View Full Version : New? 6.5 Blocks for sale on ebay
Has anyone else seen these blocks for sale on ebay
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=160361803393&viewitem=&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWAX%3AIT
Just wondered if these were more blocks from China, and should we stay away from them?
Cast and machined in Canada but nobody in Canada sells them??? I don't want to be an alarmist but my BS meter is in the red zone.
Cast and machined in Canada but nobody in Canada sells them??? I don't want to be an alarmist but my BS meter is in the red zone.
I just sent the seller a question about the block, the name of the Canadian company, and if the block is sold in Canada. I'll let you know what he says.
Kal
This is what I asked him:
"Hi,
Is this block for sale in Canada too? Who is the supplier in Canada?
Thanks,
Kal"
This is what he answered:
"Kal,
The blocks are cast for us in Canada then the entire lot is shipped to our warehouse in the states.
Thanks, Jeff"
So, I don't feel I learned much at all.
Anyone else know anything about this seller?
I have seen this seller on Ebay several times and know one local fellow who bought one of the blocks.
The only thing I will say is this, be sure your check all the OIL PASSAGES to be sure they are all clean___ ALL OF THEM
These blocks are probably cast overseas, shipped through Canada and the on to the final buyer for either sale or final machining.
The ones of these I have seen are very nice looking stuff.
Missy
This is what I asked him:
"Hi,
Is this block for sale in Canada too? Who is the supplier in Canada?
Thanks,
Kal"
This is what he answered:
"Kal,
The blocks are cast for us in Canada then the entire lot is shipped to our warehouse in the states.
Thanks, Jeff"
So, I don't feel I learned much at all.
Anyone else know anything about this seller?
If I was going to spend the money to make molds, do casting and cnc machining then I would want a supplier that was going to buy more than 10 at a time. If Jeff is the only distributor for these Canadian engines then the guy supplying the blocks isn't a very smart business person. My BS meter is now bouncing off the end of the scale.
This fellow is not the only reseller of these blocks for sure.
I doubt seriously that these blocks are being cast in Canada.
This looks like the same block thats being sold by CCH out of Florida and a few others.
Nobody will give specific details about the who,what,where, when and why on these things.
As I said before, I have seen one up close and personal and they look great
CCH has been selling the hell out of them for a few years now and I have not heard any bad press.
The folks marketing them are trying to keep from all the bad press of "MADE IN CHINA"
Bottom line is this. The seller has a 100% ++ feedback score, this is a good thing when buying off ebay. Bad vibes get around real quick.
The choice for a good block these days are getting slimmer as every day passes.
The truth about who is actually making these blocks is likely not going to surface.
AMG/GEP would probably love to know and sic the hounds after them.
With the Military moving away from the HMMWV AMG will probably start making their stuff more readily available as parts ????????/
As I said before, the only thing that one should do is check these blocks out really good for bore dimentions and such and be really sure all the oil passages are totally clean and free of machining residue.
Local fellow has one and there was an issue with a passage pluged with a mix of oil and machining chips.
Once that issue was resolved things were sweet..
Sadly the amount of feedback on these blocks is still very small.
Personally, I would not hesitate to try one.
I got lucky when I needed a block for DaHoooley and found a 929 block that was crack free.
Unfortunately it had other issues that did not present itself right up front, but thats another story.
If I could do it over, I would have been $$$$$$$$$ ahead to have gone with one of the aftermarket blocks.
OH BTW
The add copy that the ebayer is using to sell those blocks is not original, its been used before by others with minimal changes.
If the guy has managed to keep 100% happy buyers, he is doing something right.
Just tooled on over to Ebay and poked around. "Odessa cyl head" and "Heads by CCH" same company me thinks (has Clearwater Fl as the location) has blocks for sale for $1125 and $1150
Both have good feedback.
I have poked around on the net many times looking to find out who is doing these blocks.
I suspect that the stuff is done overseas, shipped to a port in Canada and then trucked into the States.
This convoluted way of getting the stuff in here is likely being used to keep "Under the Radar"
Back a few years, there was a story going around that these were blocks cast at the IH foundry and were "over runs" and being sold as surplus. Yeah right.
Odessa and CCH are using the same Piccy of the blocks too. Bet me that the ebay ad was not done from the same computer in the same office somewhere.
