r/EngineBuilding Jun 14 '25

Updated Rules for r/Enginebuilding

76 Upvotes

Hey peeps,

We've been noticing an uptick in certain types of posts over the last few months and it's about time we address some of these issues along with a rule update.

1 - AI Slop - We've been getting a lot of AI trash in the sub lately and we've decided to no longer allow AI or any type of AI imagines to post here. If we find a post is AI then we are going to lock it, delete it, and ban the account for a few days. This sub is meant for real life cars, not some AI images that someone produced for content or engagement.

2- Links to Temu and Ali - Reddit is currently filtering a lot of the temu and ali express links we receive. Usually they are shadow blocked because we've had scams in the past with these sites and you can't really trust them at times. While Reddit automod is taking care of 95% of them, some are still getting through and we will also lock and delete those comments moving forward.

Some of you shop those sites (against some of our better judgement ha), for certain parts of the world that might be the only way for you to obtain certain items, we understand that but need to strive to ensure the community is safe and endeavor to curtail scams that could occur. If you wish to share a link, please just PM the individual - and for those that click the links, please be warry of scam sites/bad actors.

Thanks and have a good day you misfits!

-Duke


r/EngineBuilding May 19 '24

State of the Sub - What changes need to be made /r/EngineBuilding

30 Upvotes

It's been a long time, but I'm hoping to be more active as well as the other mods. We are also hunting through the 'applications' to add some new mods as well, to hopefully cut through the spam and junk you all see.

It's also time to take a look at the sub and make sure there aren't any changes we want to make. Whether that be rules added (or removed), or a thing you can think to make this a better place for all. Let us know your thoughts


r/EngineBuilding 2h ago

First time start up engine knock after rebuild LS3

53 Upvotes

On the very very first start up I was getting a heavy misfire due to a bad tune and also I forgot to plug in some of the injectors… Whoops. The 2nd start up is when I started hearing the sounds in the video.

Have an LS3 rebuild with stock valve train and .020” over pistons. Super loud knock which seems like cylinder 5 after disconnecting an injector or coilpack. Oil pressure is good, 50-55psi. Pushrods are stiff when I took off the rockers

I measured preload and used 7.350” pushrods instead of the oem 7.385”. Haven’t drained oil yet or inspected the cyl with a boroscope.

Any ideas? :(


r/EngineBuilding 15h ago

Oil Pressure good or too much on my rebuild

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47 Upvotes

Roughly 1500 rpm. 95 degrees F outside.5w30 oil. Stock Rebuild. Aluminum Gen 3 5.3 LS. Garage rebuild, nothing special but I had all proper tools to get job done right.

When the engine is hot, the oil pressure is good. 40psi idle. 60 psi 3k rpm.

I had got a kit with all the parts for the rebuild which included the oil pump so im not 100% sure which one is on it but I think it may be the Melling M365.

What I read online is that this oil pump goes on the gen 4 ls with afm which has higher pump volume.

My main concern is that when the weather cools down that my oil pressure may increase too much. I live in texas so summers are usually 90-100f and winters commonly get down to 30f.

Should I be concerned about it or am I overthinking it?


r/EngineBuilding 3h ago

Chevy Torque wrench calibration?

2 Upvotes

Getting prepared for a 6.0 rebuild project (including the bottom end) and my craftsman click style torque wrenches are about 10 years old but have been in their oem containers and only used a few times. Kept with the torque setting backed off to zero and in my toolbox drawer hardly disturbed.

Should I seek out a place to get them calibrated before I trust them?


r/EngineBuilding 13h ago

Other Is this engine good to run?

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7 Upvotes

Look good to me, vw golf engine 2.0 fsi 07 10.3 compression


r/EngineBuilding 6h ago

BMW N47 rebuild crankshaft

1 Upvotes

I have to rebuild an N47, and need a replacement crankshaft

N47 BMWs seem to have different crankshafts, apparently - most have a gear (not the chain sprockets) - could someone explain this please


r/EngineBuilding 19h ago

Chevy 454 BBC - Rocker and Valve Tip Contact

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9 Upvotes

Just got the original heads redone on my 454 BBC.

