Need Help And A New Engine

Flagship

Member
:
2003 P5
I'm ******. Just got a call back from the shop and apparently I've got at least one bad rod bearing. They say it calls for a new engine. They found one with 41k mi with a few extras. $4100 for engine and installation. Does this sound kosher to you guys?

Thanks,
-Frank
 
I know ken at protege garage sells engines, he should be able to tell you whether thats a good deal or not.
 
That sux....but Ken at PG does sell used engines for $999. I forget the mileage, but you can add $100 or so to get a lower mileage engine. Definitely worth talking to him.
 
Sorry to hear this.

check u-pull-it yards for used motor. We have yard that you can pull yourself or they will for $125.00

$4100.00 should buy more than that.
 
Last edited:
i think thats a rip off. According to the book for a motor swap its 14 hours at what ever labor charges. A motor can be had for under $1500. I got lucky and scored a 14k longblock for $400 and i paid $1680 for installation that included all new gaskets, waterpump, oil pump, ps drive axle, swapped over cams, header, intake manifold, new front/rear main seals, plus some other stuff.
 
I'm ******. Just got a call back from the shop and apparently I've got at least one bad rod bearing. They say it calls for a new engine. They found one with 41k mi with a few extras. $4100 for engine and installation. Does this sound kosher to you guys?

Thanks,
-Frank

That sounds about right from a dealership. 14 hours @ ~$100.00/hr is $1400.00. Figure they added 3 hours to "find" the engine, another $300.00. That leaves $2400.00 for the long block.

You can definately do better than that! Talk with Ken at protegarage. He'll be able to help.
 
why dont they resurface that one rod to use a thicker bearing?

its gotta be a lot cheaper to pull off the bottom of the motor, resurface the crank, and machine the one rod out to slightly larger for a thicker bearing

hell, it would be cheaper to just go forged than buy a whole new motor...

I love how shops see a problem like that and just want to throw the whole motor out....it really isnt that hard to just repair the motor in most cases....granted this situation might be different, but it is something to look into
 
Last edited:
I don't know how they could have even figured out it was a bearing... they only had it for about an hour before they called and I'm sure it wasn't the only work they had to do. Is there even a test to figure this out or do they have to pull the engine apart and visually inspect? If the latter is the answer, they're just guessing. I can hear clicking, the exhaust sounds a bit garbully, I'm burning oil like Saddam, and I've lost some power. Can a jacked bearing even cause all this?
 
clicking noise is from the crank walking. One of the cranks has play and the noise is a rod slapping against the wall of the block. It's better to go with another shortblock. In all likelihood, a rod is already bent and there is a pressure drop because of this. That is the less performance. The burning oil is probably oil seeping through past the rings (probably blew those out too) up into the combustion chamber. All-in-all, it's easier (more expensive, but easier) to just put a new block in there (well, newer, doesn't have to be brand new).
 
a jacked rod bearing caused me to burn oil, lose power, and in the end two holes in my block = blown motor
 
ok
I thought they actually knew the bearing was bad....if that was the case Id say just resurface the rods

if its crank walk it is probably way too much work in that case

if they found that to be the issue after an hour then I would not use them to replace the short block because that sounds like they are a bunch of lazy f***s that just want to screw you over...
 
ok
I thought they actually knew the bearing was bad....if that was the case Id say just resurface the rods

if its crank walk it is probably way too much work in that case

if they found that to be the issue after an hour then I would not use them to replace the short block because that sounds like they are a bunch of lazy f***s that just want to screw you over...

lol, that's why they've acquired the name "stealership"!

From what I understand, when you throw a main bearing, it automatically means that the crank is walking. The small gap where the bearing used to be is allowing the crank to move laterally and vertically. Maybe I'm using the wrong term when I say crankwalk. This "play" in the crank throws everything into a vibrational nightmare. I do know this, though, without a bearing there, the crank is eating up the main cap and the main cap is eating up the crank.
 
yea, if its a main bearing then its gonna be easier to replace the short block

however, they are saying its a rod bearing....in which case it is common to just machine it to use a thicker bearing

buuuut, if they know its a rod bearing after an hour of probably just listening to it then it is probably not correct (its not that quick to tear down this motor in an hour....I'm pretty quick at it now as Ive done it quite a few times with the FS and my best is about 2 hours to be pulling the bottom of the rod off to see the bearings)

lol, mazda techs generally know their stuff, but its a dealorship and they see cars come and go all the time....so they tend to not care as much when a car comes in that needs real care and start to half-ass the job from what I've seen around here...

no offense to any mazda techs here
 
Last edited:
oh, good call! I misread the post, I thought it was a main bearing. A rod bearing would cause "rod-walk" (don't know if that's a word, lol, but now it is!) This would cause the rod to move in the same fashion as crank walk. It would still eat up the crank and the ticking noise would still be the rod slapping against the block. With your other symptoms, I still stand by my statement that the rod is probably bent and the rings are probably blown out. The thing is, is if you decide to have someone tear down the bottom end, then it'll cost you a few hundred dollars. If it is something more than just the bearing, then you still have to get the newer engine + the money you dished out having this one looked at.
 
well I never got mine diagnosed. But it started ticking while at crusing speed and while releasing the gas. It wouldn't tick when stomping the gas pedal. I could narrow it down to piston one with a stethescope. It got more worse as time went on. By worse I mean it become continuos no matter how much gas I gave it. It also wasn't that loud either. But it finally gave out while punching it off the line to beat the traffic. Then it was no longer a ticking sound. It turned into a knock. Car lasted for two days then it finally blew. Two credit card size holes in the front and back of the block. I could see the rod laying on the bottom of the block. LOL I stuck my hand in there and pulled it out and cut my finger at the same time.

I suggest u get it fixed before u really have to by a new motor. A complete bearing set, forged rods and pistons, cometic gasket set, ARP headstuds, and timing belt kit can be had at protegegarage for around $2000 or less.
 
What year is it. I say toss in another grand or so, go get you a used P5 and start all over. Rip any mods out and part out the car to us to make some cash back.....

No, just kidding. Shop in here for motor look at JDM area get you a MS motor and turbo. Now I'm talkin about my dream..... Call around yards you can find a motor get some beer and pizza and invite some friends over and then hit them with the motor swap....
 
I know I blew my 1.8 in my 00 pro, it was about $750 for an engine with 33k miles. I think I paid only like $2k for the install. I think that price is way high. I had mine done in our local speed shop though, not the dealer. He had some connection for motors.
 
well I never got mine diagnosed. But it started ticking while at crusing speed and while releasing the gas. It wouldn't tick when stomping the gas pedal. I could narrow it down to piston one with a stethescope. It got more worse as time went on. By worse I mean it become continuos no matter how much gas I gave it. It also wasn't that loud either. But it finally gave out while punching it off the line to beat the traffic. Then it was no longer a ticking sound. It turned into a knock. Car lasted for two days then it finally blew. Two credit card size holes in the front and back of the block.

mine was ticking only at half throttle as well. At WOT, nothing. At idle, nothing. That lasted for two weeks. My little brother is a mechanic and told me that it was a valve sticking and it wasn't a big deal. Coming off the highway at about 35mph in second I heard Tink... tink... KABLOOOIEEE!!!! But, pictures speak a thousand words....

IMG_1398.JPG

IMG_1399.JPG


Yeah, you can see right through the block. You can see from the first pic that the rod bolts are completely shaved down and bent. The ticking noise was the rod slapping against the wall. That bent the rod.

Take it from me, OP, get a new(er) engine and call it a day.
 

New Threads and Articles

Back