Just got hosed. Begging for your help.

[tsteiner61]

I am pleading for the help of any member of MoparChat that may have any influence with Dodge/Mopar/Chrysler to help me bring justice to a situation that just arose today regarding a Chrysler crate engine.

Just got done dropping a 318 long block into my 76 Power Wagon. I'm letting it idle and warming it up when all of the sudden it just locks and dies with the most awful thud. I try to restart it and it is absolutely frozen to the point that if I run the starter the wire starts to fry. The water temp according to my gauge (auto meter) was 200 deg, which seems normal for 195 deg t-stat. Oil pressure was in the low 60s.

I check x-fer case and trans, both ok. Then I manually free engine at torque converter and start again. Huge thud and draining sound in oil pan. Drain pan and 2 gals. coolant come out along with some oil (haha).

Now this engine was a CRATE LONG BLOCK purchased from Regal Dodge in Sunnyvale, California. Problem is, it was purchased in Nov. 1999 and has been in storage since. At this point in time, I am not positive what caused the failure, but I am guessing cracked block as I pulled both valve covers and rockers/heads looked A-OK. But the bottom line is that I am obviously out of warranty and will most likely get nowhere if I go to the dealer and say 'I just dropped my new crate motor and it cracked." They will probably give me some BS about how I should have had a certified mechanic do it. The cost was $2600 + tax and it is now a paperweight.

If anyone can help me with how to go about recovering my damages, it would be greatly appreciated. I know the chances are slim, but I am tired of me and you getting screwed by these people and not having any say. Strength is in numbers, and I have seen many posts where people have been screwed with Mopar crate motors. ANY information, whether it be just advice on how to handle the situation, or more will be ultimately appreciated.

I don't like to bi#ch, but I am a loyal Mopar customer, and I am begging for help to have some sort of justice done because I know I have been screwed this time.

Thanks for your time and advice in advance.

Ted.

[Dr. Righteous]

I have heard so many horror stories about crate motors I doubt if I ever will buy one. I will continue to build them myself because I KNOW for sure everything is done right. And as much of a BIT*CH it is to change an engine the peice of mind is solid gold!

[mshelly]

tsteiner61,

I'm in there about every other week and have found the parts manager and the thinnish counter guy to be pretty helpful. Now, I've never had a "Big Deal" to straighten out with them but have you talked to the manager at all yet, or just gearing up for the event?

Maybe a bunch of us customers should go in there with you to see how they respond.

My kindly comments about the parts people at Regal do not apply to the sales department.

[tsteiner61]

Well, I'm just getting all my ducks in a row right now. I want to tear it down and get some pictures after work today. My ex-wife works in the automotive business as a warranty admin, and she made a prelim. call for me today.

I just never seem to have any luck in getting anywhere with parts guys because I don't know the right things to say. I definitely plan to pursue the matter with them. But I'm not expecting a whole lot because the purchase is almost 2 yrs. old and will definitely be out of warranty.

More than anything, I could really use some advice on how to deal with the situation, whether or not to realistically expect any help or to just be embarrassed/frustrated, as is what has happened to me more than once Dodge dealerships in the area. I've only been wrenching for about 3 yrs. as a hobby now and they can still out-intellect me in that department if they want.

I can be reasonable, but we all know (I, from the inside, through my ex-wife) that the dealership needs to protect its bottom line and probably won't be terribly amicable to my request as I installed the thing myself, and they'd take a loss if they did...Either way, I plan to try and see what happens, $2600 is a good chunk of money to waste, even here in CA.

I will let you know how it goes, and stayed tuned for some 318 carnage pics that I plan to post.

Thanks.

[Christopher]

Are you sure it's out of warranty?? I know Mopar upped the warranty time on re-man parts to 3/36,but I think it started in 2000.It doesn't hurt to ask,be friendly though,and have paperwork ready.

[6pakman]

ok put yourself in there position. a guy walks in , is pissed because he bought a crate engine two years ago, didnt start it up until now, and it takes a dump. you want to help him but what can you do? think about it.

[mshelly]

Let's not jump to the conclusion that the parts Mgr. can't do anything. Ts61 has yet to actually talk to them.

