2L engine purchase

[faiyaz]

hello, im planning on buying a second 2L engine for my hilux coz the current one is leaking oil from the back of the headgasket ( is this very serious or will retorqing the head stop the leak ) and rear crankshaft seal ( and the vehicle cannot stay down long enough for me to address these issues) , after quite abit of searching ive managed to find the correct gen 2L and need advice on what i should look for before purchasing, (i know the engine will be 20 years old, and im willing to rebuild it) but is there anything that if i see i should walk away from the deal. Basically what signs should it be showing if its a good engine, secondly what is the average gas mileage of a 2L engine in a 4x4, thanks in advance for your help !!!

[Mars]

There are a couple of things you can look at when evaluating an engine. Firstly I would look at how complete is it. i.e. distributor, alternator and other ancillaries, Carburettor/fuel injection, water hoses, thermostat housing, are the spark plugs still in or the injectors, Injector pump, manifolds, flywheel etc. all of those items and the engine as a whole can give you a good indication of the general condition of the engine. i.e are they damaged, covered in oil/dirt etc. Also ask if what you are seeing is consistent with what you would expect on such an engine given its history/origin.

Then you can look in the water channels (Water inlet and outlets to the engine) and see if it is rusted or fouled up or if there are white greasy deposits in the channels. Generally a well maintained engine will have had antifreeze and you should not see rust or gunge. You should also clearly smell the antifreeze if there was any in the coolant. White sticky deposits indicate a blown head gasket.

Does it still have oil in? What is the colour\condition\level of the oil. The condition of the oil will also very quickly inform you if the engine was well maintained. Remember that oil in a diesel engine goes black very quickly but it should still feel like normal oil and not sticky. A Creamy brown colour could also indicate a leaking head gasket.

What does the exhaust manifold or outlet ports look like. IS there dry whitish to reddish deposits or are they clogged up with black sticky soot/deposits (and for a diesel dry-ish vs sticky black soot) -Sticky would mean it was using oil.
An oily inlet manifold and/or breather pipe could indicate low compression/blow by on the rings.

Can the engine turn freely and does it have compression when turning it.

Generally it is safest to assume that the engine you get will require a full rebuild and anything that is good after that is a bonus. Unless it is one of those engines the guys are willing to start up and are prepared to give you a warranty.

[faiyaz]

ok i see, yh the guy said the engine starts up so will check for all those things before i make an offer, will also find out prices of piston rings , bearings, sleeves etc so i can budget on a price, thanks for the info !!!!