And so it begins! 3.4 Build n' Swap

[bszopi]

You need an actual harmanic balancer puller to get it off.

[Helgaiden]

cool ill be borrowing one from a friend then. Will this need to xferred over in the swap though? or does the 2.8 have a harmonic balancer i will be using on the 3.4 instead?

[60dgrzbelow0]

Hel...

Dont forget to visit my Photobucket to get a glimpse of the entire dis-assembly!

http://s557.photobucket.com/home/60dgrzbelow0/allalbums

Nice work on your recorded dis-assembly...assuming you are taking pics of EVERYTHING you are taking off and bagging them in ZipLocks with their part locations/positions noted on the bag... you will find out later how helpful this can be... The only thing that worries me right now is your use of those SAE bolts to attach the engine to the engine stand... As soon as you are able... follow Geoff's advice about using 8.8. hardened M-12 X 1.75 Bolts with hardened washers and replace those weaker American ones! It would not do for that engine to be sitting for months on end with the weight of the engine bearing down on those mis-aligned threads at right angles until... God forbid... the bolts strip out en masse... and the heavy engine cascades to the floor and cracks the engine block all to shit! This is a very real problem that will only take a brief re-hoist using a few head bolts with some hardened washers and a hoist chain to elevate the weight of the motor just long enough to swap in the Metric Ones... Okay?

[Helgaiden]

We're not planning on leaving the engine on the stand for very long...but ill keep an eye out out for those bolts you mention. We also do not have an engine hoist, had to buy this engine stand to make disassembly easier. Ill keep it in mind for sure though.

As far as bagging everything...didnt really do that. Only things i labled were the valve cover bolts, intake manifold bolts, and water pump bolts. Everything else just went into a bucket. The actual swap is not something me nor my brother will be doing, ill make sure to inform our mechanic who does do it to use the bolts from the same locations on the 2.8 onto the 3.4 if he has to and that should solve that. Right now we're just waiting on money to start ordering the rocker arms and comp cams k-kit, as well as the headers...that way the swap proces can actually begin. @_@


you do have me worried about the engine falling off the stand now...so for a quick fix i think ill take a jack and put a 2x4 piece of wood or something similar and pump it up to support the engine for now.

[60dgrzbelow0]

yeah a buddy of mine had the torx bits. Got the accessory plate off so then i moved forward and took the valvecovers and intake manifold off. Everything looks pretty good. Whats the suggested way to clean out the engine inside and out? (not sure if i should be worried, a piece of the intake manifold gasket fell into where the camshaft is when i was removing it...)

Since you are doing a complete tear down...it is recommended to have the block boiled out at a machine shop and pay them the modest amount it will cost to have the old cam bearings knocked out and new ones installed. Let them Magna-Flux the engine block and look for cracks that might end your success if you try to re-build a busted engine. Look on my Photobucket for the Dorman Brass Freeze Plugs and pay a few more pennies for the peace of mind they will bring by NEVER rusting out and leaking if properly installed with ARP non-hardening Sealer. Get new Oil Gallery Plugs, too! You can order the Freeze Plugs from RockAuto and have them in hand when you deliver the block over to the Machinist. It will be faily easy to transport...weighing a little more than 100 lbs .You might find out how much they will charge to mike the cylinders and "deck" the block straight for you as well... Well worth the money down the road...and while you are at it... consider boring the cylinders 0.030" over (0.75MM) so you have them straight and true for your new pistons and rings... It does not make any sense to tear down the engine to the block and not consider doing it all while you still can....like having them inspect and polish the crankshaft journals and examining the old forged conrods for problems ...Hell let THEM "flame" install your new, press fit pistons/wrist pins, too!!!

[Helgaiden]

if it were up to me, i would. But this is for my brother's s10 and his income is relatively low. The headers and compcams K-kit is already stretching it for him. Im not even sure hes gonna get the headers either. Regardless, we were only tearing it down to get what was unnecessary for the swap off the engine. Once we get the harmonic balancer off and front cover as well, then its a waiting game for funds for the rest of the stuff. Considering an 86 s10 front cover to use with a 86+ oil pan for better overall seal there, but its not 100% important to getting the job done at this point in time. Just gotta take that risk of not having it completely torn down and professionally cleaned and inspected due to funding so oh well. The 2.8 will be on standby incase this 3.4 has unforeseen issues.

