My drill hone plan would only happen if the cylinders are in good condition and just smooth from years of road use, if everything checks out I would drill hone it just to give the oil something to stick to again. If anything was uneven or out of spec I would definitely take it to my local machine shop.

 

nw nj here, the 2 shops near me want 150 a hole to bore, 120 times 2 to hot tank before and after the bore so for the K code 289 i'm doing it's around 4k

 

Has anyone here rebuilt their engine on a budget at home? I imagine if you have the tools and expertise you could do it for a few hundred bucks in seals/gaskets/bearings, no? Like just a simple drill hone to crosshatch the cylinder walls, clean it up and new bearings? I was thinking of doing that with a new comp cam

 

This depends on whether the wear dimensions of the block, rods, and crank are within "serviceable" dimensions. If the bores are out-of-round, tapered or exceed the maximum diameter specification then no amount of honing is going to suffice and the bores need to be machined oversize, if enough cylinder wall material remains.... if the final cylinder diameter is going to exceed 4.040" (or 4.060" with sonic checking wall thickness) then sleeving or block replacement is indicated. The same with connecting rod bearing bore diameter (or if you want to change rod fasteners)... if the rods aren't square, the bores are tapered or out-of-round, the rods need to be resized. Crankshaft journals have an acceptable specification before machining to an undersize is required.

There's nothing really wrong with a drill hone..... when properly used.... but not as a substitute for machining.

 

@passthrough
Care to PM me or post the info/location of the engine builder you used? I'm also in MN and have a back burner project 289 factory rebuild that will require cleaning, checks, and machine work. Not sure if that's in his wheelhouse. I'm also not in a hurry to get it done immediately. Too many other projects.

 

Lots of interesting advice here, but lets get to basics.

First thing is to do a real, ground up tune-up of the engine. A compression test is pointless unless you have adjusted the valves. I'll post that procedure below. Full tune-up on the carburetor, adjust float level, idle screws, and choke. New wires, new double-platinum plugs, new points, cap, rotor, and condenser. Even better, send the distributor to Dan at the Mustang Barn for recurve. I guarantee it is way out of adjustment now. If there is the slightest possibility that the valve stem seals are bad (as in rock hard or disintegrating) replace them. This can be done with the engine in the car. Unless the rings are totally shot, or a valve is burned, this will get you to Dairy Queen and back for many years to come.

Adjust hydraulic valves with the engine cold.

Do this, and it will run smoothly, and likely with more power:

Disconnect the coil + wire.

Attach a bump switch to the solenoid, or just use a screwdriver.

Turn the engine so the #1 intake valve is fully opened. Loosen the exhaust valve until you can move the #1 exhaust valve pushrod up and down (NOT spinning).
Tighten this valve until no up and down movement can be felt, then tighten an additional 3/4 turn.

Note: Spinning the pushrod can cause a false adjustment, as a slowly collapsing lifter can allow the pushrod to spin freely, thus throwing off the base line of your adjustment.

Turn the engine so the #1 exhaust valve is fully opened. Loosen the intake valve until you can move the #1 intake valve pushrod up and down (again, NOT spinning).
Tighten this valve until no up and down movement can be felt, then tighten an additional 3/4 turn.

Repeat for the other 7 cylinders.

I did this on a friend’s engine that had been adjusted when built, then driven for several years. It was running OK, but not great, you could hear some valve noise. After doing the above, it did not seem to be much better immediately after adjustment, mostly because the lifters had been varnished into position by years of driving. Coupla miles around the block, though, and it was a whole 'nother engine.

 

Thank you! 😊

 

What five grand, (not including labor, but including machine work) give or take, will get ya....

 

Very nice! 👌

 

Cars are CHEAP!

 

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I was planning to have my 289 rebuilt but during the pandemic he could not start on it for 5 months. So JEGS had a Blue print 302 on sale and went that route instead. The matching # is wrapped on a engine stand and maybe some day it will get rebuilt. But very happy with my crate motor and did not have to wait.

 

Very nice!

 

I spent 8K on my 302 rebuild, I did do some mods internally with a mild cam, roller rockers, etc but idk - my car is also a cruiser, weekend drives mainly - looking back I may have just bought a crate 302 and called it a day. My builder took about 4 months from pulling the engine out of the car, rebuilding and putting it back in. But I am also in LA so prices are a bit higher.

 

Thank you for your feedback. 👌😊

 

One could also go the 351w route to get a decent amount of power that way, but unless I'm mistaken it sounds as like the OP isn't looking for that much power to justify anything more than a 302.

