so ive had my z for 3 years now and its spent most of the time parked up due to lack of time and commitment. its finally on the road now after having the rocker cover gasket leak fixed from zedworld. however its still leaking oil from the rear cam seals. ive sent pictures to jeff and hes advised that it is the most probably cause of leak. since the weather has been surprisingly sunny ive been driving it daily so its got me thinking, if im going to continue to repair faults to an engine that i have no history on why go through the hassle and spend x amount of money which could be more then the cost of a rebuild. i know it would be best to just rebuild the engine so that i have that satisfaction of a solid problem free engine. what are the costs? what would be the best way around this? buy another engine? simple rebuild? rebuild with upgrades? it still drives and it has got power to it but i dont push it for fear of something else going wrong.

advice and help please.

I would get the engine checked over, cam belt check or change, compression test, conzult and sort little issues and enjoy the car. If it feels strong and no horrible noises, chances are unless you rag the arse of her that it will be fine.

I know what you are saying about the peace of mind, but the more you drive it and get used to it, the more likely you can make that decision if you fell strong enough about it.

 

Cost does depend on how far you want to go and whether you can do any of the work yourself.

Get Zedworld to check it over as groover says, compression check, then go from there, I wouldn't go to the hassle of a full rebuild unless you either need it, or you want big power in future.

 

Seals, timing belts etc can all be fixed and most engines will need them, I know my rear seal was away a few years back, and just had timing belt done, engine is perfect otherwise.

When it was at zworld and I did ask jeff to give it a good look over but he's just that busy don't think he did if he did he would've mentioned it and I'd've got it done then. I already paid 420 for the rocker cover gasket and its another 486 for the rear cam seals that will be 906 but if I can rebuild the engine for let's say another 1k I'd opt to go that route. I can do the work but I don't have the tools etc, would prefer if someone with more experience then me to help otherwise ill end up with a half opened engine again!!!! Anyone local to Manchester to have these checks done? If it turns out to be over all in good shape I may just wait for the rebuild. I am considering to increase the power though so it may be sooner or later depending on the engine

What would it cost between 450 and 650 bhp rebuild? Just so that I have an idea

Why not send Jimmer a friendly email, explain your situation, thoughts and plans for the car. He would then be able to advise you which way to go and roughly what sort of cost would be entailed. A grand already to get to that point is yes pretty expensive, you certainly wouldn't get your engine pulled rebuilt and refitted for less than 2k. It cost me nearly a grand to pull my block and refresh all the little niggly service items and rebuild the turbos, that's with no labour, and not even opening the engine. Personally I would leave the damn thing alone and service it, it sounds like an ok block, but that's me im happy to fiddle with it and work on it. If you don't like or feel comfortable putting the spanners on it then a rebuild would probably be long term cost effective.

Dam 1k just to pullout out :huh: lol didn't think it would be that much. I don't mind getting my elbows greasy in fact I would rather return to doing mechanical repairs, it's just that I my self don't have an extensive knowledge about faults and diagnostics when it comes to the z and its time that I don't have to spare freely as I'd like to. It's weird though because I'm perfectly fine when it comes to working on other cars but when it's my own its the opposite. Thanks though ill be on jimmers case now lol

Dam 1k just to pullout out :huh: lol didn't think it would be that much. I don't mind getting my elbows greasy in fact I would rather return to doing mechanical repairs, it's just that I my self don't have an extensive knowledge about faults and diagnostics when it comes to the z and its time that I don't have to spare freely as I'd like to. It's weird though because I'm perfectly fine when it comes to working on other cars but when it's my own its the opposite. Thanks though ill be on jimmers case now lol

 

That was a K including rebuilding the turbos bud, but to get someone else to pull your block is labour intensive ie expensive.

I chatted to jimmer at croft, he was a top bloke and we discussed some options from rebuild through to major work producing fire spitting power and it was less than I had expected. Have a word with him. Still a chunk of money but you would have the engine of a supercar.

So I'm looking at an open tab really when it comes to a rebuild. I've messaged J now let's see what he says

Just clear up what been said here it was the cam covers we did, and an MOT and work to pass the MOT! all was leak free, but from the pics the front cam end seals have later started to leak covering the alternator and the area behind there, unless an engine is removed and every seal replaced its always a compromise on a 20 + year old engine, the engine was checked when it was with us and was in basic good order.

 

Jeff TT

Just clear up what been said here it was the cam covers we did, and an MOT and work to pass the MOT! all was leak free, but from the pics the front cam end seals have later started to leak covering the alternator and the area behind there, unless an engine is removed and every seal replaced its always a compromise on a 20 + year old engine, the engine was checked when it was with us and was in basic good order.

 

Jeff TT

 

Couldn't agree more jeff, especially with these cars everything is so hidden, its not until you physically pull the block that you can even see many things, let alone access them. If bungle has had his hands on your car aswel at some point god knows whats hiding in the bowels of the engine. I found at least three loose bolts floating around under my plenum when that was removed :s and a socket.

do they not refer to the same thing? rocker cover gasket/cam seals? to do something like that how much would one expect to pay. who is bungle?