Missy
Robyn, and Dave, you pretty much summed up how I felt about the blocks, but it is good to hear confirmation from those more experienced. If I buy one, It will be checked thoroughly before useage! :D
Subzilla
08-13-2010, 11:30
Here is their website: http://www.6-5liter.com/index.html
They are in Bostic, NC which is only a few hours from my house. Ain't never been there, though.
I seem to recall someone else here asking about these folks some years ago but don't remember the concensus...........
I would really like to find out who in Canada is manufacturing blocks because the only thing I have seen is someone in Edmonton selling Chinese knockoffs. If anyone has an address or ph.# I would appreciate it if you could share it with the masses.
I would buy from Clearwater myself.
I have dealt with these guys and the experience was a good one all the way.
Once you get the block, remove all the oil galley plugs (ALL OF THEM) including the ones that go into the relief valve and such.
All the passages need to be completely washed out reeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeall y good.
I would even yank out the cam bearings they install before I did the washout.
The rear cam plug needs to come out as well as the lifter gallery plugs too.
Remove the front lifter gallery plugs too.
GET every last oil passage plug out and be DAMNED sure that there is not any crap in the block.
Once you get the plugs out run a wire or other item, even a rifle cleaning rod with a 22 Jag on the end into the dead end passsages.
Flush with such stuff as GUNK or even brake clean to be sure there is not any congealed oil and shavings.
Spray with simple green afterwards and hit the thing with loads of nice high pressure HOT WATER to flush things well.
Now install or have installed, the cam bearings (according to GM specs)
Reinstall the plugs and then your ready to put it together.
Make sure the pistons have .004" clearance for cyls 1-6 and .0045 on 7 and 8
The main line is easily checked by dropping in a set of STD bearings, then the crank and plastigage things. .0025" clearance is sweet on these.
Once thats done, lube the bearings with lubriplate 104, snug the caps down to about 40 lbs and see how the crank spins. Spins OK then your good to go, Yank out the main bolts and ready things for the rear main seal.
You can install the seal by lifting the cranks slightly and installing the seal, square it up and align it, then set the crank back down and fit the cap.
Be sure yu use a little High tack on the areas of the cap that are metal to metal. The GM manual shows the area.
The spec calls for anerobic sealer ( I use High tack) just dont get stupid with the amount. Just a touch on the sides where the oil can seep through around the seal.
Install the seal in the block with just a touch of grease on the outside. This will allow it to seal well on the block and not have issues.
Lube the lip too.
From here its pretty much clear sailing.
If the block has oil squirt holes in the main line, be sure that all the little nozzles are there. One missing squirt nozzle will leave you with near zero oil pressure hot at idle.
You must use a high volume (late model pump) on a squirt block.
Early blocks (599-929 or so without squirts) use a low volume pump and this will not work on a squirt block.
You can use a squirt block pump though on a non squirt block. (Been there done that) just have oil pressure up the BUTT is all.
DaHooooley runs 70+ cold and 55-60 Hot down the road and idles at 35 hot. :eek:
Sacres the hell out of the neophytes that own stock 6.5's :D
Check all the threads to be sure the bolts go in correctly.
I have not found any issues on these blocks (or heard of any) just good assembly practice is all.
I would say, if you can afford it, to get a SCAT crank for your project.
These are cast steel, but light years ahead of an old used up stocker.
Have fun and keep us posted. :)
Missy
might not have anything to do with this thread but when Bill Mitchell/World Products makers of aftermarket castings ect. started making iron heads he used a foundry in Ontario Canada.
could be some relation or not?If so he would most likely be marketing the blocks himself and through warhouse vendors.
More Power
08-16-2010, 13:51
If you google "engine casting foundry canada", you'll discover a couple dozen such operations. I couldn't tie any one of them to the 6.5 using the net, but it remains possible. I also contacted a couple major and longtime Canadian diesel businesses (who deal in 6.5 related stuff) about a foundry in Canada producing 6.5 blocks. They didn't know anything about it. That seemed odd to me...
Think about it logically... If you were selling a great product that you were proud of, you'd likely loudly proclaim the advantages and thoroughly answer all questions about where they came from. Several years ago AM General proudly announced that Navistar was producing their 6.5 castings.