 

I went the rebuild route on my 289. I believe my 289 is the original mill based on the casting date near the starter and what my proposed build date is on my data plate. So I decided to keep it in the car. Doing it over the winter. With about 5 or so months of snow covering the ground and freezing temps here in Mn, it's a good time to have the engine at the machinist. A major factor for me was costs have gone up a lot on parts and labor. I didn't want to get priced out of getting it done for what I thought was "reasonable". The heads are '73 302 heads, cast January 73, I think 58cc chambers. But compression is low. Car runs good but not much power. My cost converting to 4v, converting to roller cam, afr 165 heads, forged pistons (builder is a dyed in the wool Ford guy and a racer that runs fords so he suggested forged), machined for 1 piece rear main, comes in a fair amount less than the trystar example and that includes dyno time.

I looked for 2 years for a Ford guy that would do my engine. He is out in the country a couple hours away and a one man band so I assume that keeps his costs down a little. He's busy, said he does a lot of engines each year.

 

Care to share, it sounds like Coups

 

There is a thread on a godizilla swap on here somewhere, always a good option 🤣

 

Several years ago I needed a " new" engine. My thoughts were that Ford builds a lot of motors. I know that the newer 5.0's will go 300K miles. Even a 200K mile motor has at least another 100K miles in it. So how many miles are you planning on driving? So with that I bought a 97.5 GT40P out of a wrecked Mountaineer for $450. Then I sold off what I didn't want for $175. That means now my motor cost me $275. Bought a $80 swap meet Stealth intake, a used factory Mustang 5.0 cam for $60, a spring kit for $200, a yard shed 600 cfm Edelbrock carb for $125 and used it as is. I can't believe how well it runs and hesitant to touch anything.

Short run

m.youtube.com

 

I've heard and have seen some decent reviews for TriStar and wouldn't be opposed to giving them my business if I needed a new engine, depending on their availability. That being said, I'm not sure how that $3,500 ATK 302 engine from Jegs can be beat if you're only wanting an engine with horsepower in the low 200 hp range. The one from TriStar comparatively is $5,400, though the Jegs engine does charge $600 total for core charge as well as freight shipping and then have to assume they'll charge you tax on top of that. I'd guess TriStar would probably charge you a core fee as well as some sort of shipping costs, though I'm not positive what those would be, or if they'd charge you tax on an out of state purchase. Even if they didn't charge you a core fee, shipping or sales tax, the Jegs engine would probably still be close to $1k less, though the TriStar engine does say it's been dynoed before. Not sure if ATK dyno's their engines or not.

 

We have 2 motors on stands right now...working on finishing the rebuild and then the break in comes next. We used 2 different machine shops to get all the work needed. It was about 2K for each motor, with only minor upgrades. We had the iron heads rebuilt w/ all new valves, hardened seats in the exhaust. One motor is a 400M, and the other is an FE 390. Both got upgraded: custom flat top pistons, and a cam kit in the 400-(390 had a cam kit already, so it will remain.) FE 390 got oversized CJ valves installed. Otherwise everything else was stock. We spent about 2K each on machine work, new valves, overbore, installing new pistons on rebuilt rods, hot tanking everything. We assembled them ourselves and then orderd new oil pump, water pump. Both got an aluminum 4 bbl intake as well. So we did 2 motors for a little more than your crate. There were more purchases, but that was the main portion of the cost. We used the second machine shop for balancing the rotating assemblies. The first shop did not do balancing, but the do really good work for really cheap, so they got the bulk of the rebuild.

 

I've was in the same boat last year. Tristar motors was going to my go to place the lead time was about 5 months and counting and the cost was around 7.5k for a 347. I decided to have one built locally but this was about 8k. There's advantages and disadvantages to both.

 

Put down a deposit in late January for a Tristar 347 long but not dressed. I think with dart heads and satin water pump it was right around 6k and they claim it will be done this month. Just a in case the original poster is looking

 

Unless you're looking at something on Summit that I'm not seeing, there's only one 302 ATK crate engine that I see as currently available, and that's for over $6k. The rest all show as not in stock and almost all of those say "This product cannot be ordered at this time. Future availability is unknown. We apologize for the inconvenience." Which to me isn't very reassuring and might mean that it could be available tomorrow, next month, a year from now or maybe never. I'd look elsewhere for a crate motor that's actually in stock and ready to ship so that you at least have something to compare price wise to doing a rebuild. Also, what's your budget, time frame and do you have any horsepower goals or are you just wanting a cruiser? Being 4-6 months out from even just starting to do an engine rebuild would be a hard no for me as I would want to be able to enjoy driving my cars throughout this summer, which 4-6 months from today would put you at around July-September 8th. And that's just to start the project, who knows how accurate that 4-6 month figure it, how long they'd take to rebuild the motor, if the parts were all readily available and so forth.