The trick here is to appeal to them in such a way that will allow them do EVERYTHING that they can, and hopefully then some.

Checking the obvious and understandable frustration and anger at the door is the place to start...maybe?

[6pakman]

mshelly, thats a good start.

[PRO]

tsteiner61,been there,got the hat and the shirt(didnt like em either)heres your best route,e mail "Dart" on this chatsite,He has the plant managers name and # in Canada where they build all the crate motors,He was very helpful and took o.k. care of us when both of our crate 360s went "KNOCK" right away,mine was missing an upper rod brg half(shame on me I know)and his had std rod brgs on an .010 crank(his knocked way more than mine!!)anyhow He had a new crate motor on his doorstep in 2 days and I had already fixed mine so I bought his old one for $400,like I said it was o.k. treatment,but WAY BETTER THAN HAVING TO DEAL WITH A STINKING DEALERSHIP BUNCH OF YAHOOS,good luck....PRO....

[tsteiner61]

Don't worry guys. I don't plan on jumping over the counter and beating the parts manager to a pulp. That's why I ask the advice, which all sounds good, BTW.

I plan to give the dealership a shot, just for laughs. If I get nowhere there, I think I will give PRO's idea a shot too. It sounds positive.

The bottom line here is that I am a fair guy and if I screw something up, I am man enough to face the consequences of that. That is the risk you take when doing your own wrenching. If I discover I made a boo-boo and I was at fault, I'll stop pursuing the matter altogether. But initially, it appears to me like I may have gotten the shaft here. Either way, it still beats not knowing anything about cars and then taking it for dealership service every 3 months. Talk about expensive.

BTW, how bad is it really to keep a motor in storage as long as I did? Is that a big no-no?? It was in storage from Dec 1999, covered/oiled of course. It was still wet with assembly lube when I unbagged it, so I figured it was OK. Let me know, as I won't even pursue the matter if it really was my own fault.

Thanks again for all the advice. It is appreciated.

[ehostler]

The storage (if properly store) was not the problem. The problem normally come from the fact that most of the time, is that most of the internals are improperly torqued (just slapped together).

[tsteiner61]

I guess it's all for naught, anyway. I lost my receipt.

However, thanks for all the advice. I still haven't gotten the time to tear this thing apart, but I will definitely post pix when I do. Till then...

[RDABIKE]

I would suggest that you give the dealership the option of doing the disassembly while you watch. That way they can't say that you did the damage during your attempt to check it out. At this point it sohould also be easy for one of their good mechanics to check the cylinder walls and verify that this engine has not been run other than for what you have stated. I think that this would make a warranty claim much easier than if you just bring in damaged parts and claim that they were form an engine that you bought from them two years before and have never used. Also if you can provide a month of purchase they should be able to verify it on there end. A great pleasant attitude could go along way with this one.

[tsteiner61]

RDABIKE,

Funny you should suggest that. A friend of mine suggested the exact same thing yesterday. I gotta find that receipt!!

[Glen440]

The 528 Hemi's are built 5 min from me. Not sure where the small blocks are built. Either way you look at it Mopar went to the cheapest builder they could find. That is why they have to be checked before run.
You could likely get a better deal going through the builder.
I should go check them out and see what a 528 is worth.

[tsteiner61]

Well, all the rods are still connected. After about 20 minutes of inspection of the bottom end, I noticed coolant dripping slowly only from the #6 cylinder. Since the piston was near the top, I inspected what I could of the cylinder wall and noticed what I believe to be 3 pinholes on the wall toward the front of the vehicle, with coolant dripping out of them.

I think there's a chance they may have bored right through the cylinder wall. It was bored over .040 when I bought it, which the Mopar engines book recommends against.

I will try to get to the manifolds off tonight, to see what shape the cam is in, and continue to inspect for cracks.

[tsteiner61]

Update:

Just pulled the rocker arm off the passenger side head to see what was up with that #6 cylinder and found the cause of the failure.

Insufficient valve to piston clearance. The valve broke clean in half, and is still in the retainer. I have yet to pull the head, I guarantee that piston is history. I just hope it is the only one.

Many lessons learned here. From now on, I guess anything I buy from the crate, I will have to tear down, check and rebuild anyway.