Stock Rebuild in 2022?

[jukematt]

And I don’t say this in a negative way, but how many 4g63’s has he built and made good power on? You’ll find probably hundreds of us here that have reused pistons that have hit valves, some of us have done this multiple times including myself. However, you can dig through 20+ years of posts on here and it’d be a long shot to find ONE post about someone who had pistons that hit valves fail after using them, let alone due to “micro fractures in the pistons”. Sure, I can see that being true in something like a 2.2 Ecotec that had weak internals right off the rip, hell I’ve seen one of those slightly bend a rod even from hitting the valves, but not a 4g63 or 4g64.

Next time your at work with that guy ask him how many 4g63’s (not small block Chevy’s) he’s personally seen “had a piston blow up and throw the head off the block” or has built himself. Again, I say this in no disrespect and you’re learning but, what he said there is literally one of the dumbest things I’ve ever heard in regards to reusing a piston that’s hit valves in one of these in the 17 years I’ve been messing with them, and that says a lot as I’ve had even some old school engine builders tell me some pretty laughable stuff in regards to what you should and shouldn’t do when rebuilding a 4g63 but that one takes the cake. In regards to your engine, I wouldn’t go to that guy for any more advice let alone let him work on anything as if he believes that’s even possible he’s not as knowledgeable as he claims, or not in the least bit smart at all for that matter.

As far as buying an already rebuilt engine that’s not at all a bad way to go. However, if you’re not very familiar with whoever assembled and/or have seen that engine run well for a couple thousand miles in a buddies car or something, or have paperwork where a reputable machine shop performed the assembly, still plan on tearing it down and inspecting EVERYTHING. All too often with our platform someone finds a rebuilt or built 4g63, only to put it in the car and find out after 50-100 miles that whoever assembled it had zero idea what they were doing or banged it together for a quick sale. Not to talk you out of it but if origins aren’t clear and known you may be in for just as much work if not more than rebuilding what you have.

Good to know. He isn't familiar with the 4G63 in particular. I know he had a turbo Conquest for years and a few other cars. I originally was just asking him about porting and he used to do that for a living. I have an Evo III 16G I want to put in but I don't really want to tackle the porting myself. I know these engines are strong, especially when I saw the internals of a 4 cylinder 90s Honda Civic... now THAT I am fine with calling a "little four-banger"!

Regarding the rebuilt engine, I looked on here for a list of all the old vendors. Most seem to either be out of business, moved on from DSMs, or only build upgraded engines with race parts. But I found one for a very good price. I am essentially getting a brand new engine. The block and head are fully cleaned and prepped, and all the internal parts are new. I just have to add my valve cover and timing components. I did ask for a parts list as I'd like to know for sure what brand they use for things like the water pump and oil pump. They do a BSE but I'm assuming it's with the stubby shaft. I've never run without the balance shaft but after reading a bunch of threads around, I'm thinking I will drop the money on a GSC eliminator to relieve stress on the oil pump just to be safe. JNZ Tuning has them. Not cheap but I think worth the peace of mind.