 

Good advice. I spoke with the Arlington, Tx Summit Racing store. They have the ATK 302 crate engine HPE-HP79M $4,426.99 at the store, pick it up at the store. Don't understand why the web site says "not available". I asked about that too. Thx!

 

I understand that a crate engine is a pragmatic way to get a fresh engine and certainly not a dumb idea, but on the other hand I also find it a pity that there is yet another Mustang that lost its original engine.

Keeping the original engine will make your car a little more special than many others and if all goes well you can enjoy the experience of getting your old engine back to running like new.

 

If a 289 is really $4k I would just buy a 351 cleveland best sounding engine in my opinion and there's a rebuilt one on ebay for about $4500.

 

I agree with your statement on the 351c, but it doesn’t fit easily into a 66. It will fit, just tight.
LJ

 

Lots of good advice so far. I'm learning engines myself and I have often wondered what I would do in your situation. Thankfully I have some resources that would probably help me. But if I was on my own I would likely be in the same boat as you, so here are my thoughts. -

First - As mentioned the engine may not need a rebuild. I would at least do a compression test first. Maybe go to another shop and get a second opinion if your mechanic just wants to do a rebuild based on a sound. The 289 is a great engine. I wouldn't just pull it on a whim.

Second - I have a hard time believing the cost to do a stock 289 would be over 4k. Maybe I'm out of touch and maybe this is based on you're location but I call BS. I would at least start making calls and doing some shopping to make sure.

Third - if it DOES need a rebuild, and it IS going to cost over 4k, then get the crate engine and call it a day. Just keep the 289 and use it to learn on. That way you'll have a back up and the original engine stays with the car if you sell.

Good luck!

 

Thank you!

 

Not doing it yourself in the garage.... nice new crate motor with roller lifters, write the check.

 

If you decide to go with a crate engine, grab your tools and start tearing down your 289 to gain some experience- can't hurt it, right? Having the ability and tools to do it myself, I would rebuild the 289... but probably end up spending the same amount with all the 'must have' upgrades! lol

 

Here's what I'd do if it were mine....

a) Warm engine cranking compression test, Fully charged battery, throttle blocked wide open. Acceptable range 130-170 psi, no more than 20 psi difference between highest and lowest cylinders.
a1) If acceptable readings can not be obtained, rebuild is indicated.

b) If compression test is acceptable, drain oil and remove oil pan. Inspect main and rod bearings for wear. If the wear is not relatively uniform over 2/3 or more of the surface (less wear near the parting lines) then check clearance with a PlastiGage.
b1) If wear is abnormal or clearance exceeds .0025" for mains or .0026" for connecting rods then a rebuild is indicated.

c) If bearings and bearing clearances are acceptable, remove valve covers and check lifter movement at the rocker arm with a dial indicator and compare to specification for the camshaft being used. For a stock 289 2v/4v camshaft you should have no less than .2253" lift on the intake valves and .2325" on the exhaust.
c1) If specification can not be obtained a rebuild is indicated. Also, check rockers, fulcrum balls and pushrods for damage and wear and if adequate lift is obtained, correct as needed.

d) Remove water pump, fuel pump and front cover and inspect timing chain and sprockets for wear.
d1) If timing chain slack is outside specification (0.5" total at mid-point on slack side of chain) replacement of the chain and sprockets is indicated.

e) If everything, so far, is acceptable, you should have found the source of your noise. If not, and you suspect it may be a noisy lifter, remove the intake manifold and lifters and check them for bleed-down. The acceptable bleed-down rate is no less than 5 and no more than 50 seconds to bleed down 1/16" under a 50 lb weight with a 5/16" ball placed in the lifter cup. There is a special tool to check these (yes, I have one....) that looks like THIS.
e1) If any lifters don't meet specification, disassemble, clean and re-test. If still unacceptable, replace. You must break-in the new lifter as if breaking in a new cam and lifters. If you see wear on the lifter feet and/or more than one lifter needs to be replaced you should consider replacing the camshaft and all lifters.

Okay, so assuming a rebuild is indicated I would remove the engine assembly and disassemble down to the "short block" (block with crank, rods and pistons still installed). I would bring this to a good machinist who will remove the cylinder ridge, remove the pistons with rods and crankshaft, measure the cylinder bores for size, eccentricity and taper and recommend an overbore size, and inspect and measure the crankshaft journals to determine if a polishing or grinding and polishing to underside is needed. You can also supply them with the cylinder heads if you wish to have them inspected for valve and valve seat wear, stem to guide clearance, pressure testing (Magnaflux if iron) for cracks, etc., and estimate repair.

