Does anyone have any educated idea on how many hours it should take to swap out engines in a 85 vette and appro how much for a replacement engine? L92 350 5.7L TPI?
Thanks in advance...Mike

Ok thanks for the feed back of one.... let me expand on this thought. I believe that the head gasket went and my thought is if I repair/replace the head gasket(s) then I still have a 28 year old 105,000k miles engine. I am told by mechanics that 5-10k miles down the road My vette would start burning oil. Whether this is true I don't know. I feel for piece of mind and adding longevity to my investment(this part of my IRA) I am 62yo. I feel the investment is well worth it.
What is the forums take?

 

In the books its 40 hours to replace an engine
Doing it yourself the 1st time it will take probably around that long if you have done it in other cars
Putting it back in is the nightmare
I rebuilt my 90 when it went out turned it into a 383 which is something you should consider made a big difference in torque and will pull to 100 no problem(ALOT faster than it did before now if i take my eyes off of it i will be doing 115)
I just got done with mine be careful with the grounds on the side of the block and dont forget any

 

Allow a weekend if you have the new engine there depending on your spanner handling experience, if it is a short motor you will need time to fit the heads and set up the valve lash etc. It is an easy enough job, just do not try to rush it that is when you can make mistakes. Pay careful attention to the TPI inlet gaskets, even though they come with tabs to clip into place they can easilly get bumped loose during assembly. You need a couple of really good lights and a good torch, nothing worse than a vacuum leak.
Remember to clip the manifold temp sensor in and connecting the vacuum hose/ EGR vacuum etc. before bolting the upper plenum and runners.

The most time is spent trying to find the odd bolt, that gets misplaced or rolls right up against a tire.

Don't forget to replace the water pump, i put my new 383 in a few months ago and thought oh the water pump is only a few years old. Well it bit me in the *** today, decided to leak. Spent a couple of hours pulling the a/c and bracket's and removed the water pump this evening. Will pick up a new pump tomorrow, just doubling up the work that is annoying.

Good luck

 

40 hrs to r&r a sbc, what are you nuts! I'd guess its more like 8-10hrs. Now this isn't including repairing/disassembling your engine.
nhlighthouse, what is the problem w/ your car? Over heating? Leaks?
Doing a valve job on the heads & putting them on a high milage motor can cause blow by to become a problem. Was this car maintained well?

 

Most of the time for a newbie is working out how to get to items that are easy to access on a reg car.
Like undoing the top bellhousing bolts or how to get the engine to locate to the trans while pushing it back
and lowering it so the engine mounts drop in on install

 

Depending if the engine is totally stock with all of the factory goodies, and its the first time, and your taking photos of where every thing goes, a good 8 hours, max. You do not need to remove the hood, you can leave the trans in. Me and my friends have pulled the engine so many times that we can easily do it in a couple of hours. Do not remove any more than you have to to pull the motor, it is much easier to remove everything once it's out. Here is a photo of the engine ready to pull...

 

FYI.....Just replacing the head gasket will NOT mean that you will start to burn oil in 5-10K miles. 105,000 is nothing for that engine. You should get up to 150,000-175,000.

If you did a valve job and increased the compression on the engine then you wold put more pressure on the rings.......and then you would start to burn some oil. I swapped heads to new AFR 180's at 140,000 miles. Didn't burn any oil. Finally blew a head gasket at 223,000 and decided to replace the entire engine with a ZZ4.

If you just want the car to continue to run, just replace the head gaskets. If you have never done this before, an easy weekend job. Just label EVERY bolt, hose, electrical wire WITHOUT EXCEPTION and you will be okay. Forget this step and you will be back on the Forum asking "where does this go"...."what is this"....."I have extra bolts".

If you are looking for a reason to replace the engine.....well it could be a good time. Look into the ZZ4 with a cam and a few more bolt ons. Just remember that you will have to find someone to tune the new set up.

-John

 

A blown head gasket can be repaired without removing the engine from the car. Do you know for sure that is the problem? Have you performed a "block test" to see if there is any indication of combustion gasses in the coolant? Is there any indication of coolant in the oil or leaking coolant around the block/head mating surfaces?

IMHO, you need to have a little more diagnostic information to determine if you just need gaskets or if a replacement motor is in order. And if you want a motor, you need to decide what power output you want. Cost will be based entirely on what you want; it can also be what you are willing to spend. One thing to remember is that while you may decide on a new motor with some added HP, the rest of the drivetrain still has over 100K miles on it.

If you are going to do any of the work yourself, I would recommend that you get the Factory Service Manual (FSM) for your year of Corvette. The FSM will have step-by-step procedures for fixing the problems(s).

Labeling everything is a good idea as is taking pictures of each component being removed. A video camera will be a big help here. Get some Zip-Lok food storage bags in both quart and Gallon sizes and some Sharpies. Each part goes in a bag and label it.

What do you have in the way of tools? You will need socket sets, wrench sets, screwdrivers, torque wrench, and assorted other tools. If you have access to air tools like an air ratchet and impact wrench, that will be a big help in removing bolts. and nuts.