Another question...
During this swap, inclusive of whats to be done (compcams k-kit, roller rockers)...will the valves need to be adjusted and if so how? Would valve adjustment instructions for a 2.8 suffice or does the 3.4 have its own way of that?

[Helgaiden]

LE SIGH.

My little brother has changed his mind. He now wants to do a straight engine swap with no aspirations of camshaft, rockers, or anything else to bring up the power of the engine. The budget is technically there (since his current 2.8 is still running fine at about 88k miles)...parts that can be saved up for and purchased over time...or purchased right away and engine prepped only waiting for the eventual 2.8 blowup to be installed...

what all would you do in a situation like this? Also i mentioned that since hes staying carb'd, the upgrades would be nice because without the EFI the engine will need all the help it can get...

:/

[jwvess00]

Hi there!

If the engine seems to be in good shape (i.e. is it still assembled enough to do a compression test and/or a leakdown test? How easy does it roll over by hand with a ratchet?) then I'd replace the external gaskets, oil pump, and timing chain. Leave the rest alone. Unless you have a good reason, I would not pull the valvetrain apart and I would not touch removing the heads. Swap on your accessory drive, intake/fuel system, etc. and go. Worst case is you need to pull it and rebuild -- which was in your original plan so all you're really out is time for the re-pull. Best case, it's in good shape and you can be driving again in a long weekend.

[Helgaiden]

yeah it appears to be in great shape. I just hoped my brother would share my "want" to make more power from the engine to really make it shine but it appears we'll just have to transfer and swap with just the minor stuff to do (fuel pump ).

[jwvess00]

Hi there!

This conversation sounds very familiar. I wanted to rebuild the 3.4 in my '84 Blazer before installation, but Dad talked me into just replacing gaskets and dropping it in on the premise that it's not a big deal to pull it back out if we need or want to. Right in the middle of this discussion, the stock 2.8 lunched all of its main bearings so we just replaced the 3.4 gaskets and dropped it in with a bored TBI intake and 4.3 TBI I had.

That stock 3.4, plus 4.3 TBI, bored intake, and headers/exhaust reallly woke up that Blazer. While more power is always nice, even a stock 3.4 swap runs so much better than the stock 2.8 that you won't be disappointed.

[Helgaiden]

yeah, im sure he'll be happy either way i suppose. Especially since we are keeping it carbed. If we were going the EFI route im sure the extra power from that would be nice but staying carbed with the varajet II i figure the engine will need all the help it can get. Problem is...the 2.8 is still fine so if this is the route he wants to take, the 3.4 is gonna be sitting around for a while. Maybe instead of getting the engine swapped in now he should focus on getting the suspension (bushings, shocks, etc) redone...it squeaks like crazy, dents fixed, and body painted. We shall see.

[Helgaiden]

Sorry guys, things just took a turn for the worst on this swap. Looks like its just not happening at all now and my brother is gonna take the stereo system and wheels off his s10 and sell it in order to get enough for a downpayment on a Blazer Xtreme. My dad kinda gave in and told him he'd co-sign on something else if he sold the s10 so that ends that.



If any of you are interested in buying this 3.4, lemme know. Not really willing to ship unless the price is right since ive got a 55gallon barrel full of all the accessories we pulled off (the engine came as complete as you could imagine). Down to just the block now pretty much. Looking for $350. Its got about 70k miles on it. Heres the CL ad on it.

http://inlandempire.craigslist.org/pts/1823264599.html Im located in southern california.

[60dgrzbelow0]

"And So It Ends..." ...................Too bad, Hel...

If you don't get any takers on the entire engine... there is always here... or eBay, too... to Part Out the motor... Trust me... there is always SOMEBODY needing parts for The Ol' L-32...

[CJROTHY]

Your Site Swap Guide?

All those answers are in the swap guide on my site. Read that one first and then if everything is not clear ask away.

I'm researching to pull my 2.8, wanting to install a 3.4 pushrod and keep my ECM, most curious about upper end options. How do I go about finding 'your site swap guide'?

[bszopi]

I'm researching to pull my 2.8, wanting to install a 3.4 pushrod and keep my ECM, most curious about upper end options. How do I go about finding 'your site swap guide'?

http://members.shaw.ca/betterthanyoutoo/how-to/2.8l%20to%203.4l/engine%20swap.htm