Just blew my 318

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dusterguy1962

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Redlands, California
I was driving home from work and my engine began running rough and seized up. Upon further inspection there was a hole in the oil pan which caused all of the oil to drain out of the engine. Would like to rebuild the engine stock. How much would it cost to have it rebuilt. Any suggestions on a fair price. Any suggestions on a shop that I could trust to perform the work. i am located in Southern California.
 
You need to tear into the motor and see what (if anything) is rebuildable first. If the hole in the pan was after the fact and caused by something like a con. rod cap going through it then chances are very few pieces will be useable.
 
If it happened at highway speed, the block is probably toast. kab00m.
 
Like when you buy anything else, it don't hurt to shop around. But like was said above, tear it apart to see what you may or may not have thats reuseable.
 
If there is no numbers matching concerns you might want to just find a good running replacement or rebuild a stock Magnum version. I'd expect it to run in the $3500 range depending on what you use for replacement parts.
 
MMI is located in Southern Cali. I do not know how close Brian is to you though. It would be worth the effort to contact him. Screen name; OU812
 
rumblefish360 said:
MMI is located in Southern Cali. I do not know how close Brian is to you though. It would be worth the effort to contact him. Screen name; OU812
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Based on everything I hear , Brian is VERY good.
I wouldn't hesitate to use him.
Losing oil pressure like that is going to have disastrous results.....what isn't ruined will probably need extensive machining to save.
Whether is seized on the crank or a cylinder wall , it is never pretty.
As for cost , you can buy a running small block for a grand on up to ??
I think a guy could slap together a nice stroker with forged guts for somewhere in the 3,500 neighborhood , and cast guts for around 500 less.
This would be doing much of the labor yourself.
Crate motors seem to start just north of 4 G's for a 408.
If there is enough left to salvage on your 318 , you are looking .........man , it's hard to tell , but start around a grand if the heads don't need extensive work.
 
Indeed, Brian has a very good reputation......but even his engines will go blooey if you do somethin stupid.
 
Basic big-shop rebuilt 318s (and 5.2mags) go for ~1200-1600 up here in long block form, I'd do that over somebody else's who knows how tore up pullout unless the motor comes from somebody you trust or you just love swapping motors. Magnum swap is what I'm doing but it does create headaches. If your 318 block is truly pooched (and it probably isn't), blocks are basically free-$40 if you look around. $100 will get you a 360 block. You could probably have a shop machine and cam- bearing a short block and swap on your heads and accys for under 750.
 
Don't count it out until you dig into it. Might be able to patch it together to keep the car running while you build a motor for it. I tortured a Ferd 2.8 years ago, drained the oil and ran it. Got tight enough that full throttle was needed to maintain 1000rpm. Locked up. Let it cool & restarted it til it locked up again. Gave it to my motor guy for scrap, he took it apart, polished the crank, honed it & put new rings & bearings in it, ran another 75k miles with no issues....
 
rumblefish360 said:
It can be cheap, it can be expensive, how far your willing to go is the price tag.
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this right here is what it is. youd be amazed how long some cobbled up motors last and get down the road, doesnt mean its the best way. so what are your intentions? get down the road with the bare minimum? do as little as possible but do it right? add some horsepower? bearings and a gasket set may get you down the road and would be around $300, not sure if thats the best way to go though.
 
Lost the pump shaft at 70 mph, heard valves/lifters rattling; then it seized. Polished one main, replaced a rod; drove it hard forever.
 
dusterguy1962 said:
How much would it cost to have it rebuilt. Any suggestions on a fair price.
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bone stock rebuild???
$1,000

if you want to start porting/polishing heads and stuff then the costs begins to escalate QUICKLY

go to summit and check the price of a master rebuild kit bout $400, right?
add in cost for machine shop to:
bore/hone/magnaflux block
grind crank .010/.010
regrind cam
"go through" heads but many times that doesn't include replacing valves (they usually just grind them for $1,000)

for this $1,000 they don't balance anything either as these engines weren't balanced from factory and they figure the replacement parts should be within range of OEM parts

you can get a longblock from Pep Boys for $1,200 I believe
At least that's what I remember what a 360 longblock was going for about 6 months ago.

my figures are in the San Diego area.

EDIT:
I never understood how a $1,000 stroker kit can become a $3,000 shortblock
$2,000 in labor and machine work on the block i guess
 
d100clubcab said:
bone stock rebuild???
$1,000

if you want to start porting/polishing heads and stuff then the costs begins to escalate QUICKLY

go to summit and check the price of a master rebuild kit bout $400, right?
add in cost for machine shop to:
bore/hone/magnaflux block
grind crank .010/.010
regrind cam
"go through" heads but many times that doesn't include replacing valves (they usually just grind them for $1,000)

for this $1,000 they don't balance anything either as these engines weren't balanced from factory and they figure the replacement parts should be within range of OEM parts

you can get a longblock from Pep Boys for $1,200 I believe
At least that's what I remember what a 360 longblock was going for about 6 months ago.

my figures are in the San Diego area.

EDIT:
I never understood how a $1,000 stroker kit can become a $3,000 shortblock
$2,000 in labor and machine work on the block i guess
Click to expand...


You are about dead on. I spent almost $1000 on one of my 318's almost 12 years ago and didn't even touch the heads. The bearings alone costed more than an entire 350 Chevy rebuild kit at that time!!
 
I just rebuilt a 318 small block. never entered the machine shop, low mileage motor and everything was in spec. It cost 500 bucks including, paint, 2 oil changes and antifreeze.

Keep in mind machine work gets expensive really quick! The local machine shop gets 35 bucks a cylinder to bore. then you'll need oversized pistons as well. The dollars will start flying out of your pockets.
 
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