In talking to AM General more than a year ago about the Chinese imports, I was told that AM General (and they alone) have the rights to produce the castings or contract the castings be made for them.
Ask the seller what sort of durability testing and certification has been done. ;)
I agree with Jim.
The likely source is Off Shore with the sellers beating around the shrubbery as to the source, simply to keep the big boys off their butt.
Whoever is doing these castings is doing a lovely job though.
They are clean and free of excess flashing and other ugly stuff.
The machine work is AAA+++ too
The only place I have seen that makes me nervous is, as I mentioned before is the cleanliness of the oil passages.
I am very anal about such stuff, and rightfully so.
To date the one casting that I have seen is under daily service and has about 30K miles on it now.
This Block was sold by CCH in FL and mated with a set of their heads.
The engine has a Scat crank, GM 6.5 rods, GM stock 6.5 cam, lifters, timing gears and sheetmetal.
The pistons came from an Ebay deal and are from a name brand aftermarket seller.
Myself, at this late date with AMG real stingy about who and what they will sell, would not hesitate to use one of these blocks.
The junk thats out there in the used market can really keep you on your toes trying to make sure if the stuff is any good or not.
Missy
I just felt I had to chime in here...I was shopping a new motor/block in the winter and came across this fellow...I interrogated the dog poo outta of the guy. We discussed this fella on this board. He certainly was nice enough to talk too...somewhat knowledgeable...a little off on his metallurgy..
What he told me:
1) His blocks are cast in South America by a company for Navistar...they have to remove all casting marks in order to comply with a licensing agreement with Navistar. He swore up and down it was the same block AM General is using.
2) He has the blocks machined in Stamford Ct....I'm a fire fighter in Stamford (24 years) , and am familiar with all the machining places in the city....I checked it out...nobody is machining brand new 6.5 blocks in Stamford, CT!...The city is not that big, the machining community is small, and only 2 business have the machines that can align bore the blocks.
3) I told him I wanted to visit his machining facility to verify the quality of the blocks and the parts and methodology being employed. He flat out denied revealing the secret address within the city...citing of all things, tax reasons..
Ok so this guy may have a stellar reputation on E-bay...whatever....but if you look at his feedback it 's from folks buying parts!!!! not engines.
I can only speak for myself that he was way, way, too evasive ....and in my opinion lied about his machining operation. His story did not match his add....what about Canada??? never mentioned Canada!!!.....
That was enough for me. Do what you will, but I say "Let the buyer be ware"
My $.02
I just felt I had to chime in here...I was shopping a new motor/block in the winter and came across this fellow...I interrogated the dog poo outta of the guy. We discussed this fella on this board. He certainly was nice enough to talk too...somewhat knowledgeable...a little off on his metallurgy..
What he told me:
1) His blocks are cast in South America by a company for Navistar...they have to remove all casting marks in order to comply with a licensing agreement with Navistar. He swore up and down it was the same block AM General is using.
2) He has the blocks machined in Stamford Ct....I'm a fire fighter in Stamford (24 years) , and am familiar with all the machining places in the city....I checked it out...nobody is machining brand new 6.5 blocks in Stamford, CT!...The city is not that big, the machining community is small, and only 2 business have the machines that can align bore the blocks.
3) I told him I wanted to visit his machining facility to verify the quality of the blocks and the parts and methodology being employed. He flat out denied revealing the secret address within the city...citing of all things, tax reasons..
Ok so this guy may have a stellar reputation on E-bay...whatever....but if you look at his feedback it 's from folks buying parts!!!! not engines.
I can only speak for myself that he was way, way, too evasive ....and in my opinion lied about his machining operation. His story did not match his add....what about Canada??? never mentioned Canada!!!.....
That was enough for me. Do what you will, but I say "Let the buyer be ware"
My $.02
Was it the seller I was looking at?? I mean, Canada is a fairly large place, so if he told me that the machining was happening in Ontario, that's pretty safe for him to say, because it's 2000 miles away from me. At any rate, he never told me much of anything, so I suspect he's been sold a bill of goods too!
yes...same guy
also check out the price on his "new" motor direct from AM General...any fool off the street can beat that price by $800 by going direct thru AM General.
no deal at all there!...thats a verifiable fact..
