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The valves look fine just pulled the I m .. The oil light came on a couple days before here and there I shouldve mentioned that. And ya it runs but loud knocking isolated it holding a screw driver not on the heads but from the front of intake manifold. Compression is as follows: cyl 2, 150 , cyl 4 148 , cyl 6 135 , cyl 1 150 , cyl 3 150 , cyl 5 155 .... Kinda low huh, heads are comin off now.

Yeah that does seem low but the numbers are even so maybe the reading is wrong. It's always good to at least get similar compression numbers on each piston. Did the compression rise when you added oil whilst doing the test?

Bearings on a rod came off... Hope the crank is ok. I am gonna replace the 2 of them. Should I get the same size or go a little bigger?? Maybe had to do with the oil leak above the oil filter with the car running. I am gonna swap the whole oil pump assembly piece off a good engine.

Replacing just two bearings? Replace all of them while you're there, the others are probably close to being crapped out. I'd pull the engine and do the whole thing properly if I were you. Use the same size bearings if your crank is fine.

pretty good chance your rod and crank are slagged, might as well go for a new motor

If you've been finding metal shavings, I would second guess the balance of the crank. I would hate to see you do all this work and have it run off balance. Have the crank measured at a machine shop if you can. If it's off, they could balance it for you and set you up with a good set of bearings (if the size changed) or at least recommend the size to get.

A side question: if you have a bad bearing, how does that lead to a coolant leak? Or was the bearing a find on your way to diagnose the coolant leak into your oil?

Just curious. Good luck Wagz, and I hope it all works out for you.

PS. Still have that V6 disty?

Well here is my dillema than compression is stated earlier can I tell if block is ok from that? So I can get rod bearings for 30 bucks... Or can get my hands on a de with 170k for 150 bucks and swap my ze heads on it.
Survey says?????

If you spun a rod bearing there will be damage to the rod that it was spinning in. So if you go to put a new bearing in that journal you will absolutely spin that one too...and quickly.

Compression is low, bad rod bearing...that engine is on its way out. Don’t throw bad money after good. You might be able to find a decent used K8 for a few hundred bucks. That would save you the added expense of making exhaust fit and all the other crap that goes with an engine swap. Even a simple engine swap is still a bit costly.

That would be my first course of action if I wanted to keep the budget down. Try to find a running K8 at a local wrecker. Pull one out, put another one in and drive it till it dies. It probably won’t be stellar, but it will work.

wagZE wrote:Well here is my dillema than compression is stated earlier can I tell if block is ok from that? So I can get rod bearings for 30 bucks... Or can get my hands on a de with 170k for 150 bucks and swap my ze heads on it.
Survey says?????

I'd go the DE with 170k (miles or kms???) If that's from a known working car, rebuild that. Chuck in a hotwash, hone the block, put new rings on the pistons, clean it up real good. Then put your heads from the ZE on. It will very much be a ZE with slightly lower compression.

I had hookups with friends that were cheap for my rebuild, and the wrecker paid for some parts since they sold me a crap engine. I pretty much rebuilt the engine for less than $500.

- Head gaskets (fel pro) $120 I think (bout 80 in USA from rock auto)
- Eristic gasket set (pretty good quality actually) $0 from wreckers but about $50-60 on ebay
- Rings $0 from wreckers, made by NPR Japan, about $50-60 on ebay if you can find them
- All Bearings for bottom end, about $50 off ebay made by ACL
- Head bolts, about $70 off ebay by Ajusa
- Hotwash all parts $0 from a friend
- Rebuilt heads, new valve stem seals, re-grind valves, pressure check etc, $250 total

So as you can see, if you do a lot yourself you can save plenty. Even with a full timing belt kit + water pump + hyd tensioner added in you will still save and probably pay less than $1000 in parts.

Or you can try and rescue this ZE, but as other have said, internal damage may have been made and I don't think you can just tell from a compression test. You'd be better off taking the engine out one way or another and seeing the damage.

Ok so that rod is for sure junk on #6 cyl .. Would I want to still swap my pistons onto the de block? With new rings? Or just leave the de block and throw on my ze heads..
Shopping list is
Bearings
Piston rings
Head gaskets
De block

I'd just stay with DE pistons. It won't give you 20HP just by having flat top pistons. If anything, the DE pistons will allow the use of regular unleaded petrol.

Ok de pistons than, and should I get new head bolts?

I did, they weren't expensive. Like $70USD or something from ebay. Ajusa brand I think, they seemed fine.