Good Shop in central AR for engine swap

[jwetzler]

Hey,
Does anyone know of a good shop located in central arkansas? Im basically needing to have a new longblock installed in my 91 Stealth TT. I need a reputable place, thats not going to mistreat my baby, and wont charge an arm and a leg.... Thanks

[eyeluvmy3kgt]

Sorry I forgot to call ya John... UALR is sucking up all my brain power right now

I'm sure Billy will be glad to do it, i'll give him a call tomorrow.

If you are getting a used longblock i'll need some more info about the motor. You'll want to go ahead and put on fresh 60k tuneup parts before the motor goes in - water pump, timing belt, timing belt tensioner, timing belt tensioner pully, drive belt. And I'd recommend a new oil pump too, and probably valve stem seals.

He's swapped or rebuilt 3/S engines 8 times that I know of. He lives in NLR. He works fast too. Does it on the side. Most recent one was a '91 VR4 w/ forged rods/pistons, he built custom TDO5 headers for 16g's. It's the car that i'm tuning for him.

I think I could do a motor swap no problem... I don't have an engine hoist though. If I could borrow billy's hoist me and you could do it one weekend.

I'll let ya know what he says.

[jwetzler]

I saw an engine online that is completely overhauled, it comes with the block, and heads, oil pump, and full gasket kit. It does not come with an oil pan, but Im sure I could use my old one. Not sure if its shipped assembled or not. enginesus, is the seller on ebay they seem to offer a lot of rebuilt engines for all sorts of cars, 3s cars, 300zx, rx7's...etc.

Ive been having kind of a hard time finding a shop that I trust to do it around here, they're either to busy, and it would be a month b4 they can get to it, or they say they dont want to mess with the AWD model.

As soon as I can find some1/some place that will be able to do it, I will order the engine.

Hey I have those turbos with me if you still wanna meet up sometime today.

[XtremNiteCrawlr]

lol "u and him" lol u know ud ask for me to help lol cough offering now so i can take the day off ahead of time

[eyeluvmy3kgt]

John- Billy said he'd do a swap for $600 and would take 2 days. He'll do a complete rebuild for $2100 including parts but not including 60k tuneup parts.

He told me the same thing that I was gonna tell you about buying used motors. You are taking a risk by buying one. If they tell you it is low mileage, either they are lying or it is low mileage because it has been sitting for years. Either way its not good. Billy went through that on his car. He bought a "low mileage" 30-40k miles jspec motor from one of the sellers on ebay, put it in and 15-20k miles later he spun a rod bearing. When he disassembled it, it looked like it had pretty high mileage on it.

On the "overhauled" motor you found, find out what exactly what machine work is done to the bottom end as far as crank, pistons, rods. Are they used? Was the crank regrinded or replaced? I think it is too risky to buy a used motor or one "rebuilt" by someone you don't know. I bought a car with a rebuilt motor but i thouroughly checked references and had reciepts. So that is your call. Billy will put it in for $600 if it is already assembled. He also recommended a new oil pump.

Lemme know.

Sorry I havn't been able to meet up with you, school is getting really demanding. (15hrs of upper level business classes)

[jwetzler]

marshall:
Billy said he would do a complete rebuild for $2100, what all does this include? Is this going to be for just a bottom end rebuild, or is this going to include VSS for the heads, and re-angled valve job?

If its 2100 for the complete rebuild, heads & block, then I will go ahead and do that.
Will 2100 include the price of pulling the engine, or will that be an additional $600?
Also, what parts will be used on the rebuild, Mitsubishi?
Will the rods and pistons be re-uesd from my block or how will that work?
Also will he warranty the work?

Sorry for all the questions, just want to make for sure I have all the details before i make arrangements with him. I have the cash ready, I just want to get all the details worked out so I can get the ball rollin as soon as possible. Also, is there a way that I can directly contact him? thanks for all ur help! Hey you can even give him my cell number as well.

[eyeluvmy3kgt]

He can do just about anything you want but i'm thinking his price includes: valve stem seals, headgaskets, piston rings, bearings, machining on crankshaft... etc. and the labor. He will re-use the rods and pistons if they are still good. Your block will be honed by a machine shop. He usually provides some kind of warranty. In your case, on stock turbos, keep the boost < 14psi and i'm sure he'll have no problem warrantying it for some time.

You can call him to work out all the details on parts and pricing. 541-5277 (he talks real fast on the phone). If I go up there to tune the blue car this weekend you could probably drop by and meet him.

[jwetzler]

marshall:

can u get in touch with your mitsu connection, & see how much we can get the 60k bundle, & oil pump for? Also can u check on a forged crank for me? if the price is reasonable, i'd rather use a forged crank. if not o well i'll be happy w/what I got.

[eyeluvmy3kgt]

I just called mitu and they are closed until 2pm today "due to the passing of the owner"

I'll call back later and get prices for:
New OEM Forged Crankshaft-
Oil Pump-
Water Pump-
Timing Belt-
Tensioner-
Tensioner Pully-

[jwetzler]

Hey thanks for all the help, i'll wait to hear from ya!