There is another guy.... IDI or IDC.... in Long Island NY...anyway he will tell you he is selling a brand new knock off engine with China parts...but he says "come on down" and drop the pan off the bottom...bring feeler gages whatever....half the price of a new AM General engine.
I found myself asking the following questions??
1) How much can I afford to spend??
2) What sort of reliability to I want?? (more reliable= more dinero)
3) Would I mind, or have the time (or willpower after a major undertaking) to pull the motor ( at your own expense) and send it back if it goes South under warranty?
4) How long to I plan on keeping the vehicle?? (is this even worth the effort)
5) How much will ancillary things cost me, and should I replace them now while its easy?? (motor mounts...oil lines...cooling upgrade....starter...front end...etc.)
6) And of course most importantly...What should the color scheme be??? Detroit Green?? :)
PONTIACMAN
08-22-2010, 18:45
This fellow is not the only reseller of these blocks for sure.
I doubt seriously that these blocks are being cast in Canada.
This looks like the same block thats being sold by CCH out of Florida and a few others.
Nobody will give specific details about the who,what,where, when and why on these things.
As I said before, I have seen one up close and personal and they look great
CCH has been selling the hell out of them for a few years now and I have not heard any bad press.
The folks marketing them are trying to keep from all the bad press of "MADE IN CHINA"
Bottom line is this. The seller has a 100% ++ feedback score, this is a good thing when buying off ebay. Bad vibes get around real quick.
The choice for a good block these days are getting slimmer as every day passes.
The truth about who is actually making these blocks is likely not going to surface.
AMG/GEP would probably love to know and sic the hounds after them.
With the Military moving away from the HMMWV AMG will probably start making their stuff more readily available as parts ????????/
As I said before, the only thing that one should do is check these blocks out really good for bore dimentions and such and be really sure all the oil passages are totally clean and free of machining residue.
Local fellow has one and there was an issue with a passage pluged with a mix of oil and machining chips.
Once that issue was resolved things were sweet..
Sadly the amount of feedback on these blocks is still very small.
Personally, I would not hesitate to try one.
I got lucky when I needed a block for DaHoooley and found a 929 block that was crack free.
Unfortunately it had other issues that did not present itself right up front, but thats another story.
If I could do it over, I would have been $$$$$$$$$ ahead to have gone with one of the aftermarket blocks.
OH BTW
The add copy that the ebayer is using to sell those blocks is not original, its been used before by others with minimal changes.
If the guy has managed to keep 100% happy buyers, he is doing something right.
Just tooled on over to Ebay and poked around. "Odessa cyl head" and "Heads by CCH" same company me thinks (has Clearwater Fl as the location) has blocks for sale for $1125 and $1150
Both have good feedback.
I have poked around on the net many times looking to find out who is doing these blocks.
I suspect that the stuff is done overseas, shipped to a port in Canada and then trucked into the States.
This convoluted way of getting the stuff in here is likely being used to keep "Under the Radar"
Back a few years, there was a story going around that these were blocks cast at the IH foundry and were "over runs" and being sold as surplus. Yeah right.
Odessa and CCH are using the same Piccy of the blocks too. Bet me that the ebay ad was not done from the same computer in the same office somewhere.
Missy
I think i`ll say what missy is tiptoeing around as she probably feels this could somehow lead to an argument taken incorrectly.
As a past seller on e-bay i have found it is pretty hard to sell thousands of items without showing your true colors (be it a honest person "
"or a shyster".
Whoever is selling these blocks (did not buy their Ebay score) that is showing 99 percent of their customers are" happy ,and satisfied" with the seller, so my educated assumption ,(or whatever ya wanna call it")
"IS"
Is that the guy who is selling these blocks is being as forthright as can possibly be had without letting everyone know where to get a block by bypassing his part and losing his sales.
IF he tells where he gets them, many will gladly bypass him, and save $$$$200 $$$$ bucks that he makes
"if that".
SOME DAY THAT PRICE IS GONNA HAVE TO GO UP WITH THE DEMAND AND WITH THIS SITE INCREASEING THE DEMAND POINTING TO THE GOOD MILAGE THE 6.5 can GET People are probably gonna demand more for the decent mileage!!!!!
He`s/ "THE BLOCK GUY" been selling auto parts for quite a while( if you read his feedback) which details his sales,....
