Well my newly rebuilt motor finally failed with only a thousand miles on in. Blew all the bearings, 3 of the eight cylinder are so full of oil that changing the plugs will only run the car about half an hour before re-fouling, and this morning a head gasket blew and took almost all the water from the radiator and dumped it into the crankcase. If anyone would like to know where not to have an engine rebuiit, I can certainly tell you of one place not to visit.

This is a daily driver, and to many of you I am what you might call an old fart. So, this motor has not seen any RPM's over 3,000.

Anyway, it appears this rebuilder really did a number on this engine and it can not be salvaged to any degree. (Sorry, that's not true the timing cover is still good). And there are no crate motors for 84's, so one might say "boy you are really screwed"...ha ha ha.

But......I now I do need a crate motor. Do any of you have any experience with the ZZ4 replacement? In this particular application I will be retaining my crummy stock crossfire injection and this one is a Caifornia (smog) car.

thanks for your input

Sincerely

Really Pissed off Joe

 

Joe sorry to hear your bad news. I am in the process of doing the swap with mine. But mine is a 85 with tpi. But I see no reason why you can put your stuff on to. The following is what I have to change. The water pump that comes with the ZZ4 is a long shaft so you have to change that. NO Biggy. The dist is vacuum advance so you have to use your old one. The new ZZ4 comes with a 8 inch harmonic balance that I have read will rub the cross support. I did some measuring today and it looks like it will fit with no problem.


That is about all that i have to offer at this point.......I am sure some one will add to this.

 

The ZZ4 long blocks heads do not have provisions for EGR. May I suggest a ZZ4 short block and a decent set of heads and cam? Retaining your stock x-fire will mean you do not need expensive heads. Here's some other options too :)

http://www.sdpc2000.com/cart.asp?act...tart&catid=514

 

Yup, some guys at the crossfire forum did that swap. Visit www.crossfire.webhop.net They will help ya. :)

 

dylanc on the crossfire forum has a zz4, he didnt do the swap but the previous owner is still on the forum. I think all you need to do is use center bolt valve covers. Everything else should bolt in. Be aware though you need to do some induction modification to make any real power. With just the zz4 the car only gained 30hp, but with an xram ($385) it made an additional 65 hp. Then larger throttle bodies($250) and bigger injectors(little over 100) should fetch you close to the advertised 355hp

 

Mine runs flawlessley, although at WOT it sounds like a car running in an oval race :D

Mine tends to idle a but rough, goes up and down until its warmed up. After that its smooth.

Good Luck !!

Rich

 

Thanks all for the feedback it really helps, I've found out a lot.

As far as running on an oval track that's a good thing. And also the true test of a motor. At WOT it should sound that way, otherwise you did not get what you paid for. At redline it "SHOULD" and "NEEDS" to sound like it is coming un-glued.

I am still a my decision/researching making stage so this thread is not closed should anyone add a blurb. Due to this post I found two great places to purchase a crate engine and I will be buying from one of them, just narrowing down my options for the best fit on this peculiar situation.

thanks

the old fart (never thought I would say this)

joe

 

From one ol fart to another: You're never too old. When I quit liking performance cars...throw dirt on me.

Joe, have you considered upgrading to an LT1 or LT4? I have seen adaptor setups for just about any vehicle out there to install an LT1. They MUST have the setup for an 84.

 

Jesus Christ!!! Who in the hell built your motor? Have they ever heard of a dial bore guage or at the very least Plastigage for setting bearing clearances??? FWIW: I've swapped a ZZ4 into an 84... Did it about 4 years ago and it's still in there and running strong. It was a friend's car and he has since moved to Tennessee, but I know he's still driving it everyday. There's also another 84 here in Little Rock that some friend's of mine swapped a ZZ4 into, it runs great as well. The only thing I did when I swapped in the ZZ4 was open the intake manifold somewhat for better flow, and I believe we put larger TBI's in it as well (I think they came from The Turbo Shop).
-Jeb Burnett

 

AHahahahahha, my thoughts exactly. When I brought the motor home after the rebuild, I took it apart to inspect his work. I found that the bearings had been scored though the flash coat and into the babbit from the used (oh but very good crank, "according to him"). He said "what is the flash coat"? Then I had to explain to him how engine bearings are made.....whatever....

I told him that the motor was going to blow (which is a very long story) and I did not want to have it installed in the car. We argued for about half an hour and he would not give in. So I had it put in and it blew. Anyway since you asked his name is Richard Conemac of "Conemac Precision Machining" in Canoga Park CA.
http://yp.yahoo.com/py/ypResults.py?...18.607600&cs=5


Moving forward, I apprecatie all the input on this thread, and I have found a store that has some great deals. The chip seems to be the definitive answer to the question of what can be installed. Tommorrow I will be calling around for a chip replacement before I place my order.

This motor I have chosen is not the ZZ4, but this one looks like it has potential for my app. I think it might be a good fit. If any of you all have an opinion on this motor, I would certainly like to hear it...For the price it looks to be pretty decent.

http://www.goautocenter.com/320hp_alum__head.htm

Shawn at autocenter was very helpful this morning, I killed quite a bit of his time. He is very knowlegdeable. I would encourage anyone to contact them for parts.

thanks all

joe

 

Very nice car there.

Put the wheels and the 96 panels on and our C-4's are about the same.

Rich

 

That's pretty funny.... I love the name of his company: "Precision" Yeah!!! Our shop is Precision Performance Engines... But we actually warrant the "precision" moniker!!! He is paying for it I would hope...
-Jeb Burnett

 

Oh he will eventually, he asked the court for a continuence on yesterday's court date, so I have to wait another month to fight it out.

joe

 

I don't think you'll get an 8" balancer to fit, when I built my engine the biggest I could use was 7". Your crate idea is a good one. Good Luck with it!

Mark