The '83 Wagoneer rebuild is dead! CAR WIZARD gets burned by another shop! 

@@criticalevent poor assembly

Crappy flat tappet hydraulic lifters is a dicease now days, they are made of butter. And that busted lifter fills the whole engine with metal. Coolant and rod/main bearing are not the best of friends either. If the oil film in the bearing got replaced by coolant for a second or five that would damage the bearings. The engine oil will be at the top of the oil pan and the coolant at the bottom of the pan, the oil pump will suck nothing but coolant. The only viable lifter options are old unused lifters or hydraulic roller. Check out uncle Tony's garage here on RU-vid, he has some videos about lifters. The same thing seems to happen everywhere.

Is it true they call you Carwizard because.. when Hoovie gets the hourly bill, he says omg your a pokemon!

There is a rash of bad cams and lifters out there from major supply houses. That may have been the issue.

That engine was not broken in properly seen it a million times.

11:20 Yep... 206 SEATTLE

The piston skirt looks pretty scuffed too.

thats what shesaid

@@marsgal42 Yes, once the piston pin tried to seize in the piston, the piston started scuffing on the cylinder wall.

Bad cam takes out lifter, push rod takes out the block, coolant in oil takes out the wrist pin??? It did run for awhile but got progressively worse. Perhaps a short dyno cycle proving start/run was all it got before it ate itself.

Market is full of low quality cam and lifters, for lifters I always using best no mater what is the price and for camshafts even from famous cam producers I always double check them in machine shop, two years ago I bout a camshaft from a famous cam builder that I don`t want mention their name for Pontiac 455 engine and after checking with machine shop right out of the box it has major problems! I send it back with machine shop declaration about the problem and they changed it for me but if you install them without checking and also cleaning passages and holes it will ruin the engine. about lifters you cant inspect every of them tearing them apart etc. only way is to buy best from best manufacturers.

You are right my friend my boss and myself put a reman 4.3 v6 in a 1996 Chevy truck for a dude he bought his own engine it lasted less than a month wiped out the roller camshaft junk parts are starting to make folks look really bad

@houtan arefi im a professional engine machinist and the quality of parts nowadays is horrendous. I've had to spend at least 3-4 times longer inspecting parts because there is no qc anymore. And people wonder why there's no warranty on anything. I can't guarantee parts the manufacturers can't.

90s - 2000s VW TDIs have flat tappets and they don't need zinc stuff

@@rkan2 they need rotella which does have zinc and phosphorous in it. All diesel engines use flat taplet cams and they all need zinc oil

A new cam will require new lifters, you cannot re-use lifters on a new cam because the same thing will happen but to all the lifters this time. If you can't get good quality lifters (I would be surprised at that) then machine tool steel solid lifters.

This is true about modern replacement flat tappet lifters. Let's play devils advocate though, because that still would not explain the piston to wristpin tolerances.

@@mikejohns3104 Maybe particles of material from the damaged lifter and/or cam that found their way in there, is it possible ?

Wow you'd think with hundred plus year old technology like valve lifters, even the Chinese wouldn't be able to get them this wrong!

Use better hardware or ARP bolts

Add zinc to the oil.

Same here. Just had a lifter failure on L-82 engine. Lifters weren't hardened.

@@kennethdavis9987 mine is an L-82 as well! I have new Chevrolet performance lifters on the way, supposedly made in America so I'm hoping better quality metal (better be at the price point). As well as a NOS L-82 cam.

@@thorfalero7838 I used an Isky cam and Johnson lifters. Waited a few months for parts but it should live this time.

I have had this happen to me twice with the same 350, both cam and lifter sets were Comp...won't be doing that again. I have a Howard's cam and lifters now. I've also put together quite a few sbc's and never had an issue before.

@@kennethdavis9987 Woah woah woah wait wait -- THIS, YOU SAID IT: "Lifters weren't hardened." That makes complete and total sense. Hardening costs 💰. Chinese suppliers are notorious for cutting corners almost out of spite. We need to stop buying their trash.

Uncle Tony has had the same problem and had said the same thing. It's all cheap Chinesium..

I've seen multiple videos talking about this. It appears the only way to get guaranteed good lifters is to go with a roller cam.

I had a rebuild for my 1985 Grand Wagoneer. Rebuild was from rhymes with Casper. Coolant leak from day 1. Why not repaired under the 1 year 12,000 mile warranty? Didn't drive enough during that first year to notice. 4 shops later, still leaking! So there it sits, it's only been 12 years!

It's good the lifter failed though, those bearings are not looking good and the rod that's semi seized on the piston pin is just atrocious. This engine probably wouldn't have made it far.