Many sales being 6.5 injectors ,and keeping feedback over 95 percent is quite amazing.
If i was needing a 6.5 replacement block i would not hesitate buying from this seller.
Especially considering the alternative is something that's been cycled out of balance millions of times likely ,(with questionable balancers), and heavy questionable internals, and the fact most original cores that arent cracked, still are cores that have to little metal in the rear cylinders that will crack sooner, or later ,along with main saddles that are known to crack whenever they desire all because the original blocks were not made strong or heavy enough to begin with.;)
Many machine shops consider the stock block throwaways, so i would rather trust a china block myself (with a little more heft to it) over anything in the scrap yards regardless how much nickel the scrap guy says is in the original weak 6.5 throway blocks...:D
I'm only trying to be honest and i can honestly say everything iv seen come out of the scrap yards 6.5 related was generally scrap.
What other block is almost always cracked in the main girdle area????
Even the so called junk Gasser's rarely have a problem where the crank breaks cause the block is not strong enough to carry the crank load!!!
I`ve never seen such a thing other then the stock 6.2-6.5 ers...
Most briggs and stratton engines have a longer life expectancy as the 6.2-6.5 was just to light ,and thin in all the areas that needed good strong iron alloyed with something to make the pig iron stronger.
As missy said
ALL new blocks should be checked and cleaned thoroughly usually with soap water and compressed air if doing yourself at home....
Soapy water carries metal slivers away way better then solvents like diesel , gas or whatever the shade tree mechanic may or may not use.
Again with these or anything else machined and needing to be clean to survive you check the block for machining shaveings/ dirt in all the passages "as with all new castings ", pressure wash the block , and i`d feel things were ready to go..
P.S:
Im amazed that anyone has put any engine together and had it work more then a day, if they were unaware that these, or i should say (any engine always need to be cleaned before assembly)
Anyway back to the option:
OR I COULD GO and choose the other route where i would have to hunt threw piles of heavy rusty blocks or whatever looking in trucks hoping to find something salvageable , then need to clean it ,and re-bore the holes , resurface the decks, line bore the mains , as in past years even the better of the 6.5 blocks that came threw my shop needed lots of work to get a marginally decent building block to begin with and i think its a waste of time for something always questionable.
If this was my main ride right now i would feel blessed these blocks are available rather then feeling like somebody was setting me up for a duping.
Whoever is selling these would be jeopardising the ebay account he built over the years, and the great feedback score which is making him an impressive amount in $$$$$ money, so if he were to sell something that were junk he`d be hurting himself more then anyone else.
Sorry for the long post ,but i do not know how to get my point across with less words just hope nobody is offended on( my opinion of most of the available cores that I've seen) ,while in business...:o
Anyway:
Maybe i beat the longest most useless post ?????:D
Teddy bear Auto Repair:)
Pretty much sums it up.
If the ebay buyers are unhappy for any reason, the smack will hit the feedback rating really quick. :eek:
Missy
blackshirts
08-22-2010, 20:37
sum-wat relevent and sum-what irrelevent but im looking at a truck with 160k on it how much more life would that 6.5 be expected to have left in it? i know sicne it IS a dieel it has lots left but how much?i know cummins will run from 300k-400k if not 600k but like you said they made them weak in the places that shouldnt be weak
Pontiacman,
I hear what you are saying, I've been on ebay for 12 years, and have a 100% feedback rating, buying and selling, but still, there is no feedback about the blocks, most of the feedback is on the injectors.
I haven't made up my mind as to what I'll be doing with my truck yet. It's started to use antifreeze, but it's not showing up in the oil, or externally, so it's likely a cracked head, or a head gasket. So far it's not causing any running problems, except having to add antifreeze.
I figure that I have some time to decide what direction I want to go, and this guy's blocks caught my eye, so I was trying to find out as much about him as I could.:)
More Power
08-23-2010, 16:40
The 6.5 was produced and sold in new GM vehicles for 10 years (yes, you could have bought a Van or a 3500HD as recently as 2002 that had a 6.5L diesel in it), and the first 6.5 has been on the road for almost exactly 19 years (1992 model year vehicles were released in the fall of 1991).
My guess is that some hundreds of thousands of GM vehicles were produced with the 6.5. Online forums like this one and others draw the owners of problem trucks. Junk yards collect the problems as well. What we don't know is what the percentage of failures really is.
