DrewLGT

iTrader: (1)

i'm in the process of putting together a 1.8 for my 93. i bought a motor and sent it to the machine shop to be freshened up and have new rods and pistons installed.

i'm going to be bolting the head on soon. as well as the oil and water pump, oil pick up, mbsp.... you get the idea. the motor has been sitting in the garage apart for about six months while i was collecting parts.

is there anything i need to do that might not be obvious to a complete newb such as myself?

Savington

iTrader: (31)

Yeah - hire someone or find a friend who has done it before. Engine building is not something you "learn by doing". One little fuckup can cost you $2k+.

flier129

iTrader: (7)

+1

neogenesis2004

iTrader: (12)

Funnily enough that's how I learned. Granted I did it doing rebuilds of cheap Honda motors using stock parts. That said I do sort of sway to the side of Sav if this is say your only car or something. If you can afford or don't mind taking the hit if you do something wrong then I say go for it. Make sure you have the shop manual, but even that assumes you have a somewhat advanced mechanical knowledge beforehand.

There are many small, yet very important, things it leaves out like deburring the corners of the rings after gapping them. These are things that most manuals leave out that are absolutely necessary. The best recommendation I can give is to scoure the web looking for picture guides with description of various motor builds of any kind to pick up as many pointers as you can. Read until you can imagine yourself going through the process in your head.

The most important thing in putting together a motor is the phrase "cleanliness is next to godliness"

hustler

iTrader: (6)

don't listen to these posers. How do you think people built engines 40-years ago before we had machine shops? With a steady hand, that's how. Its all just bolts and **** anyway.

NA6C-Guy

iTrader: (1)

I also learned rebuilding Honda engines. I still wouldn't call myself a pro, but my 1.8 is still running like a champ after 10k miles. I built it ghetto style in my back yard and in my house, no real professional tools. Then again it also took me several months to figure out my rings were shot and it wasn't my head gasket. It was probably the 5th or 6th engine I have built, so I should have known better. I say go for it. If you mess it up, too bad, just try again.

neogenesis2004

iTrader: (12)

You are a ******* joke! You have no room to speak about posers. You had someone build your **** for you.

DrewLGT

iTrader: (1)

the whole rotating assembly is together. i had that done at the machine shop. i didnt think bolting the head and accessories onto the block would be too difficult.

my main concern is that the parts are dirty from sitting in the garage for months.

curly

iTrader: (25)

Well with the rings in the pistons and the pistons in the block, and the connecting rods all bolted up, yes, the really hard part is out of the way. But there's still a lot to **** up. You now need to seal the oil pan, oil pump, water pump, and rear main seal. ******* up any of those requires you to pull the engine out again, keep that in mind.

DrewLGT

iTrader: (1)

Rear main is already installed. I think I can handle a tube of rtv well enough to get everything sealed up.

neogenesis2004

iTrader: (12)

Just make sure that you clean all mating surfaces with acetone or brake cleaner on a paper towel before applying sealant. Otherwise I think you are good to go. It would still be in your best interest to get a shop manual so that you can follow it as a guide.

DrewLGT

iTrader: (1)

I'm going to borrow one from the guy that sold me the motor.

Good tip about the acetone thanks

hustler

iTrader: (6)

busted. You got me!!! I payed someone to use precision equipment to build my engine that sees 7000rpm more per session than your shitbox sees in its life. The holiday season is approaching quickly; I recommend that you STFU before I make a Yarmulke out of your flesh.

Braineack

iTrader: (62)

The motor Neo built > yours.

sixshooter

iTrader: (12)

The head gasket is the place most people screw up. It looks like it can go on a couple of ways and one of them will ruin your engine.

DrewLGT

iTrader: (1)

I read something about that...

How can I make sure I have it on correctly? Will taking a good look at the block and making sure none of the oil passages are blocked tell me?

240_to_miata

iTrader: (2)

yeah double and tripple check that none of the passages are blocked and everything fits correctly. I just rebuilt my motor and i am a little confused because I am getting white smoke on cold start up and occasionally on decell... I only have 50 miles on it and i havent been driving it (oil pan leak issue ) so i cant really tell anything yet but i hope my head gasket is fine.

steelrat

Well, I wouldn't quite say that I built the motor.... but I did put it back together. Got a used block, and a head from a buddy. Assembly included putting all the stuff from the original motor, the head gasket, etc.....

Its been working fine for 50K kms now....

One thing to consider.... swap all the PITA stuff when you do put the motor in. Do all the coolant hoses, etc.... Trust me.... also make sure when you put your clamps and stuff on so you can get them off again with the car in the way.

Also you can have the old one as a reference for things like the head gasket.....

Dave,

neogenesis2004

iTrader: (12)

Gimmie a shout when you decide to actually do something yourself for once and not pay someone else to do it for you.

Braineack

iTrader: (62)

at least he doesn't hire a driver like Jimmy.