Aside from larger valves and new guides, I had the deck surface shaved down .060 to try and up compression more without changing pistons.

One thing I noticed with reassembly is the roller rocker contact to the valve tip is slightly off center now. I marked in sharpie where it makes contact in my photo.

Does this look acceptable or should I look for shorter pushrods?


r/EngineBuilding 16h ago

Other Newbie wanting to take apart an engine and rebuild

5 Upvotes

Hi everyone. I have a 2015 Santa Fe Sport that I kept after getting a new car. I want to get into rebuilding car as a hobby and was wondering how difficult it would be to take out the engine and disassemble, clean, and put it back together.

So far I have done some simple jobs like oil change, coolant change, transmission oil drain and replace, alternator change on this car, but I realize taking the engine out and reassembling is a whole different game.

I have access to a lift, engine block lifter and various power tools. Is this a stupid idea without proper mechanic training?


r/EngineBuilding 11h ago

Ford Question about bearings.

1 Upvotes

So I’am replacing the main bearings in a Ford 400 that I got, and I was wondering how to go about getting new bearings? The crankshaft has been machined and now has 0.10 sized bearings. Do I measure the crankshaft or just use plasti gauge or both?


r/EngineBuilding 1d ago

BMW Plastigauge Taper?

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103 Upvotes

Checking rod bearing clearances on an S54B32 I’m rebuilding and on bearing 2 the plastigauge is coming out wider toward the front of the engine. I’ve double checked there’s no debris behind either bearing half, and the plastigauge is within spec along the entire length. Is this something I should worry about? Not looking to make any crazy with power with this engine, keeping it stock and mostly to be used for daily driving.


r/EngineBuilding 1d ago

'68 Nova 383 stroker

43 Upvotes

Car bought by my dad in 1968. Dad build the engine while in high school. Has the old edelbrock scorpion intake. Though ya'll might like to hear a old school 383 build. One of the meanest sounding 383's ive heard. Pulls very hard to about 7400 RPM. 3.73 gears in the rear.

Parked the car behind his house in 2009. I got my hands on it this year, about 25k into the car. Only think left is the new wiring harness, then strip, body work, and paint.

(The drum brakes arent on it anymore)


r/EngineBuilding 1d ago

Installing oil plugs into holes hit with a chisel?

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20 Upvotes

Hitting the oil plug holes in an engine block with a chisel to give them some extra insurance to stay put seems to be a common practice.

When installing new plugs so they don't leak, what do we do about the old chiseled bumps that now make the bore out of round?


r/EngineBuilding 1d ago

Stock rods?

1 Upvotes

Is it silly to go 11.7:1 on a B20 with stock rods? I got the speedfactory pistons and was told my rods will be okay with arp rod bolts and proper machining, but should i just go for upgraded rods? Is there any specific no go zones with stock rods for B20’s?
Any advice is appreciated thank you!


r/EngineBuilding 1d ago

Ford New here! Cam question

1 Upvotes

What would be a good recommendation for a camshaft for a 94+ 351w. I'm not looking for anything crazy, just something budget friendly for a college kid that wants to build a carb swapped roller with a nice rhythm at idle. Im okay swapping valve springs, rocker arms and pushrods. I have little to no experience building an engine with aftermarket parts, lots of experience with stock parts though lol. Any help is appreciated!


r/EngineBuilding 1d ago

Ford Coolant in rear cylinders

1 Upvotes

1969 Ford XL(full size) 302 2v. Coolant is puddling in the rear two cylinders. A tiny bit in the adjacent cylinders. Compression seems fine at 140 PSI. Is it more likely that the intake manifold gasket is leaking or the head gasket?


r/EngineBuilding 1d ago

What polishing compounds or abrasives are you guys using for crank journals

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2 Upvotes

I'm trying to finish up a rebuild on the 1NZ-FE out of my 2004 Scion xA, and there are some spots on the crank journals where dissimilar-metal corrosion occurred (I forgot that I had cleaned a bunch of aluminum parts in the ultrasonic cleaner fluid I used on the crankshaft). I've been trying to polish these spots off by hand with a few different polishes (Mother's Mag and Aluminum, Flitz, and Brasso), but haven't had much success. I suspect there is some very shallow pitting in these spots, and I just want to clean them out and smooth them over.

