If you are searching for a used or rebuilt engine, then there is a high chance that your engine is beyond repair or you want to swap it for additional performance gains. However, since the expense of a brand-new engine is quite huge, it is relatively easy to buy used engines. Though used engines are a savior, you need to find the best deals so that you can get a quality rebuilt engine for your vehicle. Thus in this article, we will discuss ten quick tips for buying used engines.
Table of Contents
1. Purchasing from Certified Engine Suppliers
Most certified as well as professional engine suppliers purchase first-hand engines; hence you would know exactly the location or company they come from. Additionally, certified engine suppliers also provide a startup warranty for the rebuilt engine. However, this authenticity, as well as facilities, are unavailable if you get your engine from private sellers. This is because most of these private sellers pull out engines from junkyards or combine random pieces and make up an engine.
2. Assembled Engine Pack
When you buy used engines, ensure that they are completely assembled and come with pipes that are charged with sensors and injectors. Also, ensure that when you buy used engines, it comes with components like a power steering pump, AC compressor, and alternator starter.
3. Quality Check of Oil
The quality of a vehicle’s engine oil is one of the most important elements you should definitely check when purchasing a rebuilt engine. Generally, with time the oil in an engine breaks down, thereby losing viscosity and creating degradation of the piston and camshaft as well as create lubrication problems. You can also perform an oil analysis to understand the used engines’ conditions. For performing an oil analysis, first, try to remove the oil filler cap and try to look below it. If you see that there are a lot of black carbon deposits under the cap, it is an important sign of poor maintenance. If you see there is any creamy white substance, it indicates a major problem with the engine. Additionally, also try to check the quality and level of oil using a dipstick. If the oil seems mid-slushy, it means that the oil was not changed for a long period of time. These are red flags when you are going ahead to purchase a rebuilt engine.
4. Inspecting Through a Borescope
If you are not someone professional, you would not own a borescope. However, inspecting through a borescope plays a very important role, especially when you are purchasing a used engine. A borescope helps to inspect the major internal components of the engine, thereby making it convenient for you to pick up the best-rebuilt engine. Most engines undergo mechanical failures, and these are not visible sometimes. However, with a borescope, one can get in detail insights into such mechanical failures.
5. Spark Plug Testing
With a thorough understanding of spark plugs, you can get an early indication of problems present in the engine. If you see a black soot texture on the insulator, it indicates a faulty air-fuel ratio. So, before you go ahead to buy a rebuilt engine, make sure to check the spark plug.
6. Inspection of Turbocharger
Though turbos hardly fail, however, if you purchase a used engine, make sure to inspect the turbine to check if there is any damaged wheel or issue with the compressor shaft. You can check this by removing the filter as well as the inlet pipes and checking the radial play of the input shaft.
7. Compression Testing
Generally, when people purchase a rebuilt engine, they perform the compression test before a leak-down test. Compressive testing works by spinning the engine through the cycles of the compression tester. This helps to reveal the condition of the valves of the engine and hence is a must factor that you should check to buy used engines.
8. Leak Down Testing
By performing a leak-down test, you would get detailed information regarding the mechanical condition of the engine. This should be done over and after compression testing. With the help of leak-down testing, you can detect various issues like pressure leaks through bent valves and faulty piston rings. This would help you to choose the ideal rebuilt engine.
9. Monitoring of Oil Pressure
The oil pressure determines the internal parts of the engine. This is because the oil pressure depends on the oil pump and how much oil it allows to flow. Unfortunately, certain engines have severe oil pressure problems. Thus, make sure to check this with an oil pressure gauge to understand whether the parts of the engine are in good condition.
10. Test the Coolant
Coolant is one major component of the engine. Therefore, when you are checking the engine, make sure that you thoroughly check the condition of the coolant. This will help you to understand whether your engine is suffering from overheating.
Summing Up
These are the top 10 tips that you can use when you go ahead to buy used engines. You can also get in touch with A1 Auto Wrecking, who is a leading expert in this field. They are known to provide top-quality engines as well as transmissions. So just make sure you get a good deal when you buy used engines.
