Engine and Transmission Tech

I recently picked up another 4.0 Rover from the junk yard out of an early 97 RR. It showed 155K miles on the clock. Started right up and was quiet as a mouse. I drove it around the yard for a while and tried my best to get the engine to over heat, make noises, spit warning lights, anything to try and get the price down a little as it is going straight to the machine shop for a rebuild anyway. Nothing doing. It just kept right on purring like a kitten. So, the $350 changed hands and I was back later in the day to retrieve my engine. Upon tearing it down, the first thing I noticed was the entire inside of the engine was coated in a black charcoal type film. Not a good sign. Then the head bolts were an absolute bear to remove. Snapped a regular socket and an impact socket getting them off. Another bad sign. Head gasket looked fantastic as did the bores. Still prominent cross hatch and no lip at the top of the piston travel. Finally a good sign. Valves seated perfectly and the combustion chambers were a nice light brown color. Flip it over and drop the pan. First thing I see is only one bolt on the pick up, and the other one is loose. How did this thing not detonate? Front cam bearing looks worn as usual, the rest look fine. Cam and lifters show a little wear but nothing bad. I'll save the rotating parts for the machinist to disassemble and inspect. What is with these engines? Some will slip a liner right out of the gate and others soldier on neglected for 200,000 miles no problem.

I'll tell you exactly what it is. We haven't learned from the opportunities presented to us by our Japanese allies, and now here it is going on near 50 years and we still haven't figured it out. I don't care who you are, that just plain smacks of stupidity. Don't get me wrong, I do like these engines, but they could have been so much better with only small changes made in how they were manufactured. Think about it. The Japanese cut their teeth on aluminum air cooled motorcycle engines and there could hardly be a more difficult task in terms of durability. They succeeded to the point of being the world leaders in that market based largely on durability and reliability as well as low cost. Then they carried those valued techniques learned there over to automobile engines, and for the past 40 years how often have you heard of a failure due to a fundamental problem? The incidence is very very low. Yet in the same time period, engines made stateside and in England have fared much more poorly, especially those that used light alloy. Threads pull out, liners shift, cracks appear, valve seats drop out. When was the last time you even heard of one of those problems in a Japanese engine that wasn't caused by abuse or racing? It's worse than a failure to make use of the best manufacturing practices, it's an outright failure in the business philosophy, and perhaps in the mind set of the individual worker as well. Is there any justification whatsoever in charging top dollar for an inferior product and then meeting sales goals by sheer promotional sleight-of-hand? That's what the domestic, and dare I say British car industries have been doing as a regular course of business and it's no surprise that the imports have eaten their lunch.

You want to know why one engine is crap and the next one is perfect? Really really poor quality control that permeates the entire supply chain. The flaws are scattered throughout the line but every so often they line up in a catastrophic manner, and every now and then they are absent. I can't think of one solitary reason more damning to the domestic industry, and it is expensive and time consuming for those of us who do like those engines (and cars for that matter) to have to sort through the chaff to find the wheat.

JB

Jim buddy......try not to sugar coat the issues/lol. ? Even with of all of this, we still go to the well, and drink. Rover V8's in spite of their quality control problems, seem to be a low cost aluminum V8 compared to the LS, Chev V8 series ? This will change , in time as more used LS motors become available. The good news is, we now have affordably priced hyd. roller set-ups available , Hi-flow heads and soon, "girdles". Onward, roverman.

Art,

Girdles ?

Did I see from you - girdles ?

Hope so.

phillip g

Phillip and clan, I delivered "drawing" to h2o guy, last week. When I know-you'll know. Wet-sump will be more involved, with oil pick-up tube protruding through girdle, into block with o-ring seal. Cheers, roverman.

Right on, Roverman !

keep them on the track.

phillip g