new engine or new used van???

Jack_Berry

Moderator Emeritus
i took the van in to change the remaining coil packs. i also decided it would be a good time to change the timing chains on the dohc engine.

got a call that there was play in the crank. went over and looked at it. there is about 1/8" forward/backward play in the crank. allowable per spec is .301mm.
jasper engine replacement with all current updates is close to 6k$.

body is very good. suspension with exception of a rear sway bar is good. doors close and the locks work.

i tend towards the idea that an engine is cheaper than 30 months of new higher payments. van odo now shows aro 263k miles but with a new engine does that become a non factor? i am also thinking , as long as i am stuffing money in the dike, of a 24" top and longer rear doors ala the vision vision.

cost for the top is about 5k so now i have an 04 with maybe 11k of new stuff installed. i have until 10 am cst tomorrow to decide to do the engine or button it back up.

what say you out there?
 

LDB

Veteran Expediter
Retired Expediter
Seems to me the odo would be saying you have a new engine with 263k on everything else so everything else is 263k closer to needing replacement. Where would the money for the engine come from? Would it be on payments? If so, would the total of the orig pmt plus the engine pmt be far from the pmt on a new van with 0k on everything? I can't say which way to go, just tossing out some thought provokers.
 

Survivor2

Seasoned Expediter
Jack, tonight I went past Bass Ford on I90 in Elyria ohio and they still have that 06 E250 with the high top that you were eye balling a while back. I believe it might also be in truck paper.com
 

piper1

Veteran Expediter
Owner/Operator
Is anything else wrong with the engine? 1/8 of an inch of crank endplay is quite odd especially on an engine connected to an automatic. 1/8 is 125 thou, that's huge, it should be either clattering like hell or have lousy oil pressure (or both).

Did you see them measure the 1/8th ?

Either way, the engine is one thing but I'd stop short of the other mods. Just my 2 cents.
 

Jack_Berry

Moderator Emeritus
piper the engine was making no unusual noise. the mech wondered about that since i was re-doing the timing chains.

leo, i will have to work on that part of it. it has been a couple hours since i found out and all the financials are not in . tomorrow morning.

survivor, i looked thru truck paper yesterday as a matter of fact and did not see it. one more piece to drop into the mix.
 

moose

Veteran Expediter
if its not for the Engine ,
would you still invest that 5K ?why ?
do you think now is the time to upgrade the buddy ?



disclose : the Moose of Minnesota is not a CV driver...
 

Jack_Berry

Moderator Emeritus
when is the right time? TALLER interior gets different loads. the sprinter folks seem to get tall loads not necessarily more skids.

i hear ya moose, `go for the engine.'
 

Jack_Berry

Moderator Emeritus
ken, yeah i saw the freeplay and pushed the crank back into the engine. dis assembley is forever with the ford. everything is removed from the grille back.

drive it till it drops? well it has let me down once in memphis and once in youngstown ohio. both times ford got me back on the road very expensively. the mech told me ford should have replaced all the coil packs the first time since all the labor is in removing fuel rails and making room to get at them. the packs are a hundred bucks each. ford fixed the truck each time and didn't even kiss me.:D

was just over there and it looked pretty ready to prop drop and hoist. new engine arrives thursday. still has rear end service, trans service and rear trans seal to do. i cancelled the oil change. gonna follow that million mile van pm sched and keep this one going until...............the next time.

so it is just an enginectomy and no top.

 

OntarioVanMan

Retired Expediter
Owner/Operator
Make sure they drain the rear end fluid and refill...not just top off.....lost my spider gears on my old Dodge van because every time they stuck their finger in it came out with oil...not thinking oil floats on water...when it went,,,it was 3/4 full of water from leaky seals....all rusted
 

Mdbtyhtr

Expert Expediter
You don't know me, but I was in the remanufactured engine business for a very long time. Crankshaft end play means the thrust bearing is worn out. This could mean just the bearing or the crankshaft wear surfaces as well. The reason it doesn't make noise is that there is nothing forcing the crankshaft to walk forward or backward. Thrust bearing failures can be attributed to restrictions in the trans cooler with an automatic. The diagnostic tree would be to take trans pressures on a running engine, on both the input and out put. There should not be more than 5psi differential cold or hot. Another thing could be a swelling torque converter from a trans overheat or prolonged excessive heating, this may present with discoloration on the shell. Oil pressure loss will most likely occur in cam bearings and main bearings, not rod or thrust bearings.

To the point at hand, go with a Ford Authorized Reman, it will either be made by AER in Texas or another suitable remanufacturer. The point is that it will carry Ford warranty anywhere in the country, regardless of the vans current miles. You will fall under a shorter term as a commercial vehicle, though. Most companies have a 10K GVW or under, but then add a caveat for commercial use that restricts the warranty. If the reman is good, and it lasts longer than three months or 5K miles, you will be good to go.

I hope this helps,

Scott
 

Jack_Berry

Moderator Emeritus
thanks scott for the info. the engine was already apart when the problem was discovered. 10 hrs labor. i guess they use the book whether it is or not. anyway after ford not kissing me or even cuddling afterwards i am leery of them. the jasper was ordered yesterday. engine comes with a 3 yr/100K mile warranty. gee ought to do that in a year.:eek:


ken for the cost of a rear end service they better do more than stick a finger in the hole.
 

jaminjim

Veteran Expediter
ken for the cost of a rear end service they better do more than stick a finger in the hole

And why oh why are you talking about a Prostate examine, besides they don't refer to it as a service anyway. :eek:
 

MSinger

Expert Expediter
ken for the cost of a rear end service they better do more than stick a finger in the hole

And why oh why are you talking about a Prostate examine, besides they don't refer to it as a service anyway. :eek:


Ok!! I would prefer not to read anymore posts about sticking a finger in a whole or a prostate exam.......especially from a guy with the screen name of "jaminjim".
 
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