A floor jack and jackstands, good lighting, and a work bench is a big plus. A helper will be needed when it comes to the actual removal of the engine from the car. And beer.....

 

IMO if youve been taking care of the motor. I would swap the headgaskets and drive it. At 100,000 your only doing 3000 a year. Ive seen well taken care of motor/car go to 300,000 with ease, and at 3000 a year, in another 20 years you will only be at 160,000. h

 

thanks for the feedback! I have owned thgis vette only since 9/12 and have limited receipts on wwhat was done to vehicle. Based upon the condition of the interior I would say not much in the way of mechanical upkeep. Who knows how well they kept engine/trany up I do know that I am only the 3rd owner. I have taken care of the interior/weatherstripping, seats and door panels along with the exterior skin of the car. Would you advise any one to have a dealer do the head gasket or even diagnose what is wrong?

...Thanks in advance Mike

 

Thanks John

 

I don't have much data on what was done to engine...very limited. i am also worried about driving this vette around to get to garages to find out what is actually wrong with vehicle. Will I do more harm to the car? I live in Salem NH and some place around here

 

nhlighthouse, you are 62, I am 64 and I would never ever consider having someone else work on my Vette and I am staying that way until I am unable to do so. John A. Marker hit it right on the head, replacing the headgasket will not cause oil consumption. As to time involved in an R&R, that depends, 30-40 years ago I could have it out in a couple hours and maybe a bit more putting it back in. Now, well, I'm sad to say that a week is about as fast as I can handle, maybe more.

 

Is this an "old man's club"......damn I am 63 now and will turn 64 in April. I do 99% of the work on the car myself.

I guess the first question would be, what make you think the head gasket is blown? Oil in the water, water in the oil, low compression on a cylinder or high coolant consumption.....can't find out where the coolant is going? You can have a shop check the coolant with a tester that looks for exhaust gases in the coolant. This would be a clear indicator of a blown gasket.

Replacing the head gaskets is not that difficult if you have the tools. We can walk you thru the process if you have not done it before.

 

anti freeze in the oil!

 

and coming out exhaust.I lost my last post...I do not have the facilities(garage)and the knowhow as of yet to work on my own vette...therefore I must have some expert who knows what they are doing. Guys understand that many of you have worked on many cars and are schooled in what you are doing. I am limited but willing to learn and get some grease under my nails(OR wear gloves) How far should I drive this before I worry about any more damage is done to the engine.....1,5,10 or 20 miles
Thanks in advance Brother & Sister Vette owners

 

If there is coolant in the oil, don't drive the car, much less run the engine. There is a blown head gasket.

Coolant in a cylinder can cause "hydro-lock". When the piston comes up on the compression stroke and there is coolant in the cylinder, that coolant will not compress and it usually results in a bent (or even broken) connecting rod or broken piston. This is serious engine damage!

Is there a Corvette club in your area? If so, contact them to see if any of the members could help out.

You can also try going to the AAA website and look for AAA-approved repair facilities in your area. Call one and give them the details and ask for a repair estimate. If you do find a shop that gives you a good price, do not drive the car there. Find a tow company with a flatbed truck and have the car picked up and delivered to the shop. Most shops will recommend a tow company and they usually get a better price than if you call yourself.

Most people here will not recommend a dealership as the per-hour labor rates will be much higher as will the cost of parts. And some dealers may not want to work on older Corvettes because they may not be able to find OEM parts. Find an independent repair shop to do the work.

 

Youve had yours about as long as Ive had mine. I thought mine was in rough shape til I started looking at others. There was 1 for sale here for 5000, and the paint was toast and the interior was stained, ripped, dirty, and you could see the mold. It disgusts me how some people treat, or mistreat there vehicles. Now Im grateful mine only took some soap, and water, and buffing compound.

As far as taking it somewhere, I dont let anyone touch my car. Between your FSM, and the people here there isnt anything you cant do yourself. A gasket kit will run under a hundred dollars, and a dealer will charge 2000. http://www.ebay.com/itm/Fel-Pro-HS77...793ca0&vxp=mtr You will have to buy most of this kit just to do the lifters, and once you're that far, all you have to do is unbolt the exhaust, and pull the heads. Then you'll know all the gaskets are good, and arent going to go in the near future.

First thing to check, (if you're not planning on doing headgaskets) is your compression. You are looking for no more than 10% variance between cylinders. You may get an odd reading from the one with the bad lifter, but the rest should be close. This would also be a good time to check for leaky valves.

Once you have determined how far you are gonna go, take pics! Not only will it help you, on reassembley, but it helps us, should you have a problem. h

 

I am over whelmed with the help you guys have given me in helping me get this job done....Thanks 100 times over
now if there is anyone in the Salem NH area wanting to help me out I willprovide the beer and pizza! email me at nhlighthouse@yahoo.com

 

I was just going to ask you where you were, sorry, that's a tad too far for me. Anybody out there close enough willing to donate some time here.
If you can't find any help and have to resort to a garage to do it, do yourself & favor & check them out real good to see if they have worked on Vettes before. It's just a small block Chevy but a little Vette knowledge would be good too.