I hate cars

[akrapovic]

So the new big block I installed decided to come apart. Low and behold the roller cam had about 1/4" of play from front to back. This is awesome since my machinist insisted on putting the short block together bc he wanted to make sure it was right........ Turns out he doesn't believe in using all the parts included in the repair kit (ie torrington bearing) for the thrust portion of the block. Slowly but surely the timing gear was chewing in to the thrust face of the block. Bad news is the motor had to come out. The good news is all of the hard parts look great. No damage to anything except bearings and the "thrust face" of the block.

So in closing, it's better to pay more for quality as opposed to paying twice. The good news is I was hooked up with Motor City Speed/Billy Briggs formerly of Wheel to Wheel. He has been very helpful and accommodating. Going with a bigger cam and higher compression while I've got the motor apart. So maybe I'll get something out of this annoyance aside from a parts and labor bill. Hopefully more than 350miles.... Sigh.....

[71RS/SS396]

That sucks! I assume the builder won't reimburse you for the job he screwed up!

[akrapovic]

He offered to cover the labor, when he gets time. I just feel kind of retarded letting the guy who messed it up fix it.

[GregWeld]

Oh buddy -- we share some motor stories.... I'm on the SECOND rather expensive rebuild of the ORIGINAL motor I had built but a illustrious racing engine builder...

The original 427 small block was a complete unmitigated disaster from the start. The builder - long time local shop - closed 3 days after I picked the engine up... it lasted a few months before I realized what a pile it was...

REBUILD #1 - Good local shop - well known - 30 years plus in biz... problems here were piston too sloppy in the bore - and too far down the bore - and the wrong # on the spring. They chose to use flat tappet springs on a roller cam...
The cam is toast... and the metal in the oil looked like metallic paint.

REBUILD #2 - just finished with it.... motor sounds fantastic - #'s were good - I watched as they cleaned the oil filter (mesh type cleanable) - looked great. So far so good...

40 grand later I might have a motor I can use for a couple of years. :rofl:

[akrapovic]

That's pretty bad Greg. Hopefully I'll have better luck the second time around.

[GregWeld]

Yeah -- I certainly hope so! I'm rooting for ya!
:cheers:

[DFRESH]

If you've been around this hobby/sport for awhile---the phrase "Been there done that" strikes a chord. I think the only guys that might be worse than sloppy engine builders with a strong reputation are the paint and body guys that everyone else seems to have luck with until I take them my car---bunch of dope smokin hippies--LOL.

Sorry to hear your troubles---glad you are getting away with just bearings on this one---with that much movement, it coulda been much worse. I'm not even going to start on all my war stories with the drag car and the number of motors in and out of it---glad you are getting a chance to make it even better. Keep us posted.

Doug

[Vegas69]

Ouch, these things do come with their share of headaches. Just remember, this is supposed to be fun. :lol:

[Xplosiv]

Sounds like me, when I was in high school I payed a guy to put 3.42 gears in my 91 z28 10 bolt because I didnt have the proper tools. 3 months later at the track the entire carrier came apart because he "forgot" to torque the carrier bolts.

[Steve1968LS2]

I hate cars typically once a month at least.. lol


Just remember that if it was easy everyone would do it thus lessening the accomplishment.

[tones2SS]

Sorry to hear that. Hope it all works out for you in the end.
GOOD LUCK MAN!:thumbsup:

[GregWeld]

He offered to cover the labor, when he gets time. I just feel kind of retarded letting the guy who messed it up fix it.

I absolutely agree with you! My feeling is - if you couldn't do it right the first time - what makes you think you can do it right now?

On that note: I always have told people working on my stuff - "please don't build my "X" with YOUR wallet. If you have a choice of good, better, and best... I will ask you.. What do you have better than that? That is what I want. Don't try to save me any money.

What I've ended up with - is some very nice - top notch - used parts. :rofl:

Yesterday I picked up the "OLD" AFR 190cc aluminum heads. I chose to change heads on the latest build to switch from STRAIGHT plug to angle plugs... So I asked the shop to go thru the AFR's and make 'em right. My thought is that I can use them again - or sell them - or give them to a friend that is in need and maybe can't afford them - but "whatever" - I just want them as good as new. The bill was $911 for me to toss them on the shelf - where they now reside next to a nice set of Canfield 220cc heads... :willy: :wow: :rofl: They're too heavy to use as paperweights.

[Josh69]

Hear Hear. I'm in the same boat. First engine was built with a few extra parts leftover, not to mention the rear cam journal plug that came out and oiled down my fresh chassis.

The 2nd build is going on as we speak..this time we're running it in on a test stand to make sure everything is copacetic before it goes back in the car.

