OK, here's the deal. I have a local pick and Pull that will sell complete engines for $200- no accesories.
The downside is that engines cannot be started; no batteries allowed.

Given those rules, how would you try to improve your odds of geeting a good engine?

Here's my initial list:
1) Look only at vehicles with enough body damage to have them "totalled".
2) Look for milky oil on dip stick.
3) Pull Valve cover or vent pipe looking for sludge or milky oil residue.
4) Turn engine over using crank pulley or alternaot pulley to make sure it turns.
5) Check radiator for oil residue.
6) look for rod through the side of the block.

Any other telltale signs?

Thanks.

( This is a non-political, non-religious, automotive-related thread. Lets keep it that way.)

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1982 300SD " Wotan" ..On the road as of Jan 8, 2007 with Historic Tags

pig in a poke. What are they hiding? I would not buy from such a place on principle alone. Its not worth your time to remove and reinstall an engine that you cannot test....at least it would not be worth mine.

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[SIGPIC] Diesel loving autocrossing grandpa Architect. 08 Dodge 3/4 ton with Cummins & six speed; I have had about 35 benzes. I have a 39 Studebaker Coupe Express pickup in which I have had installed a 617 turbo and a five speed manual.[SIGPIC]

..I also have a 427 Cobra replica with an aluminum chassis.

Check for oil leakage around front or rear main seals - dont want to buy into that if you dont have to.

TW - I agree that $200 is a lot to pay for a big question mark, but I can't blame anyone who wants to try.

-John

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2009 Kia Sedona
2009 Honda Odyssey EX-L
12006 Jetta Pumpe Duse
(insert Mercedes here)

Husband, Father, sometimes friend =)

I bought a used engine from a parts broker with a warrentee. I had it shipped to my indy's shop so he could check it out. The third engine that they sent turned out to be acceptable and is doing great. The first two were junk and were returned.

First off, I would pray over the engine and try to get a divine sign. Secondarily, I would lobby Congress to regulate Pick and Pull's so that they are required to test all engines for quality before selling. Thirdly, I would follow your initial idea and only take an engine from a wrecked car and follow your other steps. Of course all of this would depend on how much time I had and how much money I wanted to spend. Our local pick and pull has days where they sell 'all you can carry' for $75. You have to carry it down a 20 ft course. I've seen guys using a shoulder yoke with transmission on one end, engine block on the other, staggering down the 20'. For that price, I'd take some risk on the engine.
I'd definitely get the engine running or at least do a compression test before installing it in my car.

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1977 300d 70k--sold 08
1985 300TD 185k+
1984 307d 126k--sold 8/03
1985 409d 65k--sold 06
1984 300SD 315k--daughter's car
1979 300SD 122k--sold 2/11
1999 Fuso FG Expedition Camper
1993 GMC Sierra 6.5 TD 4x4
1982 Bluebird Wanderlodge CAT 3208--Sold 2/13

Agreed.............you could flip a coin and get better odds of a good engine.

Any thought that you can tell a good engine from the look of the body is really over the top.

The other concern is how long the engine has been sitting out there in the elements. After two years, your odds fall dramatically.

Sure, the price is cheap............but, what's your time worth?

Unless you are just buying it for a core I wouldn't bother. I see running mercedes all the time for well under $500. Usually the bodies are trashed, but if the motors run they are still on the road. So for my money junkyard=dead motor. my 2 cents.

Define good? $200 you can't really complain. At that price, I'd go ordering new gaskets immediately, and cash ready for pistons, machine work, etc, as soon as I could get it apart.

Just look for the good stuff, like Japanese I6s and high demand stuff, 4g6X, S2000 engines, etc,etc. Honestly, it's a tough question to answer without knowing why you want an engine. If possible, I'd start removing heads in the lot.....

PnP does at least have a guarantee on parts you buy from them, if they are busted you can bring them back for exchange.

IMHO getting the engine from a car that looks like it was running when it was crashed is a great bet. Never hurts to poke around the cabin and look for oil change records, etc. This can also tell you how long the car has been off the road. Looking at the interior will also give you an idea of how well the PO took care of the car... IMHO if you come across a well crashed, but fairly clean interior wise car it's likely the motor is workable.

-Jason

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1991 350SDL. 230,000 miles (new motor @ 150,000). Blown head gasket

Tesla Model 3. 205,000 miles. Been to 48 states!
Past: A fleet of VW TDIs.... including a V10,a Dieselgate Passat, and 2 ECOdiesels.
2014 Cadillac ELR
2013 Fiat 500E.

Cars barely last a month in our local pick and pull. A wrecked vehicle gives some indication of the fact that it did not end up in the junkyard because the engine blew.

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1977 300d 70k--sold 08
1985 300TD 185k+
1984 307d 126k--sold 8/03
1985 409d 65k--sold 06
1984 300SD 315k--daughter's car
1979 300SD 122k--sold 2/11
1999 Fuso FG Expedition Camper
1993 GMC Sierra 6.5 TD 4x4
1982 Bluebird Wanderlodge CAT 3208--Sold 2/13

Using all the factors originaly listed I pulled an engine from a Volvo 740 that ran with no problems at all.

However....

This was a hobby sort of thing. If I had blown $200 I would not have considered it a big loss.

And.... Several teenagers in the neighborhood were wanted to do an engine swap and I had a Volvo with a blown head gasket. It was something they and their Fathers could come over to the shop and work on when they wanted to. I just sort of looked everything over and offered advice.

But the point is that using much the same tests as in the original post I was able to source a good engine from a PnP. This was about ten years ago, and I think the price then was $150.

Even the junkiest junk yards I ever dealt with would guarantee the engine worked, or let you start it (or even start it for you).

However, in this case, I suppose you could turn it over with a ratchet and measure some static compression.

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1998 C230 330,000 miles (currently dead of second failed EIS, yours will fail too, turning you into the dealer's personal human cash machine)
1988 F150 144,000 miles (leaks all the colors of the rainbow)
Previous stars: 1981 Brava 210,000 miles, 1978 128 150,000 miles, 1977 B200 Van 175,000 miles, 1972 Vega (great, if rusty, car), 1972 Celica, 1986.5 Supra

if you're speaking of the 61x series engines, its well worth the effort to pull the head after turning the crank by hand.

You will want to replace the Headgasket anyway, right?

A good visual of the cylinder walls and how worn the valve guides are will tell you just about all you need to know on a 25 year old engine.

You have to expect some work.

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bring in a tank of compressed air and do a leak down test on each cylinder. the #1 killer of diesel engines is bad compression.

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I wouldn't even bother loading it on my truck unless I could at least crank it over and do a compression test. So what if the motor is only $200, how much is your time worth?


I have totaly given up on junkyards after trying to find a tailgate for my truck. Vehicals don't end up in the junkyard because they are in good shape, as a result most of the parts are shot.

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1999 SL500
1969 280SE
2023 Ram 1500
2007 Tiara 3200