How to find a good used motor?

[Doubeleive]

Thanks for all the helps, folks, I have a lot of research to do.

if it is just sitting at the shop and you want to drive it home throw that blue devil stuff in before you drive off, just take a set of pliers to remove that upper radiator hose, pour the blue devil in (2) bottles, put the hose back on and drive it. you haven't said how bad it is yet like milk shake looking oil or not or if it just has lost enough coolant to make it overheat, either way if it's not bad just change the oil after adding the blue devil and cross your fingers

 

[tRidiot]

Actually, no it didn't even lose all the coolant when it overheated... I think the crappy new O'Reilly thermostat stuck closed. It popped open later when I was idling it in front of the shop, as I saw the temp dropping rapidly. Then the thermostat was changed anyways before the tech tested it and found exhaust gases in the cylinder or whatever. So I haven't had a chance to even drive it since.

 

[wjburken]

Actually, no it didn't even lose all the coolant when it overheated... I think the crappy new O'Reilly thermostat stuck closed. It popped open later when I was idling it in front of the shop, as I saw the temp dropping rapidly. Then the thermostat was changed anyways before the tech tested it and found exhaust gases in the cylinder or whatever. So I haven't had a chance to even drive it since.

Did you get this message on the dash?

 

[Fless]

Wish my neighbor would sell you her '04 4x4 Hoe that has a dead tranny, for $1K. It's just sitting in the driveway waiting for something to happen and I know they won't fix it. Not gonna get anything on trade-in, either, I'd bet, but I should ask them what they would take for it. I think it has maybe 140k on the clock, new tires. Not sure if it's Flex (VIN Z, L59) but that wouldn't matter based on the earlier discussion; you'd have all the parts to swap over to keep it Flex.

 

[JonnyTahoe]

I drove one of my milkshake 5.3s from Columbia, SC to Chicago, IL and back... just make sure it has enough fluids to get home.

I drove a B2200 Mazda with a cracked head for years!! Added anti-freeze in the winter and straight water in the summer. The calcium in the hard water sealed the leak after one summer.

 

[SouthernDuke]

Swapping an engine outs isn’t bad if you are mechanically inclined and have the tools to do so. If you are getting someone else to do this for you keep in mind you are on there timeline. Is the mileage what is deterring you from just replacing the head gasket? Heads can be found for pretty cheap too online or again in junkyards. A simple google of best cylinder heads for .... will get you the codes you need and the vehicles you can find them on. There are millions of good heads out there. Just to let you know what I find when doing an overhaul on my 260k mile 5.3 was some expected wear on the piston skirts and a very small lip from ring wear at the top of the cylinder. I could still see the factory cross hatch from the initial hone. So these motors tend to have good life as long as they are not abused. You have dozens of options to solve this problem. The first question I would ask my self is what do I want from this vehicle? And that can eliminate many of your options.

 

[tRidiot]

The more I look into this, the more I just don't feel comfortable with putting in a used motor off Ebay or something. I am worried about getting the 706 Castec heads again, and none of the Ebay sellers seem to want to be able to reassure me I am not getting them. They've have to pull the valve covers to look and I get why they don't want to do that.

Maybe I'll look into getting one of my friends who has a shop at his place to help me do a rebuild.

Anyone know a good source for new heads?

 

[91RS]

You don't have to pull the valve covers to see the casting numbers.

 

[tRidiot]

You don't have to pull the valve covers to see the casting numbers.

Not the numbers, no.... but from what I've read, there are "706" heads that are NOT Castec. And even 842 heads that ARE Castec and have had the same problem with leaking.

I've considered just moving up to a 6.0L LQ4 or LQ9 motor to get away from the possibility of the faulty head issue.

 

[Sam Harris]

Not the numbers, no.... but from what I've read, there are "706" heads that are NOT Castec. And even 842 heads that ARE Castec and have had the same problem with leaking.

I've considered just moving up to a 6.0L LQ4 or LQ9 motor to get away from the possibility of the faulty head issue.

That sounds like a no brainer to me!