I have an 86GT that motor just went bad. Sounds like a bad bearing but can see an indent where the cylinder head hit a spark plug. What’s should I do. The engine is going to need to be rebuilt or replaced. Anywhere in Northern California capable of doing this kind of work?
Head hitting a spark plug would be a first in any engine.. Take another look or better yet post a pick. I wouldnt want to miss this for the world.
Spoon
------------------ "Kilgore Trout once wrote a short story which was a dialogue between two pieces of yeast. They were discussing the possible purposes of life as they ate sugar and suffocated in their own excrement. Because of their limited intelligence, they never came close to guessing that they were making champagne." - Kurt Vonnegut
I have an 86GT that motor just went bad. Sounds like a bad bearing but can see an indent where the cylinder head hit a spark plug. What’s should I do. The engine is going to need to be rebuilt or replaced. Anywhere in Northern California capable of doing this kind of work?
An 88 gt just hit our pick n pull.
I have an 88 engine that's complete not far from you that you can just have if you want. I had pulled it apart to sell as a good short block but ended up buying the car instead of selling him the engine. I ended throwing the engine back together for storage. It probably needs the heads serviced at a minimum and will need new head gaskets intake as I had the heads off. Basically all new top end gaskets.
I have an 86GT that motor just went bad. Sounds like a bad bearing but can see an indent where the cylinder head hit a spark plug. What’s should I do. The engine is going to need to be rebuilt or replaced. Anywhere in Northern California capable of doing this kind of work?
Ok, I just wanted to be clear for the rest of the crowd: the piston hit the spark plug. Why? Yes the engine obviously needs a rebuild. The question is how to rebuild it? Or in other words, should it be rebuilt for performance or stock replacement? Is this correct?
To be fair, if one cannot understand the difference between a cylinder head an a piston, perhaps they should not attempt an engine replacement. just sayin.............
And if you have a 2.8 that the piston smacked the spark plug, that's some kind of special. perhaps the wrong plug? the long reach?
[This message has been edited by jelly2m8 (edited 11-11-2023).]
It would be awfully hard to hit the plug unless it was too long to begin with. Is the electrode bent over or mangled ? Did you scope the bore ? Most will tell you swap to a bigger motor. Full rebuild for a 2.8 is about $2400… how many miles are on it ? You can only go to a slightly more performance cam without opening another can of worms…..unless you have deep pockets….lots of other changes have to happen then like computer change, prob lifters…etc. at that point swap to a bigger motor..
[This message has been edited by PhatMax (edited 11-11-2023).]
I have an 86GT that motor just went bad. Sounds like a bad bearing but can see an indent where the cylinder head hit a spark plug. What’s should I do. The engine is going to need to be rebuilt or replaced. Anywhere in Northern California capable of doing this kind of work?
Pretty much any reputable shop should be able to do it... but my recommendation is that if you're going to go through the effort, then you should consider just buying a 3.4 crate motor and dropping it in to replace your 2.8. You can re-use basically everything on the car, just requires a couple of additional parts...
Total cost for install is usually abbout $1,500. So you're looking at a total of probably close to $4,000 for basically a brand new motor installed... and you'll have more power and torque.
I don’t have a picture but I had a mechanic show me on his borescope the damage. He showed the piston with damaged and the next cylinder without. Anyway it’s definitely let go of something as it now ticks bad when running. A local machine shop said they can rebuild the head. Something about going with a bigger bore , I think they said 3.1 or something. But waiting now for the shop to get back to me about when they can get it done.
I have an 88 engine that's complete not far from you that you can just have if you want. I had pulled it apart to sell as a good short block but ended up buying the car instead of selling him the engine. I ended throwing the engine back together for storage. It probably needs the heads serviced at a minimum and will need new head gaskets intake as I had the heads off. Basically all new top end gaskets.
If you are interested let me know.
How close to zip 94534 would this be? I’m most definitely interested.
I would highly recommend you stop what your doing until you sit back and learn a bit more about: engines overall, what EXACTLY went wrong with your engine and most importantly, what you want out of your current car.
I only say this because it seems mechanics and shops are becoming more predatory about rendering services and pricing. By not understanding the core issues of what went wrong with your engine, you stand liable to be sorely taken advantage of. Furthermore, dumping 2.5k into a car that your have no sentimental attachment to and may only be worth 2-3k running is a pointless endeavor. I'm not saying that this is the situation, but this is all I have to go on.
First off, come back to us with photos so we can see if your mechanic is being upfront with you. I had a mechanic that I thought I trusted tell me my Dukes pistons were damaged and showed me a photo of the alignment divot on the piston as "proof" they were cracked. . .
If you want to just take your mechanics word and go for it, no worries, that's your choice.
If you are concerned about doing this the right way and the way that will return the most bang for your buck, bring us more concrete information than, "the cylinder head hit the spark plug", followed by "well something let go and damaged my piston severely enough that its totaled, but my cylinder head is miraculously still rebuildable." Not saying that's impossible, but my red flag detectors are definitely up.
I hope you get back to us
[This message has been edited by Dukesterpro (edited 11-13-2023).]
Here's a selection from a stock 2.8 shortblock at $1000 to a 3.4 shortblock at $1400. Just have your heads rebuilt and bolt everything from your old 2.8 onto it.
Here's a selection from a stock 2.8 shortblock at $1000 to a 3.4 shortblock at $1400. Just have your heads rebuilt and bolt everything from your old 2.8 onto it.
