Rebuilting Motor - If you had to do it over again?

[carmen142]

Well, it looks like that I am going to finally rebuilt my engine on my 41 P12. For those of you that have already done this and to those of you who wish they can do this - I would like to know what you would have done differently to your engine, when you were having it rebuilt.

What pit-falls should I be made aware of? I am pretty sure that this will be the first time in 70 years that this engine has been out of this car so I want to do it right. I don't mind spending the money but I sure as heck don't want to see oil dripping out from the bottom in a year and I don't want to have any over heating problem with it. Whether I use it in a parade or not.

Would love to put an overdrive in it, but I am pretty sure that will be outside my budget. I will be getting the transmission rebuilt thou.

Any suggestion please don't hold back.

Thanks

Carmen

[greg g]

take a look at Bamfordsgarage thread regarding his current rebuild.

[Dodgeb4ya]

If you love you're car and going to keep it- No cheap short cuts! All new high quality USA good known brand parts , a good machine shop for the machine work and assembly if you can't do it.

Do it right. Do it once!

[Guest P15-D24]

in the tech archives

[Guest P15-D24]

in southern cal. Shop did thousands of engines a year. Transaction was handled by my local NAPA. Went 35 miles before it before it started knocking. They installed the oil bypass tube incorrectly which broke when the engine started. Napa actually took care of me, but I still had to pull and reinstall it after it was redone. After that I rebuild them myself. The manuals are available to do the job right, plus lots of resources with this forum.

[Young Ed]

Besides all that I would post your general location and see if you can get a reccomendation on a shop.

[Frank Elder]

I think with the amount of spun mains I've read about on here after fresh rebuilds and older motors and experienced once myself on a 230, it will be in my budget to install new studs for the mains for better holding power.

Also safety wire nuts will be installed so that torque will not change no matter what.

The icing on the cake though would be to have the mains ALIGN BORED so there is NO varience in the bearing shells, thus making it alot harder to damage the crank.

[Joe Flanagan]

Triple check everything you do and then triple check again.

Cleanliness is next to godliness.

And triple check everything.

[Young Ed]

I think all of the spun mains I've seen after rebuilds have been due to installing them wrong. The oil hole has to be in the right spot.

[1941Rick]

Carmen142.....are you rebuilding the 201 or are you upgrading to a 218 or 230?

[TodFitch]

I'd have done what Don C and a few others have done: Run the engine on a test stand before installing. That way I would have known about and could have fixed an oil leak on the timing chain cover that is very difficult to get to on my car without pulling all the front sheet metal.

[Andydodge]

If you can afford it have the crank,rods,pistons,fltwheel & front pulley balanced, apart from the normal machining...........then get a workshop manual or better still get one before you pull it apart.......lol, read it cover to cover & assemble it yourself.........unless you can find a shop/mechanic who actually does KNOW these engines..........I got about 500 miles on the original 1940 Dodge engine rebuilt by "the best engine rebuilder in Sydney" about 40yrs ago and have never forgotten the crap he went on about........find someone you absolutely trust & know or do it yourself.........regards, andyd