So I found the problem...



Rods were hitting the oil gerney in the pan on rods 3 & 4. I bought the orignal motor that this build was done on from another user, and I'm guessing he bent the pan when removing the motor from his car So now I have to remove the head, and flush everything, and buy a new oil cooler.

So just so this is clear IM 99.99% sure that this is not the fault of AMS. Yes they installed the pan, but I dont think they ever rotated this assembly to check for such a problem, so the fault is not left to them. AMS is a great company.

Any advice would be great... I'm going to be spending many man hours cleaning this thing, I can only hope that I will get most of what could possibly harm bearings out before it does damage something. FML

 

"So just so this is clear IM 99.99% sure that this is not the fault of AMS. Yes they installed the pan, but I dont think they ever rotated this assembly to check for such a problem, so the fault is not left to them. AMS is a great company. "

I disagree with you.... Any engine builder should check the whole engine carefully... dude... that's wrong...

 

Agreed, that should have been looked at if they installed it.

 

Won't hurt to ask for partial help the cost of parts. They may just give you a freakin awsome deal on what you need.

 

^ +1

 

its a difficult call. with how lightly the rods are touching the pan it may not be heard or felt turning over by hand.
i bet that would of caught even the most experienced builders out.
bummer for both parties.

 

yeah, whole situation sucks

 

Sorry to hear, but glad you found the problem.

I feel your pain though. The Cobra that I bought 4 months ago just dropped a valve and put a hole in the #4 piston. It was a completely built longblock with only 10k miles on it and now I'm looking at a complete rebuild.

 

ahh bummer James I was wondering why I hadn't heard much from you after the first ROM was sent.

 

that is wayyyy worse then my problem man.

I'm really sorry Chris. I've been having so many problems with this thing. The gasket for the waterpump was dry rotted for sitting dry for so long, and then this. It's been a long road but hopefully I can get most the debris out and we can finish what we started.

 

i really hate to say this but the whole motor could be destroyed!
even the smallest of fines getting to the crank shells will do damage
if it was me i'd do a full strip down as i'd be even more gutted to have to pull it 2-3k miles after running IF fines are in the oil gallerys/shells
i feel the pain from here and i'm 3000miles away

 

I would pull a couple of rod caps and see the bearing condition before doing a full strip down. The bearings may not be damaged to any great extent.

If it were me, after checking the rod bearings, I would clean the engine out as best as possible without doing too much pulling, get a magnetic drain plug, and then run the engine for about 5 mins and change the oil. Then change it again maybe 20 miles later. And continue with frequent changes to try to get everything out. The oil cooler of course should be changed or take the risk and flush it out. It is a risk though, especially considering the investment in the engine.

I doubt the motor is trashed. I've seen many engines spin rod bearings without doing any significant damage to the other bearings. A spun rod bearing will create a lot more debris in the oil than what happened here.

 

agree^. and thinking about it fines that originate from only the sump do have to pass the oil filter first so will be trapped there. so a oil pump clean out and reverse flush the oil pick up tube should be all bases covered! ????????
i'd not undo the shells now i think about it.
with me ppl ?

 

I just started with the flushing.

I took the oil cooler off and ran 3 cans of break clean through it. I removed the valve cover and dumped 10 quarts of cheap oil through and let it all drain out. I took out the oil pump and checked the screen for debris, and there was none to speak of. Everything seems to be okay. I'm probably gonna buy a new oil pan. AMS DRY SUMP MAYBE??

 

whats wrong with the pan?