this summer I became the owner of V8 M3 sedan with <60k miles (because race car engine). As part of this ownership there is the common stress of determining when the engine is gonna go kaput and how much will it cost to resurrect it.
I was thinking of buying a burned car and salvaging the engine/or block since I have been looking at prices for both and they are not cheap.
Am I over thinking this?
Is the aluminum good?
Or should I just LS swap when the time comes?
Depends. Engine bay fires can do a fair amount of damage to an engine, depending on how hot they get. You're probably better off buying one that's been hit in the back or has similar damage.
Depending on the alloy aluminum typically melts in the 1200 degree range. After parts are cast (some alloys cannot be heat treated) they are solution heat treated in the range of 900 degrees and then aged/hardened at temperatures as little as 300 degrees. All of these temperatures are within the range you would expect in a under hood fire.
I guess it would depend at how bad the fire was and how long the fire went on before it was extinguished. I would be highly skeptical the aluminum would be unaffected and unless the engine was free probably pass.
Yeah, "how hot?" is definitely the question. There are fires, and then there are fires. That's aluminum running out from under this SUV.
If there are plastic underhood components that are still recognizable I would probably go ahead and buy the engine, but I would definitely have them check the block and heads extensively at the machine shop. If not then I'd steer clear
Would have to be dirty cheap to be worth chasing. And even then probaby not.
Here is is what it looks like
here is what it should look like
KaPut!
In reply to BEATO :
That's a hard "don't stop running until you're in the next county" pass.
nope.. I would not touch that with a ten foot spanner. Good luck getting the plastic off
No...an aluminum block in a car fire is garbage...no doubt about it in my mind. THe temperature of an open flame ranges from 750-1200 degrees Fahrenheit...which is high enough to soften aluminum.
In reply to BEATO :
It's melted the aluminum valve covers to the point where you can see the cam gears. That lump isn't even worth scrap price.
What wat? You have a perfectly good low mileage e90m3 and are looking at THAT as a backup powerplant?!
Those cars are near bulletproof. Watch OCI, perform oil analysis at changes, and beat the E36 M3 out of it.
Change the bearings when the oil analysis says so. If you wanted an LS powered sedan, there is a crapton of options. You bought a high strung 400hp ITB small displacement 8 cyl sedan. Only way you should keep it is if you actually STRUNG it. They are miserable cars around town bogging low rpms, so rev it and fix it (when needed) or sell it with a blown motor when the time comes and buy a LS mobile.
In reply to Olemiss540 :
Amen brother!! I was overthinking this. I should just stay on top of itt and drive it. I actually daily it but I am conscious to let the oil get up to temp before I step on its the balls. Plus my commute is 35 miles of highway driving each way. Good for getting car good and hot for cleaning off gunk.
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