We won't know what the reliability history will eventually be for any imported 6.5L block for another 10-20 years. Might be great - might not. Will the same import block vendors be around in 10-20 years to help answer the reliability question? I doubt it. Will these import blocks survive failed dampers & pulleys? I doubt it.
A $2K delivered import block plus another $2K in rebuild costs is not a trivial amount to spend on the hopes for better reliability. Personally, I'd spend another $2K to get a genuine AMG... or even better, get the gold standard for the 6.5 - the AMG P400....;)
Jim
PONTIACMAN
08-23-2010, 17:28
Pontiacman,
I hear what you are saying, I've been on ebay for 12 years, and have a 100% feedback rating, buying and selling, but still, there is no feedback about the blocks, most of the feedback is on the injectors.
I haven't made up my mind as to what I'll be doing with my truck yet. It's started to use antifreeze, but it's not showing up in the oil, or externally, so it's likely a cracked head, or a head gasket. So far it's not causing any running problems, except having to add antifreeze.
I figure that I have some time to decide what direction I want to go, and this guy's blocks caught my eye, so I was trying to find out as much about him as I could.:)
If you go to page 4 on his feedback," hornautoraceing", (or something like that) bought a block this year ,and left positive feedback for whatever its worth...Maybe you can or should call the buyer and get their input.
I think it was back around march, so i doubt the person has ran it through its trials yet ,but i found positive block feedback pretty easy.
Also another person bought a complete motor from him ,so i would assume hes had it long enough, and it works well enough that that person didnt post any "this engine is junk" silliness.
Its back around page 10 and i think it was purchased a year or so ago, so it shoulda been installed and running quite a while ago.
I believe 4 blocks have been sold threw him, and i don't believe i saw any complaints ,but to be honest i didnt go scrolling threw the 800+ items.
In your case if you only have a tiny leak its probably a marginal head-gasket allowing coolant to be pulled into the combustion chamber during the intake stroke, so you might be able to get away with adding some factory sealer and driving it 100,000 more miles if your lucky.
I think GM specifically had leak stop for the 6.5-6.2 diesels ,and the Saturn motors that were porous... Probably the same stuff they used in the caddy aluminum block engines from way back also.
Unless its a crack in the #7 cylinder (that's known to crack) you probably cant justify buying a block and to be honest i wouldn't either.
Cracks in the cylinder wall show more like( rough running and bucking when 1st started and cold), because the coolant leaks in threw the crack, but as the cylinder heats up the crack seals from the heat expansion, and then runs fine the rest of the day, only to show a problem on cold start-up again...
You should have an idea whats what with yours ...;)
I think the block replacement question is mainly something every individual has to decide about, and how bad the person needs a block.
If i had something that the crank was about to kick out due to probable main register cracking, and have the extra $$$$ bucks it seems that ebay block is as good as anything i see available, but if you have something decent already that has been checked i don't see a problem in reusing it.
Head-gasket probs shouldn't warrant needing a new block
Sounds like you can use what you have unless you eventually have some catastrophic failure.
I really assumed anyone even questioning that ebay block actually really needed a replacement because their block was junk ,and the point being i wouldn't waste my time scrounging threw junkyards ,as he has what looks to be a viable alternative right there that's new ,and reasonably priced ,and should be better then what originally came from the factory ,unless he`s lying about the updates in casting.
Regardless what would a replacement block cost without any upgrades that gm sold before the problems were really exposed???
I doubt they were cheap either.
Regardless if the block is heavier, and is a Molly mixed alloy, and has whatever the approved improvements are, the price is not offensive in my humble opinion.
Anyway:
Most people know the problems with the factory blocks so i think if he was lying he woulda been exposed by now.
Also i just don't see any logic in posting the block as improved if it wasn't , as if he was caught it would ruin his entire ebay business and relate to his other sales which would basically ruin him.
I wouldn't take the chance.
Ohh well,
Teddybeardude:rolleyes:
97-8-9 were the years that saw the NUMBER 8 cyl cracking issue.
I have seen one block that had the crack.
Been around the 6.5 since they came on the scene.
Once they start using antifreeze its is not usually too long until they cash it in and have to be fixed.
