Shran
Junk Collector
TRS Forum Moderator
Supporting Member
Article Contributor
V8 Engine Swap
Solid Axle Swap
Truck of Month
- Joined
- Mar 4, 2008
- Messages
- 8,701
- Reaction score
- 4,802
- Points
- 113
- Location
- Rapid City SD
- Engine Type
- V8
- Engine Size
- 5.0
As if I did not have enough projects already! My buddy saw this little gem on Facebook and sent it to me and naturally I couldn't help myself. It was advertised as "super clean, but needs engine, has a hole in piston and loses compression." Specs - it's a '94, must be an early one as it has a 5 digit odometer. 4.0, A4LD, electronic 4x4, PW/PL, just about every option. 3.27 gears are a bummer and the A4LD is a bummer but I can live with that - this thing is CLEAN and I mean that, you could eat off the interior. Zero rust anywhere. Core support, spring hangers, gas tank straps, etc...everywhere that rusts out on these... is rust free. That is really surprising considering that it spent its entire life here in western SD but the odometer says somewhere around x64000 - if I was a betting man I would put money on this truck actually having 64,000 miles on it.
I got it pretty cheap because of the engine issue. Two shops looked at it for the previous owner and one just told her it had a "bad engine" and the other said that it has a "hole in the piston" - their words... anyway it starts hard and blows steam out of the oil filler. Upon inspecting things further, I noticed that both heads are very clean looking and there is something oily leaking out around the head gasket in one spot on both sides - additionally I found some paperwork from a machine shop in the truck that had a bunch of head specs on it - so where I am going with this is, I wonder if it had some issues recently, someone replaced both heads with new or rebuilt and messed up the install somehow? I guess I will find out when I tear into it, this "hole in the piston" deal is just nonsense, it actually runs pretty well other than the hard starts & steam.
This is pretty close to my dream truck so my plan is to keep it and drive it. I will probably regear it with 3.73's or 4.10's. More than likely will put different wheels on it - I have a nice set of Mickey Thompson Classic II's - maybe 30" or 31" tires. Topper & side steps are coming off right away. I have all the parts to M5OD & manual t-case swap it if the time comes but for now I will live with it as is.
More pics to come.
I got it pretty cheap because of the engine issue. Two shops looked at it for the previous owner and one just told her it had a "bad engine" and the other said that it has a "hole in the piston" - their words... anyway it starts hard and blows steam out of the oil filler. Upon inspecting things further, I noticed that both heads are very clean looking and there is something oily leaking out around the head gasket in one spot on both sides - additionally I found some paperwork from a machine shop in the truck that had a bunch of head specs on it - so where I am going with this is, I wonder if it had some issues recently, someone replaced both heads with new or rebuilt and messed up the install somehow? I guess I will find out when I tear into it, this "hole in the piston" deal is just nonsense, it actually runs pretty well other than the hard starts & steam.
This is pretty close to my dream truck so my plan is to keep it and drive it. I will probably regear it with 3.73's or 4.10's. More than likely will put different wheels on it - I have a nice set of Mickey Thompson Classic II's - maybe 30" or 31" tires. Topper & side steps are coming off right away. I have all the parts to M5OD & manual t-case swap it if the time comes but for now I will live with it as is.
More pics to come.