Jump to content

A14 Series - Internal Visual Inspection


Sierra

Recommended Posts

I ruined my old A-series engine about 6-8 months ago (Run it on the highway without oil for about 6-8 miles), so I decided to buy a "new" A14 engine from a junkyard in Chicago instead of "fixing" mine due to high quotes.

Engine came and the outer physical appearance was very very disappointing. The guy that sold it to me, said that engine was in good shape and had good compression, but based on the appearance of the engine I don't trust that statement.  So before I spent time and money pulling my old engine out and placing the "new" engine in on my B210 I want to do an internal visual inspection on this "new" engine.

What do I need to focus on?

What are some of the internal parts that might "give in" in an 20+ year old engine?

Since I will be taking a part the entire thing, any parts that I can replace that will benefit the longevity of the engine?

 

Any advice and/or feedback is greatly appreciated.

 

P.S. This will be the first time I will be opening up an engine.

 

Edgar S.

Link to comment
  • Replies 3
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Top Posters In This Topic

Top Posters In This Topic

I'd check the basics first. How does the oil look? Pull the spark plugs and see how they look. How dirty is it under the valve cover, pull the oil pan, are there bits of bearing in the oil?

 

The big one I've seen for A series engines is dropping a valve at around 200k, the bottom end is pretty damn durable as long as you keep oil in it :)

Link to comment

Surely there were A series engines closer than the other side of the country. Shipping would be killer.

 

The seller should have sent you the compression readings and some sort of guarantee. This does not look good if there is a problem. What if it's an oil burner?

 

 

Take the valve cover off drain the oil if there is any and remove the oil pan. Your inspection is limited to looking. Any obvious damage? Inside valve cover and oil pan clean, just dirty oil?

Link to comment

Remove the oil pan and have a look at the bearing caps. A dark blue or black color on the caps is a bad sign. Wiggle the rod caps and see if there's any play. Move the crank back and forth in the block to check thrust. If you have a dial indicator, check the actual measurement. Look up into the cam area and see if the cam surfaces are smooth and shiny. If rusty, that may not be all that bad. If pitted, that's bad.

 

Removing the head is dead simple on a pushrod engine as it only requires a new headgasket. You may want to pull the head and have a look at the bores. Look for discoloration, pitting, scratches. Feel for scratches or grooves.

 

Lay the head upside down and do a simple leak test by filling up the combustion chambers with liquid (water or solvent works best). If the valves leak fluid into the ports, it may need a valve job.

 

I would probably just clean it up on the outside and run it. They are not that hard to pull and the gamble is that it will run fine. If it's clean when you install it, you can now look for leaks. There's no real way of checking for oil or water leaks without running it.

Link to comment

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Terms of Use.