor with the same harness, mounts, trans and accessories is MUCH easier that trying to convert the wrong motor to a chassis.

Howard

 

I was thinking get an '01 2.7l from a wreck if I can take out the old motor put this one in and keep the old one. A shop rebuild is too much and if I were to mess up that bad on a rebuild myself it could always just be scrapped,, I agree I'm getting distracted but then again all this won't be happening over night because I don't have the money at the moment so I'm just running through ideas if I'm only getting a couple hundred bucks for the old one In my opinion it'd be worth learning a thing or two on we will see how it all plays out I guess

if a shop rebuild ends up being cheaper than a new motor somehow then none of this will happen and ill just get a rebuild but i see nothing wrong in discussing the theoreticals and opportunities

 

You really don't need all the caliper and measuring devices. Since you have no way to do machine work, when you DO get the old motor out, strip it down and take the block and crank down to a machine shop. Having the block honed (if it needs it) and getting the crank either ground, or polished, isn't expensive either. Let them do that work. Then you just get the parts (I can help you locate good ones for a good price) and take your time putting it together. Many of the technical tools you can "rent" from places like Advance Auto Parts. Basically you "buy" the tool, then when you are done you bring it back for a full refund. So it really will cost you zero in the long run for special tools.

 

others can correct me if im wrong here but the engines don't change so any 2.7L from 95-2004 truck will drop right in as exact fit and maybe the newer 2005 and recent truck motors will too but im not sure about that group.

bottom line is exact year model isn't important with engines as long as its in the year class where nothing changed on the core engines themselves and by that I mean the block itself because while things like manifolds and throttle bodies and brackets might have changed but are easy to switch out for your old ones making the engine still be an exact match to swap with.

it is possible a relatively new wrecked truck only a few years old will have an engine to drop right in for you, but of course the lower the miles and the newer the truck the more money they will want for the engines

 

alright so ill start looking around for some wrecks.. would driving it around destroy anything but the crank and rod? i might take it to school a few times this week but if i did choose to rebuild then i wouldnt want more damage than there already is, as long as i drive it carefully at low rpm's the rod wont blow out of it or anything right? thanks

 

yes, don't do it. don't drive it anymore at all or it could send the rod through the block at any time and ruin it.

if you intend to keep and fix the engine don't run it anymore, it will only do more damage then it already has and could make it a total loss. if you are ok throwing the whole engine away then I guess you could risk driving it but be ready to walk home at any time

 

Another question is it possible for me, 17 year old kid, to put the new motor in?... My dad says he has a hoist at work to take it out would the trans have to come out with it?

 

what is the best method I cannot say, some motors are pulled with the tranny and some without but you can do either method on all of em. nif you pull it with the tranny on the tail will leak tranny fluid so be ready for that or just drain the tranny fluid before you pull it. it can often be easier to take them out and put them in together so you have more room to work and see what you are doing.

yes you can pull the motor yourself, other then the wires and cables and exhaust, all that holds the engine in is the motor mounts and it lifts right out so its time consuming but very simple procedure.

just take pictures and document everything, put tape and write labels on all the wires and where they go and drain the oil before you pull it because it will be a mess to do later after its out unless you have an engine stand to support it level.

take anything close to being in the way out of the way like the radiator and belts and pulleys so nothing can get hung up on anything or get damaged because once you start lifting it out it may twist or swing in unexpected ways bumping things. just assume you will bang into things and if it can be moved move it. might be extra work but better then breaking stuff that's not already broken.

you can also put the engine in yourself because its the same as taking it out but takes longer because you need to route all the wires and hoses and cables in the way they should be run. then double and triple check all your plugs and retighten all the bolts after you "think" its all done just in case you missed something.

pulling and installing engines isn't hard at all, doing it without breaking some of the stuff around it can be tricky lol

reconnecting the tranny can sometimes be tricky getting the torque converter fully engaged so BamaToy1997 can probably give you some tips on how to make that job easier, its just sometimes getting things to go back into place correctly can be tricky and frustrating.