Depending on the machinist estimates you can make a decision as to whether it makes sense to rebuild the existing engine or to replace it. One of the more common alternatives to a "crate engine" is replacement with a late-model 5.0 from a '97-1/2 & up Explorer/Mountaineer. Many of these engines have little wear and may need little or nothing in the way of major operations.... some might benefit from a new set of bearings but most won't need a thing. A new oil pump pick-up tube for front sump and the installation of your original 289's oil pan, front cover, valve covers, intake manifold and carburetor, exhaust manifold and a few other "conversion components" can have you back cruising for few bucks. This thread might be "enlightening". lol. Got my GT40P up and running in my 66

 

Here's what I'd do if it were mine....

a) Warm engine cranking compression test, Fully charged battery, throttle blocked wide open. Acceptable range 130-170 psi, no more than 20 psi difference between highest and lowest cylinders.
a1) If acceptable readings can not be obtained, rebuild is indicated.

b) If compression test is acceptable, drain oil and remove oil pan. Inspect main and rod bearings for wear. If the wear is not relatively uniform over 2/3 or more of the surface (less wear near the parting lines) then check clearance with a PlastiGage.
b1) If wear is abnormal or clearance exceeds .0025" for mains or .0026" for connecting rods then a rebuild is indicated.

c) If bearings and bearing clearances are acceptable, remove valve covers and check lifter movement at the rocker arm with a dial indicator and compare to specification for the camshaft being used. For a stock 289 2v/4v camshaft you should have no less than .2253" lift on the intake valves and .2325" on the exhaust.
c1) If specification can not be obtained a rebuild is indicated. Also, check rockers, fulcrum balls and pushrods for damage and wear and if adequate lift is obtained, correct as needed.

d) Remove water pump, fuel pump and front cover and inspect timing chain and sprockets for wear.
d1) If timing chain slack is outside specification (0.5" total at mid-point on slack side of chain) replacement of the chain and sprockets is indicated.

e) If everything, so far, is acceptable, you should have found the source of your noise. If not, and you suspect it may be a noisy lifter, remove the intake manifold and lifters and check them for bleed-down. The acceptable bleed-down rate is no less than 5 and no more than 50 seconds to bleed down 1/16" under a 50 lb weight with a 5/16" ball placed in the lifter cup. There is a special tool to check these (yes, I have one....) that looks like THIS.
e1) If any lifters don't meet specification, disassemble, clean and re-test. If still unacceptable, replace. You must break-in the new lifter as if breaking in a new cam and lifters. If you see wear on the lifter feet and/or more than one lifter needs to be replaced you should consider replacing the camshaft and all lifters.

Okay, so assuming a rebuild is indicated I would remove the engine assembly and disassemble down to the "short block" (block with crank, rods and pistons still installed). I would bring this to a good machinist who will remove the cylinder ridge, remove the pistons with rods and crankshaft, measure the cylinder bores for size, eccentricity and taper and recommend an overbore size, and inspect and measure the crankshaft journals to determine if a polishing or grinding and polishing to underside is needed. You can also supply them with the cylinder heads if you wish to have them inspected for valve and valve seat wear, stem to guide clearance, pressure testing (Magnaflux if iron) for cracks, etc., and estimate repair.

Depending on the machinist estimates you can make a decision as to whether it makes sense to rebuild the existing engine or to replace it. One of the more common alternatives to a "crate engine" is replacement with a late-model 5.0 from a '97-1/2 & up Explorer/Mountaineer. Many of these engines have little wear and may need little or nothing in the way of major operations.... some might benefit from a new set of bearings but most won't need a thing. A new oil pump pick-up tube for front sump and the installation of your original 289's oil pan, front cover, valve covers, intake manifold and carburetor, exhaust manifold and a few other "conversion components" can have you back cruising for few bucks. This thread might be "enlightening". lol. Got my GT40P up and running in my 66

Thank you so much! Very helpful and informative.

 

Might be worth some more investigating. Maybe some simple fixes vs rebuild. While i love the little 289 in mine, when it dies a 302 is going in. I’m looking at a stroker for my truck, crate motor is a good option. Shops are backed up and still some issues on parts availability. even finding a good block can be a little challenging. getting a proven combo in a crate motor and getting it quicker is pretty attractive.

 

Thx! Maybe dig more into smaller fixes on my 289, see if it get addressed.