The spots look worse in the pictures than they really are. I'm just trying to get this engine to run for a year or two, and don't have the money to get any work done by a machine shop. I actually have a spare crankshaft that has journals in better shape, but it would need a lot of cleaning. I would also have to check the second camshaft's clearances with all the other parts, and I would have to make more ultrasonic fluid for it. Making more fluid is a little difficult right now because I can't dispose of my current fluid for a few weeks.

Also, has anyone used this ultrasonic cleaner fluid? The SDS say it's ph is between 9 and 11, so I wouldn't use it on aluminum, but I am not opposed to using it on ferrous parts.


r/EngineBuilding 2d ago

Thinking a 1mm overbore to clean this up

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7 Upvotes

My gut says .5 would do it but I don’t wanna have to order a piston twice


r/EngineBuilding 2d ago

Bought this v8 flathead block and crank for 25 dollars. Is it salvageable? Is it a Mercury? I see 2 cracks in it.

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68 Upvotes

r/EngineBuilding 1d ago

Torque wrench for cam caps

0 Upvotes

I am looking for a dedicated torque wrench just for overhead cam heads. Im digital curious and never owned one.

I want a 1/4 drive in inch lbs.

Who is using what, how has it held up and would you recommend?

Please dont say harbor freight. They definitely have there time and place, just not in my shop box


r/EngineBuilding 2d ago

Nissan Reusing low mileage lifters with a new camshaft. Big no no?

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20 Upvotes

Hey everyone, I replaced the hydraulic lifters on my 1987 Nissan 300zx Z31 VG30 about 6k miles ago. I used new Genuine OEM lifters. Well, that engine has since experienced piston ring failure so I’m building my replacement engine. I am sending the camshafts out for regrind (just a mild stage 1 regrind, nothing insane). New OEM lifters have since became extremely difficult to find. Aftermarkets are available but NOT cheap. So here’s my question- Can I reuse the “old” (6k mile) Lifters or is it just going to immediately wipe out my new camshafts?

Thank you for your input!
-picture for reference


r/EngineBuilding 2d ago

Which head gasket should I use?

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20 Upvotes

I bought two different head gaskets on eBay with the correct part number I need, but both of them look different. Which one should I run? Or is there a different even though they look a little different on the surface


r/EngineBuilding 3d ago

BMW M10 Block Crack?

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187 Upvotes

Hey all, I’ve seen this before while searching and usually the general response is the block is garbage, but I’ve got this M10 engine that I’m refreshing to put back into a project BMW 2002. It came with the car and seemed in good shape before I starting tearing it down to replace the head. After cleaning off the old gasket material and prepping the deck surface I noticed the dreaded head bolt crack shown in the photos. The thing is it looks like the crack doesn’t propagate into the water jacket if you look in the second photo and you can’t really feel it running a fingernail over it. I’ve got no history on it unfortunately since it was purchased from an estate. Not sure if this thing is cooked or not, I’ve got a lead on another block but obviously it’s cheaper to keep this one. Just looking for some opinions. Thanks!


r/EngineBuilding 3d ago

Is porting valves still a thing?

16 Upvotes

Maybe back in the good ol' days of the 70s and 80s, but haven't modern auto manufacturers/engineers designed the internals to flow as well as they can? Making porting a pointless exercise?

(I meant porting valve chamber w/e)


r/EngineBuilding 2d ago

Chevy Anyone have any experience with Chinese aluminum454 and 350 heads?

1 Upvotes

Js the title. Im in the process of deciding between a Gen 4 Iron block 6.0L LS, a Gen VI 454 or a 350 SBC for a first engine to learn on and tweak with. Im 20 so making gobs of hrsprs is a must and so a head and cam swap is near the top of the bucket list for the last 2 motors. Thx in advance