Will
SuperDork
7/29/14 10:54 a.m.
Back in December 2012 I killed the engine in my 99 Z28, and it took me forever to diagnose and fix. Turns out I had oil starved the #6 rod bearing and killed the crank and a couple rods. I had never built an engine before, but I gave it a try (with help from a friend who has), got it back in the car over the weekend, and today I finally got to fire it for the first time. I'm kind of amazed that an engine I built is actually running.
Just a neat feeling, that's all. And plenty of relief.
06HHR
Reader
7/29/14 11:18 a.m.
Sweet! Congrats, now I don't feel so apprehensive about checking the rod and main bearings in the SR20 in my garage (garage quasi-rebuild in my future).
NOHOME
SuperDork
7/29/14 1:12 p.m.
Rite of passage in the motor-head society. Welcome!
Will
SuperDork
7/30/14 9:29 p.m.
And tonight I got to drive the car very briefly for the first time in 18 months. Didn't want to take it too far, since the tags are long expired, which I'll try to solve tomorrow. As a bonus, the car weighed significantly less than I expected. The previous weight was 3346, and tonight it was 3260, still with AC, stereo, and ESP legal.
Welcome to the club! I replaced a bent conrod and did some light head work on my Alfa V-6 this past winter, that was an adventure to say the least! It's always great to hear an engine you worked on fire up after all that effort.
I get to do the same with a 22RE next week. Fingers crossed.
Always a good feeling when the project come out right.