Well…me and Superium decided to take apart the bottom end of the original 7M…to find out where the knock was coming from, exactly. We knew it was cylinder 5, majorly…and this is what we found.
Difficult to see, I know, but in person, its much more clear. Rod Bearing #5 was tore up really bad…to the point of the babit material was worn completely away, and the copper backing was exposed. Similiar instances on Bearing #1 and #6. The other bearings had heavy discoloration, which could be from overheating in the past. Nonetheless, the crank looks gorgeous. I think I actually may use this motor and crank, then keep the JDM for another day. I found some stampings on the rod caps, im not sure if are factory marks or machinist markings…but this motor has been apart before. I get to clean up what they screwed up.
I’ve ordered/recieved upper end and lower end gasket kits for the car. Just placed my order earlier this week for brand new Wiseco Forged pistons/rings. Awaiting the arrival of those. I need to get the head cleaned up a bit. The valves are disgusting. I don’t know how they even functioned correctly. I’ll see what a wire brush tipped drill does against the deposit build up. If they come clean, good. But I still would like to have the head checked for flatness. That’s a big head to keep flat. I’m gonna put $ on this, the head is warped a bit, since afterall, it was overheated…leading to the failure of the bottom end in the first place. I’ll grab some pics later when i step outside.
Insurance would only pay to “repair” the 1/4 panel. Not replace it. So, after fighting, which got us no where, they pulled the panel out the best they could, repaired the rust, and filled it. The body lines aren’t the best. I’m displeased with it. It isn’t finished yet though. It’s in primer, but I took the car from the body shop, because I was supposed to have swapped my JDM motor in, over the course of a weekend. a Month or more later, I still have the car. The body shop is fine with me keeping the car as long as I need it. Once my engines back in it, It’ll go back in, where I will bitch about the body line, and hopefully get finished up.
The engine, crank, and head is at Napa on Wehrle Drive, getting machined/checked. Block is getting Magnafluxed for cracks, decked, and cleaned up. The head is getting decked, Magnafluxed, and new valve seats and seals are getting put in. A thorough cleaning is also a must. My valves were not looking too good, so Tom from Napa said I should replace a couple of them. I can’t wait to see how much the bill is going to be. Once I get everything back from Napa, then I can go ahead and start assembling the engine. Just in time for winter! Yippy! Heh…
Update! I brought the engine home from Napa today, in peices. Everything looks excellent!
~Block Cleaned/Magnafluxed
~Cylinders Honed
~Rods Cleaned/Magnafluxed/Checked for Straightness/Pistons Mated to Rods
~Crank Cleaned/Polished/Tolerance Checked/Checked for Straightness/Magnafluxed
~Head was Disassembled/Cleaned/Exhaust Valves were Replaced/Checked for Cracks/New Valve Seals Installed/Valve Seats
Came to $1063.00
I might be missing something. Now I can begin the rebuilding process, and progress will begin to advance. I’m excited, but a bit worried. It has been so long since I took it apart, some things, I don’t remember quite how they went together. I do have a spare 7MGTE in the corner, I could always tear into, and see how things go.
Not as strong as a 2JZGTE, but the 7M can hold its own pretty well.
EDIT:
Note: Early 7M-GTE and GE engines, from 86 til Early 89, had 6M-GE cranks. The 6M crank has more counterweights, but it is balanced better, and is good for more RPM. After Early 89, they finally started using 7M crankshafts.
but now I hope to find a better one 