The number 1 and 2 cylinder deck area errodes around the gasket next to the water port in the head that "Blanks" into the block.
The leak will steadily get worse until POOOOOOOF and it goes all together.
Then it will blow the coolant out the overflow.
Spoke today with a local fellow that built a frsh engine using a block from Clearwater Cyl Head. Running sweet now after near a years worth on the clock.
The $1200 for a ready to go block is IMHO a very good price.
Salvage the crank, rods, pistons (if still good), cam and other goodies.
Stuff these parts into the new block along with aset of CCH heads and then run the crap out of it. :D
My complete rebuild on a used GM Block cost me about $1800.
This was the cost of a used block, new pistons off ebay.
MIL HMMWV rings off ebay
Bearings off ebay
One Felpro gasket
One Cometic MLS gasket
Old cam
New lifters
New timing chain.
Used heads that were in good shape.
Had the injectors rebuilt locally
New water pump
Original oil pump
Gaskets and seals
incidentals
Labor myself.
I paid $300 for a used Block from a local rebuilders supply.
For not that much more, you can have a fresh chunk of iron.
Just my two cents worth.
Missy
Robyn..
You pretty have wrote the book on rebuilding..the 6.5.....I know cause I've read your extended posts..
For the rest of us, its not quite that easy to corral up the proper parts and make it happen , and make it last..
Kally
As far as this guy goes....all I can say is he was pretty deceptive! I cant think of any reason you would need to be deceptive, unless what you're doing is wrong in some way, shape, or form. I dont care what his ebay rating is!
Ask the fella if you can visit his machining facility...tell me what he says...
We are talking about some fairly serious cash....just be careful...I went with a known , proven solid product, let your conscious be your guide.
Whatever you do...dont buy a AM General factory motor from the guy...he is not an authorized re-seller....makes you wonder if its the genuine article! GEP pretty much straight out told me they have only 1 authorized re-seller of the genuine article....and they were very interested in what this guy thought he was selling. On top of all that you will pay about $800-$1000 more than what you can get the real deal for....factory warranty included.....not an E-bay warranty.
Jim,
that p-400 is real nice...not much more $$ than the stock 6.5...too many mods to get into the sub for me.
good discussion
6.5 Detroit Diesel
08-24-2010, 13:55
pontiacman, you need to keep searching for that 6.5 love. you will find it, maybe. :D
it doesn't have the legendary cummins nameplate. it's just designed by detroit.
can't throw a few mods on it, turn it up to 500 hp, and have it last. just a light duty diesel.
doesn't grumble and rattle like a powerstroke. just idles pleasantly.
i would definitely not go rating the 6.5 as one of the worst engines out there. like jim pointed out, this site draws by far the people that are experiencing engine trouble. there is still thousands of these trucks running fine.
my buddy has a 95 6.5 F code. the truck has close to 310,000 miles on it. one injection pump.
i like my 6.5, a lot. and i will keep playing with mine till i manage to blow another one up. :D
More Power
08-24-2010, 15:07
Jim,
that p-400 is real nice...not much more $$ than the stock 6.5...too many mods to get into the sub for me.
The oil pan is all that needs to be fabricated. We have an article online now that shows how it's done. Cast iron block girdle w/integral main caps, forged-steel crankshaft, beefed rods & pistons, new squirters, and other stuff make this the ultimate 6.5. AM General raised the horsepower rating from 190 to 250 for this engine. I'm keeping my eyes open for a nice late 1990s LT K2500 Suburban to play with.... ;)
Jim
To sum it up
I would buy an aftermarket block from Clearwater (have had good experience with them)
The dude on ebay may or may not be OK ???????? no way of telling.
The 6.2's that I have owned have given me great service.
Have had the following rigs with 6.2's
82 Jimmy (did the IP at 140K)
84 Blazer
85 Shorty 4x4
86 Burb *Had 300K on it when I traded it off. Still running and current owner had a set of head gaskets put in at 330K (MILES)*
__________________________________________________ _____
6.5 rigs
(2) 94 Burbs
95 Burb
94 Dually crewcab
95 Dually crewcab
__________________________________________________ _____
The real early 6.2's did have an issue with the cast iron rocker arms
The rings will stick on these if the wrong oil is used (gasser motor oil)
Mileage on the 1/2 ton 6.2 powered rigs was great.
