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engine block damage

Irony - 15/3/10 at 07:24 PM

I bought a replacement block on ebay that has supposedly been refurbished/rebuilt etc and the seller has contacted me to say there's damage on the block face he didn't notice before. I haven't paid yet and it's very honest of him to email me. What do you guys think?

block damage

Thats the water jacket, could it be a sign over previous overheats possibly leading to block warpage? I have the option to decline, what thinks you experts?

TigerB6 Paul - 15/3/10 at 07:28 PM

Wouldnt touch that with a barge pole now to be honest. Looks like a failure waiting to happen for the future

britishtrident - 15/3/10 at 07:31 PM

No its pitting corrosion, a sign of cheap antifreeze or the coolant not being changed frequently enough. I suspect it will lie outside the area covered by the gasket if that is the case it isn't a problem but you would need to lay a gasket over it to check.

boggle - 15/3/10 at 07:39 PM

maybe having the block face skimmed may help??

boggle - 15/3/10 at 07:40 PM

i would be more interested in the bruise on the piston edge.....has it scored the bore???

RichardK - 15/3/10 at 07:44 PM

It exactly what British T has expalined, it wouldn't bother me but would ask for a few quid off just in case it needs a skim

Cheers

Rich

RichardK - 15/3/10 at 07:46 PM

Good spot Boggle! Thats another chunk of money off

Rich

Strontium Dog - 15/3/10 at 08:57 PM

quote:
Originally posted by boggle
i would be more interested in the bruise on the piston edge.....has it scored the bore???

Quite right, the block looks OK to me from the pics. The "bruise" is defo from some some sort of debris bouncing around in the combustion chamber. If it is the only mark then it probably went straight out the exhaust port and will be fine. I'd ask the guy to take some decent shots of the bores to look for striations caused by small particles to be on the safe side!

You could check the price of having the block decked and try to get that off the purchase price just in case!

[Edited on 15/3/10 by Strontium Dog]

skinned knuckles - 15/3/10 at 09:24 PM

not sure what you agreed to pay for it, but i have run worse with no probs. if you have agreed a high price, get it reduced, but if its a bargain, take it and get it skimmed as a precaution.

i would check out the damage to the piston though. that sort of thing scares me as last time i saw similar i ignored it and it cost me.

owelly - 15/3/10 at 09:48 PM

The pitting around the water jacket looks more like an incomplete casting defect and as it's outside the gasket surface, I'd say it's ok. In fact, you could dremmel the waterway back to sound material.
I agree that you need to express concerns over the piston marking. Check the others too.

hillbillyracer - 15/3/10 at 10:37 PM

I'm in agreement with the nothing to worry about opinion, it's not going to cause a problem & a smear of good quality sealant would fix any problem with the water jacket, it's miles from the edge of the bore where the flame ring needs things spot on for a good seal.
Am I right in thinking this is a Rover V8? that complicates the giving it a skim idea, there's 2 faces to the block & then the inlet manifold would need to be skimmed to compensate.
The mark on the piston is something to check out but I'd not really expect a problem.

twybrow - 15/3/10 at 10:53 PM

Can someone point out the mark on the piston? Is it the ding on the left hand side, or the patch in the middle?

MikeRJ - 15/3/10 at 10:57 PM

quote:
Originally posted by twybrow
Can someone point out the mark on the piston? Is it the ding on the left hand side, or the patch in the middle?

The ding.

Irony - 15/3/10 at 11:20 PM

I agreed to pay 250 quids for it. It's supposedly a fully rebuiilt engine, shells, rings, hone, chemically cleaned etc. Trouble is it's in Bristol which is a three hour drive from me so courier is the only option, or a lot of driving.

Thanks for the replies, you guys have given me confidence. I shall ask for a discount.