But wrist pins don’t adjust themselves with lifters two completely different issues

Maybe another reason to use a hemi.

I don't know why they're bothering with the rat Jeep engine. They should just get a later magnum block. It would have a roller cam from the factory

That's me. Had my viper motor rebuilt and upgraded. Failed at 635 miles exactly.

Yeah, I was definitely not liking the 'throw him under the bus' tone of this vid. The end of that cam was fuzzy with metal ... that could easily be the reason for the wrist pin. And given the quality of the available parts today (how many times did Hoovie's steering rack fail?) ... definitely not giving this vid a like.

10:44 exactly why he shouldn’t blame the builder, shame on the “wizard” we don’t need the discovery channel drama.

The builder lied and said the engine had been broken in and dyno'd So yes, shame on the builder.

@@21Piloteer it could have been, how many runs on the dyno we dont know. that cam and then the lifer could have failed and probably did when the customer was driving it home or on the way to the wizards shop.

It’s not like he called out the builder by name.

My '82 ran perfect for my 3 years of ownership with all stock emissions. But with age and all the vacuum controlled stuff if it starts degrading you are in for difficult times. When they are right and not hacked or decayed they run perfect in my experience.

8.0:1 compression and that big 3500-8000 RPM intake meant for a huge cam, huge heads, 3000 stall and 4:10 gears ...yikes. Might want to fix that too

@@MaliciousSRT Fuel injection and dual plane manifolds don’t get along all that well, it’s a very well documented issue. And with this being an AMC mill, intake choice is probably not great. It might look goofy, but it’ll run good when it’s done…

I'd go 12 1/2 to 1 to match that tunnel ram intake. 560 lift, 320 duration cam. Might as well get some Edelbrock aluminum heads with titanium valves, heard they work best at altitude, but that's me.

We had an engine go bad (from defective lifters) during the first 5 minutes of break-in on our shop dyno. We had to completely strip the engine down, wash everything, polish the crankshaft, re-assemble with new bearings, gaskets etc, and upgrade to a hydraulic roller cam, with roller lifters that are made in America. In the end, the client received a good engine, but we lost money on that deal.

I thought it was kind of evident if you can't for sure say exactly where, why and how, you have to consider all possibilities. I'm with you on this one.

Yeah going as far as claming SHAME ON the builder and then not having solid proof it is the builders fault... yeah IDK about that one. Im with you here. Throwing shame was a bit over the top for me.

That doesn't explain the seized connecting rod and bad main bearings.

Doesn't explain that wrist pin

They over torque em a lot of times , they probably used small block chevy torque specs and hung the pistons with a torch.

Conveniently left out that tidbit of information. I want to see the next engine running, and if it shits the bed, apologize to the first builder.

I was thinking the same thing. The bore with a hole above it was up front on the left bank. That destroyed lobe was further back on the cam. … wonder what caused the hole above the lifter bore…

Also it's hard to believe that much cam/lifter wear from running the engine a short time. I don't think they put in a new cam with lifters. They're the old ones.

@@bobbamford5207 Yeah, that lifter damage would only occur from running without oil when talking about such short amount of time! Something's not adding up.

The stiff piston wrist pin and the wiped connecting rod bearing surfaces are a 'symptom' of loss of lubrication due to coolant mixing with the oil and lost lubricity. They are a symptom of the soft lifter or cam which caused the push rod to lose its seating and punch a hole in the block for coolant to enter the oil sump. Truthfully this is unfortunate but the explanation the so called wizard made is hyperbolic. The builder may have done everything correct other than using Chinese lifters and camshaft. Yes, hardness checks could have been performed as part of pre build part inspection aka quality control like any Nascar or F1 engine but engine builders generally develop a track record of good faith and rapport with their parts suppliers to prevent this issue. In other words, they build a lot of engines that work just fine with the same parts. This wasn't the engine builder's fault other than relying on a poor parts distributor....or one that got a bad batch after a long track record of good batches. We don't have the full story and the real story is rarely told. The customer could have worked with the original engine builder...I would have...and try to make good or certainly get his money back. The customer overreacted. When you have an engine build you go to a good engine builder with good reputation so when sh!t hits the fan and it can with the best of intentions, the shop will stand behind their work and a rare anomaly because they earned their reputation and why you go to them.

I, too, think that a high rise single plane Victor Jr.-type manifold is completely wrong for this application, unless it's got the cams, valves, flowed heads, headers, and high stall speed turbine to go with it and take it sand duning or mud bogging.

Good advise! Performer intake better for street.