Also using a new builder that has a good reputation...which is what the last builder had too.

Argh, if it's not the bodyman, it's the machinists. I swear, the only things that were done right or on time and to my satisfaction were things I didn't pay someone else to do..even though I've missed a few simple things...I usually figure them out quickly...and they don't require pulling the engine out or repainting the car. :willy:

[214Chevy]

Okay ladies, y'all tricked me into getting on my sopabox. Well, I had a $12k 509 ci (hence my member name 509 Chevelle) built with AFR 315 heads, fully cnc'd and all, Street & Performance serpentine pulley system and all. Anyway, the motor was a hell of a motor. It ran fine and I bought it from a builder I found on the net. He (the builder) did everything I paid him to. The motor was perfect. No complaints on him. This is where I got screwed. It had a solid roller cam in it and I took it to a "so-called" reputable, local engine builder. Took him my cam specs card to get the valves adjusted. I guess he ignored the cam specs and this idiot cranked down and tightened my springs down too tight which prevented the valves from opening all the way. As a result of this, it flattened out my cam lobes and broke some of the wheels on my roller lifters. I had noticed when I picked the car up from him it sounded very funny which was from the valves not opening fully, but didn't know what it was and kept driving it until the cam went flat. All the internals were fine so I sold the motor to a buddy of mine who fixed it and it still runs fine to this day. Like I said, the motor was built nicely. After this is when I got the LS 6.0.

[chr2002ca]

Dude, I feel your pain. My brand new GM ZZ454 crate motor spun a rod bearing after 2000 miles at the RTTC event a few months ago. If anybody heard a ticking at the event, that was me, I call it. While people got to parade their cars around the track, I got to watch mine get towed home. Motor of course had to come out. Same results as you, all the hard parts were okay and only the bearings needed to be replaced and the crank polished. It's all back together now. I checked clearances on its way back together in my garage and everything checked out okay so I'm still not sure what caused it. It's had a 6000rpm rev limiter on it since day 1. I took the time to break it in properly, oil prime it, etc. Maybe the engine just somehow didn't break-in properly, oil shortage, bad luck, GM sucks, I suck, I hate cars, etc. I installed an Accusump system so I shouldn't be able to blame it on oil shortage when(not if) it happens again.

So buying a new GM crate motor with a warranty doesn't mean jack sh_t. And then there's my new Bowtie Overdrive Level 3 200 4R that has vented fluid out of the plastic vent tube from day 1(they're still puzzled by that one). The pressure readings look good in all gears(since day 1) and the fluid level is dead on, so I'm most likely going to have to drive to their facility and have them figure out what the problem is. That might have to come out also, who knows. Maybe it's something simple(not with my luck). My new AGR steering box blew up after 50 miles and burned fluid into my pricey ceramic-coated headers, and that was after it had already gone back to the factory once to fix a slop issue. Those are so much fun to replace on a 69 camaro with a big block and 2 inch primary headers. My March serpentine system with proper alignment and Gatorback belts squeaks like hell unless you tighten it too much(water-pump and alternator bearing killer), and then they finally admit over the phone they don't recommend running it with a mechanical fan(funny that's not mentioned in the marketing literature). "Did you try taking the fan off?" No, I didn't, but it somehow stops squeaking when I take the belts off. It's even quieter if I take your pulleys and brackets off too. And the Baer brakes 4-wheel disc kit that are famous for being 'complete' was missing parts and still doesn't have enough brake pressure after 2 different boosters and 3 different master cylinders with plenty of vacuum from the engine. And their brake pads grunted badly on the rears after 200 miles and had to be replaced. And the new Moser 12-bolt leaked, and the Powermaster starter I got couldn't turn over a lawnmower engine, and three new Holley carbs have all had serious bog issues out of the box, and the list just goes on and on and on and on.

Those smaller issues didn't really bother me cuz that crap is normal, but the engine and transmission issues piled on top of those have been a bit much. I'd say nearly 60% of the new, "quality" parts I've bought haven't worked as they're suppose to. The Summit Racing returns department must hate me.

A lot of times it isn't the part breakage that gets you the most, it's the large amount of time and effort it takes to take the damn things out and put them back in. This multitude of parts failures has taken a lot of the fun out of it for me. There are times when I've just wanted to walk away from the hobby and get my life and wallet back. Hearing other people's stories is actually the one and only thing that has kept me going. So thanks for sharing everyone. :thumbsup: Now back to the garage, I need to fix some other issues.

[GregWeld]

Chris --

I won't run a March anymore - it's another part (a bunch of 'em) that is laying on the shelf... they squeak and don't have an auto tensioner. Plus - I hate the cheap azz looking tensioners they come with and they rattle.

