how hard is an engine rebuild? + cost

[l1ttle_d3vil]

im looking at rebuilding my aw11 bigport 4agze which i'm turboing. its going to be a daily / street car so would like a reliable engine once I get it running. only thing is ive only pulled one engine apart (just to see exactly whats involved etc!). wasn't too hard at all, but is a rebuild much different?
i would most likely need second opinions on whether the pistons/crank etc is good or in need of replacing as I wouldn't have a clue...but i could probably get a mechanic to give me a hand on that sort of stuff so thats fine. im guessing it would just be a matter of cleaning it up and checking it thoroughly for any dodgy marks/patterns and measuring it to insure its within factory specs/wear etc. is the actual assembly very hard?

assuming the crank/rods/pistons are OK what parts would I replace so the engine is in a "reliable" condition? im thinking bearings, rings & head gasket, but is there anything else? oil pump ... or do they not normally let go? once I pull the head off would it need to be skimmed or anything before going back on? or does that just depend on the condition?
is there any other stuff i should pay particular attention to?

would I just use standard aw11 gze parts for the rebuild, or can i get something better for a few $$ more? obviously ill be replacing all the other little bits too, gaskets, seals, sensors, belts, waterpump etc etc. thats all easy, its just the "internal rebuild" im not sure of! or is this a case of "if you have to ask, don't do it" i've done a search and havent found much info specific to this and i'm not exactly mechanically minded (i sit at a computer for a job ). wouldn't mind knowing how to rebuild an engine though. I just don't want to get started on something I won't be able to finish though!

any advice would be appreciated. thanks.

[Ae92typeX]

If you can go step by step, can esure you clean clean clean, have the correct tools for the job + know how to use them, are prepared to check and double check measurements, clearances etc, then it 'could' be within your grasp. Its difficult to say when someone says 'im not mechanically minded' (that ususally suggests the if you have to ask)
You dont mention much about rebuilding the head. If going to the level you discuss I would at the least be checking the shim clearances also.
IMO its worth replacing the oilpump since you are there. If the engine is fine now, you would get away with cleaning up and refitting the head, but considering you are taking everything else apart I would be looking at rebuilding it including a skim and crack test while it is off. But it depends how you want to do it really...

[andyztouring]

Invest some money on a engine stand,worth their weight in gold,make dismanlting and reassembly so much easier.(Enables you to turn the whole engine around for doing bolts etc). For the cost it would the worthwhile giving the crankshaft a grind and fitting undersize bearings,get a engine reconditioner to measure the crank first.Cost something like $145 to do my 4K crank ground.Also get them to measure your bores as well.One last thing,give the valves a grind,and recheck the shims clearances,they can be noisy if not reset right.Shop around many places for parts.I have found Partmaster very sharp for many parts,Repco can be very expensive.

[ChaosAD]

Might aswell get the engine block cleaned, honed and skimmed by a machine shop.
Get a workshop manual as that will have a step by step guide

[l1ttle_d3vil]

well when I say i'm not mechanically minded, I don't do it for a living and have never rebuilt and engine before. I have done an engine conversion, pulled gearboxes apart etc and just sorta learnt as I went. I don't want to do that with the engine and end up blowing it up or something cos I got something wrong i wana make sure I know whats involved first, or i'll get someone else to do it from the beginning.

from the sounds of it about all I would do is disassemble + reassemble the engine as an engine reconditioner would still need to skim / grind / hone almost everything anyway. will skimming the head effect the compression? or is that only if you really skim the head?
i would probably give the head to a reconditioner to check over too.

as for shopping around for parts, what parts are you talking about? wouldn't it be best to go with genuine toyota parts (or something better, eg. trd?) for bearings / rings etc. im guessing anything from repco wouldn't be as good...

thanks again. all the info is helpful

[andyztouring]

Why get parts from Toyota,9 times out of 10 they get aftermarket parts to sell to you.I have done many engines and very rarely ever used genuine parts and no failures yet.The only genuine parts I ever bought were rings for a Honda City as aftermarket rings were not made!!!,and horribly expensive.A head skim will not affect compression.

[l1ttle_d3vil]

interesting...will check out prices. I can get pretty good prices thru repco so will give them a go. any particular brand to steer clear from or anything?

is it worth getting the engine balanced too, while its all apart? i've heard thats around 1k to get done though, but im guessing that would include them having to pull the engine to bits. is it worth it for a street car, or more for hi-revving drag cars or something? and what would I expect to pay for the balancing if the engine is already apart?

[TRD_ZERO]

viewtopic.php?t=57008&highlight=balancing

[Grrrrrrr!]

Get genuine parts if the price is okay, but bearings and rings are probably going to be cheaper aftermarket.
ACL race bearings are decent quality and only a few dollars more than their normal ones.

Skimming a head does affect compression, the more they take off the more it affects it. A decent machinist that only takes off the minimum is a good person to know.

If you want a trouble free motor i would price up the following bits plus anything that looks worn:
Headset (head gasket, valve stem seals, manifold gaskets etc.)
Cam Belt and tensioner
Water pump and thermostat
Rings
Main and big end bearings
Crank seals front and rear
Head bolts, flywheel bolts
ARP Rod bolts if you intend to thrash it heaps.
maybe Oil pump.

Machining:
Bores Honed
Head skimmed
Valve Seats - optional
Block and head hot tanked (cleaned)

[l1ttle_d3vil]

cheers Grrrrrrr!! thats the info im after. will price up to get it balanced and make a decision from there...

i guess i'll just pull it to bits to do the rings / bearings / seals anyway, and will thoroughly check how everything else looks. i know its a bit hard to give advice without knowing what the engine is like at all but the info given so far has been helpful.

will also be looking for a car to put this engine into at some point, so there will be a project thread with plenty of pics around closer to the time!

thanks.

[Dirtbag]

Im in the process of looking into doing a rebuild of a S/T, will the blacktop service manual that I've got do the job, or does anyone know where to get a S/T service manual?

[escortman]

on sat mourn i droped my block head rods and pistons off to henderson reconditioners just behind old appco, to have it all checked over then go from there, but im def going to get gasket set and trd metal headgaskit, acl big end and main bearings arp rod bolts if i have to get new pistons will probably get forgies through callum at appco i think they have wiesco now or somthing

[Grrrrrrr!]

Im in the process of looking into doing a rebuild of a S/T, will the blacktop service manual that I've got do the job, or does anyone know where to get a S/T service manual?

Blacktop is not too different from the silvertop mechanically. So all clearances and torques etc. should be the same.
Electrics and vacuum lines are a little more different from what i have seen.

The mechanical differences that come to mind are that the silvertop has a spring loaded cambelt tensioner pulley, the blacktop has a hydraulic one.
And i think that the marking on the cam wheels might be slightly different for lining up when installing the cambelt so it might pay to take a good clear pic of where things are before you strip it down.

Each silver top cam wheel has a dot and a line. The lines point towards each other and two dots line up with the little pointers on the valve cover IIRC.