@@petrolbokehlicious Yup, I caught that too. For those unaware, a big single plane intake like that is for racing, IIRC most only work from 3000+ RPM and higher, this thing needs a dual plane, performer or performer rpm, that thing looks like a Victor jr lol

not true i use a vic jr with aftermarket fuel injection and it works better then a dual plane.

Agree, theres more to it than just soft cam/lifter combo and the wrong oil.

The oil issue to the rear mains is an easy fix. And it normally only comes into play at sustained high rpm operation. There are a number of things to do with the oiling system between the pump and the pick-up. One is to eliminate any casting flash and port match the front cover and block. Another thing is to do that ever is needed to ensure proper drainback from the top of the engine. Poor crank and rod oiling is a possibility on any OHV V-8 with hydraulic lifters where the lifters get oiled first. Oil is pumped into he galley and intersects the lifter bores. Oil goes into th ed lifters and up the pushrod before it gets to the passage for the mains. Also I think the oil passage to the mains from the lifter bores intersects the cam bore. The oil passage hits the side of the cam bore. Flow to the cam bearings is restricted by the size of the hole in the cam bearing shell. Also the cam bearings in these engines were line bored ai the same operation as the crank bore. The manufacturers did this so that lifter noise would be held to a minimum. In reality a high volume pump (I'm not sure if a high volume pump is available on the aftermarket front covers) can hurt more than help if there is not enough oil capacity in the pan and oil cannot drain back fast enough. Really any of the oiling issues that can arise in an AMC Genll/lll V-8 can raise their heads in a Buick Big Block. Very similiar set-ups but not the same engines.

Probably not thebest engine to toss a new fuel setup on and figure out how to tune it either. The piston tops are SOOTY on this thing and all of the failures look to be lube related. I think they washed the bearings out getting fuel in the oil. Ive seen it a ton on not so problematic engines when guys toss a new fuel setup on at the same time as a fresh engine. It happens.

Everything you mention is true but the engine shop knew this and should have been paying attention to the oil pump clearance and the other issues.

Seems like he did as he’s not taking the responsibility… did you watch the video?

@@LvLdGhost he's using a replacement block from his own inventory, did you watch the video?

That's certainly an interesting aspect. Easily the kind of knowledge that wasn't really widely understood in its day (just how many mechanics understand exactly how oil works?), and lost to the mists of time in the modern era.

All flat tappet cams require Zinc additive. If roller lifters are available use them if possible.

Valvoline VR1

There are engine oils that still have sufficient zinc

@@MrCarGuy Rotella still does in their t4 & t5 series oils supposedly. It’s a decent price too, not nearly the cost of valvoline racing oil and they make it in lighter flavors 5-30 10-30 etc

The main problem is the lifters from chyna are sh.it💩

Is that a really old vid? I've only followed cw for about a year now but maybe i can find it.

@@stickit2theman1 it's in one of his videos showing mechanic tips.

@@matthewpugrad7013 thanks!

You don't find crate AMC engines

No $$$ for wizard doing it right

Been down that road. Magnum 360 will bot bolt to the 727 trans, so that need to go, so then you need a new transfer case, which means that you need new drive shafts. Not to mention a cobbeled together transmission control system to make it shift up, down, and into and out of OD. The owner had the correct concept (FI the AMC 360), but his execution was faulty. You can buy a lot of gas with the money saved from NOT doing a drive train swap.

I completely agree and have to wonder how long they ran the engine with the bad lifter. I have seen many cams go flat over the years and although they do happen quickly they’re not that hard to find or figure out. I’m not saying the rebuild was top notch but if they ran it until the engine started knocking that’s a red flag.

@10:45 he says he doesn't know why it failed but immediately blamed the builder.

Can't blame the Wizard. The motor was supposed to be broken in and dyno'd. The bearings are scored, the pistons are scuffed, it's got a tight wrist pin, and a catastrophic part failure. It's either extremely cheap parts or the tech didn't use any assembly grease, or who know what. Too many things were wrong. How did the did the builder Dyno and break it in when it wouldn't even idle. Maybe the builder wore it out on the dyno or breaking it in, and the Wizard just caught the tail end of it.

What kind of plane do you fly? I deliver to a local aircraft engine rebuilder here in Nova Scotia. Pretty cool place...

@@Stahodad Beech 23 Musketeer. Built for comfort, not for speed. 😎 The plane in my profile picture is an Arrow. Nice plane. Not mine. 🙁

Problem is if a plane breaks then it’s kinda hard to pull over

Crank can be turned if not undersize or bearings spun

@@hotpuppy1 It can but every single oilway will be full of junk. Of course it can be cleaned but really you’d just start again at this point.