Went with a Billet Specialties unit -- LOVE IT... and the auto tensioner works great and makes for quick belt removal if needed.

So when I got the BS unit - it comes with a brand new Edelbrock water pump. They use O rings on this unit... and I put it on and all back together - fill it with water --- got a leak at the pump! WTF! Okay - all back off ('cause it must be something I did wrong!) and I notice the O ring is messed up. New O rings = reinstall - water it up -- LEAKING again... now I'm pissed... I'm a bad mechanic but not that bad... tear it all apart - check surfaces for flatness - call BS for specs on the O ring - check torque specs - VERY CAREFULLY reinstall - water her up - LEAKS LIKE A F'n PIG... Now I'm going crazy... walk away for a day or so..... this time I'm really looking a ever part - is the block cracked? The pump cracked? That's when I finally notice that the BORE on the pump is WAY OFF - skewed to one side by like a quarter of an inch! It's cutting the O ring... I had to take pictures of it to show BS - which they're probably still laughing at. They replaced the pump UPS next day air... They are a good company.


http://i919.photobucket.com/albums/ad33/gregweld/Nomad%20build/Badpump.jpg

[Vegas69]

Damn Chris, you've had more than your fair share. I have a 3000 page build thread with all the bugs I've tackled. :lol: Lately I've been telling people, "'
Do you think the C6 Corvette was perfect after it's first test drive?" You take a bunch of bastard parts and slap it together and it's time to start working bugs out. I'm still working bugs out. I just changed over to a 1" master cylinder in hopes of less pedal travel on the race track. I haven't driven the car but it may make the brakes intolerable.

[chr2002ca]

Hey Greg. :) That's what I'm talking about right there. A simple and perfect example. A company like Edelbrock f'ing up a water pump badly like that and letting it ship. And you get to have all the fun at their expense. Water pumps are pain to replace with everything that bolts to them and the lovely mess that goes with the coolant. Now, take something like that and apply it to the whole engine or a transmission, and you get reasoning and accuracy behind the title of this thread. :)

Next time my car starts ticking at an event and you see me walking away from it with a smile of great satisfaction on my face, I'd start running, because it's probably a bomb I placed in it. :lol:

And nice to finally meet you at RTTC! :thumbsup:

[chr2002ca]

Hey Todd,

Yes, your build thread and sharing of all your experiences has always been a good source of energy for me while I've been working through my own issues, and continue to do so. :thumbsup:

I look forward to seeing you again in a few weeks for the road trip. :thumbsup:

[Vegas69]

Less than 2 weeks. :D :cheers:

[monza]

I'll join the club, I hate my car right now. Should be driving it but a few clues to some thing not right in the engine. Took it a part for a look and i'm in engine rebuild jail right now..... all parts are in so hopefully soon!

[frankenstang]

You guys make me feel good. I got a deal to trade intakes with a guy. Mine was too big for the cubes. While the intake was off I decided to freshen the heads. The springs had 85 pounds of seat pressure. Could 'splain why it was down on power the last year. Valve job was junk. I got off easy on the heads, $750 for that with new springs and stuff.

So far, I am at the $2500 mark just to ' freshen the heads ' due to all the other stuff that needed to be umm, made nicer.

And I am a proud member of the " got a hundred miles " out of an engine that was good to go.

[tones2SS]

I'll join the club, I hate my car right now. Should be driving it but a few clues to some thing not right in the engine. Took it a part for a look and i'm in engine rebuild jail right now..... all parts are in so hopefully soon!

Good luck man.
You have a nice car!:thumbsup:

[jjmontess]

I hate my car right now too. I've had my '85 Monte SS for 10 years, have been building it to exactly how I want it over the years while still driving it. It was what any normal person would consider finished and perfect....until I got the great deal on a short block 383....My winter project of swapping the 350 horsepower 350 with a 450 horsepower 383 seems like a big mistake now. I've got over $30,000 tied up in a car that will never be worth much more than $10,000 if I can find the right buyer....and I've been laying under the car at least 4 nights a week for the past 8 months. Chasing oil leaks...that have ruined all of the newly painted/powdercoated parts I took the time to refinish while the motor was out. Then I had valvetrain failure after my first 100 miles of break in. I've fixed that, now I'm back to chasing oil leaks again after having to tear the top of the motor apart.

I'm just worn down and tired of working on this car. Even after I fix it, the car is so nice that I'm afraid of parking it anywhere because of scratches or door dings. It's like I don't have freedom with a nice car...If car had rust, faded paint, or was more beat up...I'd enjoy it more and wouldn't worry about all the stupid little things.

Sorry about the rant, this thread just hit too close to home.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2447/4047640565_d6d56f41db_m.jpg