These engines were designed to get mileage and not really a Moose motor.
A K5 Blazer 4x4 can easily get 24 MPG Hwy.
Overall the reliability on these was great.
Power ???????? a tad lacking
Torque???????? not bad for the size of the engine. 375 ft lb of torque
The 700R4 tranny A NIGHTMARE in its early incarnations.
The update and repair bulletines would cover a shelf 10 feet long stacked TIGHT.
Missy
PONTIACMAN
08-25-2010, 15:52
To sum it up
I would buy an aftermarket block from Clearwater (have had good experience with them)
The dude on ebay may or may not be OK ???????? no way of telling.
The 6.2's that I have owned have given me great service.
Have had the following rigs with 6.2's
82 Jimmy (did the IP at 140K)
84 Blazer
85 Shorty 4x4
86 Burb *Had 300K on it when I traded it off. Still running and current owner had a set of head gaskets put in at 330K (MILES)*
__________________________________________________ _____
6.5 rigs
(2) 94 Burbs
95 Burb
94 Dually crewcab
95 Dually crewcab
__________________________________________________ _____
The real early 6.2's did have an issue with the cast iron rocker arms
The rings will stick on these if the wrong oil is used (gasser motor oil)
Mileage on the 1/2 ton 6.2 powered rigs was great.
These engines were designed to get mileage and not really a Moose motor.
A K5 Blazer 4x4 can easily get 24 MPG Hwy.
Overall the reliability on these was great.
Power ???????? a tad lacking
Torque???????? not bad for the size of the engine. 375 ft lb of torque:eek:
The 700R4 tranny A NIGHTMARE in its early incarnations.
The update and repair bulletines would cover a shelf 10 feet long stacked TIGHT.
Missy
Just for the record i used delvac 15-40 (oil changed 2wice a week), so the ring problem was not oil related..
Some might say I'm crazy to expect anyone to believe i changed oil twice a week ,but since being a kid anything toy related i bought (like my first Honda z-50)was (with my own hard eaRNED , money,, which at the time was made from salvaging curbside mowers and repairing them and selling them in front of the house.
After sitting over winter curbs were loaded with good non running equipment..... THANK GOD FOR ME
Back then people threw out practically new mowers and after fileing clean the points ,and blowing out the bottom jet on a Tecumseh they was like brandy new.:) Briggs sometimes needed choke spring work , pipe filters , or diaphragm which were the pumps for them but cheap .
Like i said i had a step-dad and getting new socks before school started from him was a treat so i learned the value of a dollar young.
and my first cars i admit probably got oil changes a little to often but i never had motors blowing at least
That led to me selling stuff at flea markets.
Anyway the point being i found out early from friends that never thought much about lubrication that it was pretty important as i watched most of their machines which their parents bought seize or start smoking , losing compression and becoming junk heaps which was ok for me as i bought them fixed them and made some money that was, and their dads got the new ones.
Anyway i was a overzealous lube person.
The rings probably blew because to be honest to keep the pace i had with the dodge van the diesel had to be petal to the metal all the time...
Especially going home which then i was living in a small town in the mountains near Cobleskill and just before my house were 4-5 good hills or small mountains that the van would struggle up needing full throttle...
This point alone I'm pretty sure most of those vehicles should have been equipped with 3.73-4.11 rears which would have made them more drive-able.
Again the constant need for full throttle probably collapsed the rings and nothing oil related.
TRANNY- Never had a problem, but installed a corvette servo, and that cheap kit to get rid of all the soppy shifts. I HAVE NO IDEA WHY GM DIDNT ADRESS THIS IMMIDIATLY AS I BOUGHT MANY 700-R4 UNITS AFTER THAT, STILL WITH SLOPPY SHIFTS THAT WOULD NOT HAD LASTED AND A BIGGER SERVO AND SHIFT KIT TURNED THEM INTO A DIFFERENT MONSTER
375 ft pd tq ??????:D
I never saw a 6.2 normally aspirated that wasn't more like 190.
If i remember correctly they were rated from factory at 230-240......
Maybe 375 was for good running turbos, but not n.a unless i really was getting handed junk with twisted cams running on 3 cylinders:D
well overdoing it again so adios......
:rolleyes:teddybear:rolleyes:
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