@@ruaraidhmcdonald-walker9524 He already said he was junking the whole engine and using his old bottom end for the rebuild. Heads and timing cover can be cleaned - no need to junk those.

The early roller rockers had a lot of bad needle bearings in them and would get loose and worn out quickly, letting the roller lock up and get sideways eventually, eating the affected cam lobe. They have new revised parts that are beefed up and way better quality so should be ok as long as the engine has the revised parts installed. It also was because they are using variable valve timing and cylinder deactivation to save gas. The early versions don't use vvt but can drop valve seats if they get overheated badly. Love the hemi in my 06 Charger RT, hate the mpg.

Who was it ? Name names its only fair

@@nickmalone3143 It was 25 years ago...I don't remember.

If they are actually checked good and not bent and shit, there should be no issue.

I have horror stories involving Jasper "rebuilt" engines.

@@carmudgeon7478 5 year warranty, and it depends much on the shop that put it in. It runs whisper quiet and gets 21mpg

@@bmwloco so glad to hear your good fortune. But I must disagree. A monkey could punt a slant 6 in and get a quiet 300k out of it. At a dealership on the Colorado western slope, we would get tow-ins with "rebuilt" Jasper engines that had worn out timing chains, old hard main seals leaking, pistons on one bank put in backwards, valve springs with only one lock, etc. Because it was a vacation spot all these poor people were on vacation. Jasper would take 2 weeks to decide to honor the warranty, and about 75% of the time send it to one of the sleazy shops. Sounds like things may have improved, I hope so.

@@carmudgeon7478 And that's why I live in Appalachia. Our mountains were bigger than the Rockies... but time and erosion... and nothing much rusts here either.

@@bmwloco You remember that far back?😲

Oh if I'd just got my car back from a shop after engine work and it started sounding like that I'd be ready to get in a fight lol

Damn. 🪦

@@umad42 I had to wait a day before going back to the shop otherwise I very likely would have. Still gets me worked up just telling the story. Fucker is out of business now, good riddance.

@@shermanikk Hope you sued him good~

@@Flies2FLL I just wanted my damn car, it has a lot of sentimental value to me. He ended up taking a junkyard engine and rebuilding it and put that in for free. Mostly made things right but I really had to force him to agree to do it.

@Rich Rishel plenty of I-6 engines in FSJs. Lets not forget lots more involved with an LS swap and you could also stroke the 4.0 to 4.7 or so and/or ad some sort of fan. Still be easier. LS swaps are also boring, and in a couple of years, outdated. You'll never get neck snapping acceleration out of one of those without spending a mountain of money. Why try? A stock HO 4.0L makes more HP than OEM (181+ vs. 144) and has a torque curve you could eat a family meal on. Lets not forget it also says "Jeep" on the engine.

end of the day, the 4.0L is longer lasting than an LS, much easier to install than the LS and more powerful than the 2B 360 it came with.

@Rich Rishel the people that want a Grand Wagoneer with wood paneling stickers and fresh carpeting in the back aren't taking them to the drag strip. Those that are would probably do a Big Block or some soot monster. I am not talking about the computer making it more work. they both need a computer. That isn't anything. The difference is the 4.0 needs to change 1 motor mount (bolt in junkyard part, no welding) and I think has the same bell housing as the OEM transmission. You've got to change an awful lot to swap in an LS. Motor mounts as mentioned, transmission, transfer case, drive shafts, speedo-output, etc. all that stuff stays with a 4.0L

The old POS I had had a 4.2 swapped in, so probably less than 100hp. I lived in probably the town with the steepest roads in the state at the time. I learned patience from that vehicle, and never got a speeding ticket since. The 4.0L is still significantly more powerful than the OEM engine. The 4.2 was quite a bit weaker than the 360.

He's growing his hair

Tavarish? Didn't he used to make videos back in the day? Hahahahah!

@@davidkroth I mean he is not consistent anymore. He was consistent a long time ago.

@@Lobo_cafetero Ok

I like 'rattle can rebuilds'.

That would be fine if this block didn't have hole in it.

Yea. I agree with you there. This is a worst case scenario for sure.

Gary, that's a serious shame because you just don't see those old CJ's on the road anymore. I hope one day it gets revived and can see some pavement again!

If lifters are such a problem, then why not use high qaulity lifters as they are available but at a higher cost.

@@mikerundall2456 you should watch the Uncle Tony video..it explains everything..

There are a few available sources of zinc rich oil. One is Lucas Oil for hotrods.