Ginger the 83 wagon

[doneagle]

Im pretty tempted to replace the water pump too...it has a a slight catch in the pully when turned not bad but it would be a very easy fix at this point in the project.

              HI  Shane I do know water pumps .WE did a test on water pumps from over the counter .we foundthat compane pumps were better than cheep after market pumps .AMC pumps are hard to find . If you can find an AMC rebuild you can see the difference betwan the two ...THE cheepeys fins will be different and willpump less . that means less cooling so when you get a pump get a good one ..please...............Don

[tougeagle]

Take some purple power and a power washer to that engine . Good time to hose down the dogbone and front end too, never hurts to have a cleaner job. Looks like you're making tons of progress

[shanebo]

Thats exactly what i was thinking too ...I plan on keeping Ginger for a long time...and its inevidable all that stuff will need replacing eventually...I can do it all now in a few short hours or I can do it down the road 1 part at a time and waste  weeks tearing everything back apart....plus Its just plain easier to do a good when stuff is accessable.

[shanebo]

All right guys I just took some pictures...hoping for some opinions. Here is a picture...not a very good one...of the cam shaft through the fuel pump opening...does this look normal...I know its pretty hard to teel from the pic
The valves look really cruddy!! they look to have a half centimeter of build up on them...

[shanebo]

[shanebo]

I cant really tell if the lobes on the cam are worn or not...I guess Ill just have to pull it out and look....at any rate it could sure use a good cleaning.

[IowaEagle]

Looks like the internals need a good cleaning too.   If you can afford it, anything that is hard to get at when the engine is back in the car would be a candidate for replacement, if replacement seems indicated within a year or so.   I'm on the fence with the head, but now might be a good time to rebuild it while the engine is out.

[shanebo]

My biggest fear is those head bolts...Ive heard those front 2 bolts are not easy to come by....but the motor is in SERIOUS need of some cleaning....It just seems this whole engine pull would be in vane if I dont go through the entire thing top to bottom...inside and out.

Ive found 7/16 head bolts...its just those front two that the pully bolts to that Im concerned about....worst case senario I delete the a/c and relocate the pully. Im pretty creative

Im going for it!!! Ive got nothing but time. I can get a full rebuild kit...cam, rod bearings, gaskets, rings and all the other goodies for around 500$ that would be a good start. then save up some more cash and get the heads machined. Anything I do to it now will pay off big time down the road

[shanebo]

The heads came off beautifully...The bolts are virtually perfect no stretching, no breaks no problems!! ...However the pass. side head bolts came out covered in a very tarry oil and smelled very burnt!! the front bolt on the drivers side came out a bit rusty..but OK. When the head was removed It was very apparent the head gasket was in the early stages of failure. The #4 piston showed signs of coolant getting in, and all the sleeves are very glazed and a honing will do them wonders...I'm not gonna lie, I was sweating bullets the whole time I was wrenching those bolts off but i am so Glad I decided to tear the motor down further...lots of issues that need attention here....over all a very productive day

[shanebo]

Wiped the piston walls with a diesel soaked rag ,most of the rust wiped away..no pitting is visible...Im keeping my fingers crossed!!

[doneagle]

            HI    Shane  were you planing on having the block hot tanked ..The gap on the pistons looks good from here .looks better than mine did. every thing looks good .you can tell it has some miles on it ..............Don

[doneagle]

My biggest fear is those head bolts...Ive heard those front 2 bolts are not easy to come by....but the motor is in SERIOUS need of some cleaning....It just seems this whole engine pull would be in vane if I don't go through the entire thing top to bottom...inside and out.

Ive found 7/16 head bolts...its just those front two that the pully bolts to that Im concerned about....worst case senario I delete the a/c and relocate the pully. Im pretty creative

I'm going for it!!! Ive got nothing but time. I can get a full rebuild kit...cam, rod bearings, gaskets, rings and all the other goodies for around 500$ that would be a good start. then save up some more cash and get the heads machined. Anything I do to it now will pay off big time down the road

                        HI I think your right go for it ..the head bolts one of mine was broke so I went to jeep dealer  they had them .. your right about doing it right IT will save time and money in the long run.

[doneagle]

      HI   I don't want seam like a smart .but I don't know your level on cars .. do you know that whin you take off the rod caps make sure there marked for the cyl they cam out of and the rod cap goes on that rod ....I do not know if you know this and I did not want you to make the same mistake that some one else made on there first one...........Don

[IowaEagle]

Looks like good progress is being made.  Did you keep the pushrods in order so they go back in as before?

[tougeagle]

My biggest fear is those head bolts...Ive heard those front 2 bolts are not easy to come by....but the motor is in SERIOUS need of some cleaning....It just seems this whole engine pull would be in vane if I dont go through the entire thing top to bottom...inside and out.

Ive found 7/16 head bolts...its just those front two that the pully bolts to that Im concerned about....worst case senario I delete the a/c and relocate the pully. Im pretty creative

Im going for it!!! Ive got nothing but time. I can get a full rebuild kit...cam, rod bearings, gaskets, rings and all the other goodies for around 500$ that would be a good start. then save up some more cash and get the heads machined. Anything I do to it now will pay off big time down the road

HIGHLY suggest at this point that you go with a 4.0 cam and lifters, and pushrods. A brand new 4.0 cam is approx 180 dollars from autozone, lifters are around 12 bucks a piece, and pushrods are pretty cheap. The cam is a direct swap from the 258, and you'll see a noticible increase in power... just something to consider...