As I have posted before, I have leaks in my front and rear main seals on my 240ci in my f100. It sits in front of a manual 4 speed. I took it to a guy that I had re-do my brakes (he did a great job for a great price and I stop just fine), and asked him about the seals. He said it would be easier to pull the engine than wrestle the cast iron 4 speed. He quoted $400 to do the job. Note that everyone else I spoke with quoted 6-8 hours at 100 per hour, while this guy gave me a flat rate.

So, if I give him the green light, I thought why not have him refresh the engine while it is out? She has 148,500 miles and runs perfectly. But, she has 148, 500 miles. So, if YOU had the engine out, what would you have done to it if it ran well? My idea is having him replace the main bearings and rod bearings since that will be easy access. I could also do the timing gears, rings, cam, cam bearings, head, hardened seats, oil pump, etc... But I wanted some advice from you fellas - I just was let go from my job on Christmas Eve (thank you boss) but I am ok financially for awhile. So I am willing to spend what is sensible, but I don't want to go overboard. See my point? What SHOULD I replace, rather than WHAT DO I WANT replace (but don't really have to) just because the engine is out. Hope that makes sense. Thanks thus far for all the advice - nobody here has steered me wrong.

 

what do you plan to do with the truck? if your going to drive it like it is instead of restore it just fix the leaks. and maybe rods and mains. also if your going to restore it are you leaving the same engine in it?

 

Big Daddy - good question. I plan to drive the truck as is. In that sense, I want it mechanically reliable - I plan to leave the outside as is with dents (there are two dents and no rust anywhere) because I don't have to worry about parking lot dings. The interior is almost perfect and is as new (seriously, it is a one owner truck). So the truck really does not need restoration - I want to keep it factory stock and drive it. More thoughts anyone???

 

I would seriously consider doing some safety and creature comfort upgrades in particular.
Power disc brakes, and power steering come to mind.

 

I would rebuild the lower end while it's out, have the bock diped clean, bore the cylinders, line bore, add new pistons rings, have the crank turned, new cam and bearings, new rod and main bearings, freeze plugs new oil pump etc... down the road it will be easy enough to remove the head and have it done this way you will not have to pull it again. at least replace the valve seals on the head though. thats what i would do.

 

Well.... if yer not werkin....stands to reason, that you got some "time on your hands"!! see where I'm goin?!! If it were me, (and it was a few years ago!) I would find a place where YOU can pull the engine and do some learning, the $6-800 bucks you give to the mechanic could buy you some nice tools, torque wrench, engine stand, rent a cherry picker and get your hands dirty and learn your truck! You will be amazingly proud of what you can actually do on these ol girls, with a good manual, you can do lots!

 

Didn't I read somewhere that basically equated power steering with being a pus$yboy truck...? and away I go far far away

 

Nope, natta, that is bossmans truck material, he needs creature comfort. C6 too, damn a full grown Ford truck that can't shift it's own gears.




John

 

my 2 cents, maybe give some thought as to what you actually wanna do to the motor. have your mechanic give you a price first on all the stuff you wanna do, you will find out that unless you do the work yourself it is by far cheaper buying a new or rebuilt motor and just having it installed than rebuilding one. and the truck is not down for so long to. Dutch

 

I loved the Power Steering by Armstrong - until the shoulders gave out on me.
Shifting gears was fun - until the hips gave out on me.
Manual brakes were OK too - until I nearly creamed myself going down Snoqualmie pass with overheated wimpy drum brakes.
So I put in a bored and stroked 460/C6.
And power steering.
And power disc brakes.

Now that's no wimpy truck!

 

Thanks for everyone's opinion thus far. I don't need or want power steering and brakes - the front end was redone before I bought the truck and I redid the brakes so it is fine as is. I don't want to molest the truck in any way - if I want to make a hotrod, there are several trucks here in Phoenix that I can buy and drop in a crate motor and c6 or buy one that has been done (seriously - anyone who wants one look at CL Phoenix right now). I just want to refresh the 240 on a budget and want to know what the basic necessities are rather than a wish list - if it were up to me I would go front to back on the old girl, but my REAL boss tells me I will be sleeping in the rain if I do. Finally, I have the know-how to do the work, but my situation prevents me from physically doing it so I have to pay someone. Keeping that in mind, what are the bare necessities that should be done to the motor while it is out to increase its life?

 

Just my 2 cents. I bought a similar truck last year, and I looked for it because of the 6 Cylinder, and the 3 on the Tree. I bought it because of what it is not because of what it is not. I understand if you have bad shoulders or bad hips then the ArmStrong Steering and Drum brakes may need to go. But I say keep it the way it was made as long as you can.

On the subject of your engine, if you are going to rebuild the lower end then I would seriously consider a 300 Long block. I don't know what the price difference would be but they are a direct swap, and the 300 is the better engine. I heard the best engine you can get is a 300 lower end with a 240 head. Something about better compression.

Good luck with your truck, and enjoy it. As soon as it warms back up, I am going to get back to mine. It still has a way to go to hit the road.

 

You are right, your original question got lost in the discussion - so here are my thoughts.

I think "bare necessities" and "extend life" may be mutually exclusive.

If you are pulling the motor anyway, here is what I would do:

Run compression checks first. This can indicate the overall health of the engine, can tell you if valves or rings are a culprit, and will help you learn if repair or replace will be most economical. You might be surprised either way.
You may also find that replacing it with a later model 300 six out of a wrecked truck might be more economical in the long run.
The important point at this time is more information.

I see these 2 possibilities:
The 240 is in excellent shape, and needs little work.
It is more worn out than appears, and it will be cheaper and easier to replace than rebuild.

If the compression looks good, I would pull the engine and mic out the crankshaft and rods. If they look good, that is, no crank work needed, then replacing rod and main bearings is a good step, provided the cylinder walls look good. If any crank journals are out of round, then the rod will be out of round, and that means piston/ring work. At this point, I would suggest comparing other options.

I would then pull the head and check the cylinder walls. This may be the go/no go stage. Rebuilding it may be more expensive and less useful than replacing it with a long block or used engine.

Your other ideas are all good, and I would add a carb rebuild kit and a clutch in with it.
Steam clean the sheet metal and don't forget a new thermostat (radiator too?).

Best of luck to you!

 

Ditto, ditto,,, a 300 long block would be well worth it, depending on the 240's condition,,,,, I mean if he has it out, a master rebuild kit is cheap and since it is out, do it right, or do it twice,,,, I would go more for just getting a 300 long block and swip/swapping,,, would probly be cheaper in the long run, labor is your most expensive part in this, and if your just paying him to change engines, you might be money ahead.

 

This is my take on it. You don't want to add power( brakes and steering) so you are apperently keeping it as original as possible. If your satified with the performance of the 240 (and it sounds as if you are) I would keep the 240 it has lasted 140,000 so it is not a bad motor. Now only you knows what kind of shape it is in, do a compression test, if it is in spec and it is not burning oil (exhaust pipe clean) and there is no rattles ( lifter noise or piston slap) I would clean it up and go with new seals rods and mains and gaskets, and a fresh coat of paint and run it. This all depends too on what kind of miles you typically drive it or plan on driving it. With good maintenance I have always counted on 200,000 miles if you plan on reaching this in the next few years I would think about a rebuild while I had it out and I personally am not a fan of the remans even though they are typically cheaper.