Was told the 6.9 I just bought is toast!

[SnoFord]

Hey fellow Oilburners,

I live up in Washington State and just recently purchased a '86 F250 Ext Cab, 4x4, with the 6.9 IDI, C6 Auto, it has a ATS turbo on it, and is straight piped with a 5" exhaust stack . I thought I was buying a good running truck (the odo says 89k but the PO didn't know what the mileage was for sure), it test drove fine (that freaking exhaust stack with the sound of the turbo coming through the exhaust had me all love sick), but of course I stupidly didn't have a shop check it out (I was a long way from home and thought I knew what I was doing, dumb). I bought it and then after I drove it for a couple of weeks I noticed it was getting bad gas mileage and was smoking even when it wasn't under load. I also noticed that the engine temp light came on, but there wasn't anything too serious happening. I decided to take it to a local Diesel shop to have them give me their analysis. Here is what they said: "Coolant is very rusty and can see air bubbles in the over flow bottle. Cooling system is over pressurizing, radiator is leaking from a previously repaired spot on bottom side of radiator. Removed oil cap and found an extreme amount of blow by. Engine is very tired and has blown head gaskets. Needs new engine." After I left the shop the truck overheated and there was a loud pop (I was trying to limp it home, the temp gauge stopped working, the heater wouldn't blow hot air). I got it towed home.

Thankfully I really like this truck and I am not into it for a lot of money, which means I could put some more time and money into it and have a great truck. So I have some questions I am hoping you folks can help answer:

- I found another motor for $500, it is already pulled from the donor truck so I can't hear it run. Should I go for this or wait for a motor that I can actually hear run? Also the seller doesn't know the mileage but says the guy he got it from ran Amsoil in it and had 2 remote filters on it (I assume fuel filters). He said he heard it run and it started right up. He said he compression tested it and it has good compression. I have to assume he wouldn't have went through all of the work to pull it if it wasn't a good motor?

-Is there anything I can look at on this motor to determine if it is going to be a good runner?

Thanks in advance for all of your help and I look forward to being a part of this online community!

 

[Bashby]

500 is about the going rate for a used idi engine. I think it's worth a shot. Since the guy claims to have checked compression and all maybe he will give you a 30 day warrany or something. For example, I've sold a few motorcycles over the years. I tell people no test drives, but when you buy it you have a 1 hr warranty, give you time to make sure all the gears work etc, if you don't like it and bring it back not wrecked you can have your money back.

 

[SnoFord]

Bashby- Yeah i think it is probably worth a shot too, only problem is I won't know until I put it in!

 

[79jasper]

Do you not have time to throw new gaskets and studs in yours?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[SnoFord]

79jasper- It sounds like the rings are shot with all of the blow by noted, I think it would be a full rebuild. I asked the diesel shop and about just doing gaskets and they said it will make the engine perform even worse. Basically creating more pressure in the motor and driving more air through the cylinders? Maybe someone else on the board can explain it better, I am still just a newbie at understanding the intricacies of the 6.9. I need this rig to be able to pull a 30' travel trailer over the mountain passes, so I need to produce some real power out of this motor.

 

[OLDBULL8]

After I left the shop the truck overheated and there was a loud pop (I was trying to limp it home, the temp gauge stopped working, the heater wouldn't blow hot air). I got it towed home.

That's more than likely because it ran out of coolant, take the thermostat out, it may be stuck closed. Closed t'stat won't allow the coolant to circulate, that causes high pressure. Fill it with just water and run it, see what you get then. Ya can't hurt it anymore. You'll be able to see if the head gaskets are blown. Check your engine oil for any water in it, easy to tell, water will run out first. How bad is the radiator leaking? Do that then come back here with questions and/or what you find.

You may or may not have bought a bad engine, just don't go and buy another one, never buy unless you hear it run, or from a trusted person. A friend will be the first one to screw you.

 

[OLDBULL8]

[QUOTE I need this rig to be able to pull a 30' travel trailer over the mountain passes, so I need to produce some real power out of this motor.][/QUOTE]

You bought the wrong truck to do that, unless you are patient enough at 20 MPH in 1st or 2nd gear.

 

[SnoFord]

I didn't say how fast I wanted to go over the passes! I know this engine isn't as powerful as my 7.3 Powerstroke, but with the ATS turbo I think it can produce enough power and torque to pull the trailer faster than 20 mph...

 

[79jasper]

These engines can look like they have a lot of blowby, when really, it's normal.
More than your psd?
Unless you ran it overheated for awhile, I doubt the rings are shot. Maybe if it seized, even then it's quite possible they could still be good.
Shops will tell a lot of lies.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[ToughOldFord]

79jasper- It sounds like the rings are shot with all of the blow by noted, I think it would be a full rebuild. I asked the diesel shop and about just doing gaskets and they said it will make the engine perform even worse. Basically creating more pressure in the motor and driving more air through the cylinders? Maybe someone else on the board can explain it better, I am still just a newbie at understanding the intricacies of the 6.9. I need this rig to be able to pull a 30' travel trailer over the mountain passes, so I need to produce some real power out of this motor.

Okay, I would not go back to that shop.

 

[89Laredo]

It's not hard to test run an engine...
Fuel can, batteries, fuel solenoid wire, starter trigger wire.

You must be registered for see images attach

 

[racer30]

Test run it....No problem Check out my build pictures there are some with the test set up I used to start mine....Lots of good info.....My brother lives up in Skagit county. He helped me Install my engine and has a 89 IDI van. Check out my Flickr page https://www.flickr.com/photos/racer30/

 

[riotwarrior]

Even if you can't test run this 500 buck engine, you should be able to pull glow plugs and right there do a comp test yourself. with two fresh batteries and remote switch...

Then you'll know if at least that much is ok...

Just sayin

Al

 

[Black dawg]

HOw well does the current engine start/run? To someone that is not familiar with these engines, they can appear to have a crapload of blowby. If you are concerned that it is worn out, throw a compression test at it.

 

[ToughOldFord]

HOw well does the current engine start/run? To someone that is not familiar with these engines, they can appear to have a crapload of blowby. If you are concerned that it is worn out, throw a compression test at it.

Exactly, I would do some diagnosis on that original engine before buying another.