Selecting the correct mechanic is without doubt one of the most daunting elements of automotive possession. Get it mistaken, and you may be out 1000’s of {dollars} because of shoddy repairs. That is probably what occurred to the proprietor of this WRX engine.
Eric from the I Do Vehicles YouTube channel not too long ago obtained his fingers on this FA20DIT turbocharged boxer-four from a 2016 Subaru WRX, with plans to dismantle it for elements and scrap metallic. Whereas the engine seems superb on the surface, draining the oil reveals an abundance of metallic shavings—not signal.
As Eric makes his manner by way of the motor, there’s extra metallic shavings to be discovered, together with within the heads and within the timing chain space. Scoring on the camshafts means metallic entered the oiling system and unfold all through the engine, scraping alongside delicate transferring elements and inflicting critical harm.
After eradicating the heads Eric discovers this engine had been aside earlier than, mentioning a lazy head resurfacing job. He additionally finds the turbocharger is an aftermarket unit. Pulling off the oil pan reveals much more metallic shavings, plus an enormous piece of piston ring.
However weirdly, it appears this ring chunk did not come from any of the cylinders. As Eric factors out, all the pistons nonetheless had their rings intact, that means this piece should’ve already been within the engine when it went again collectively throughout a earlier restore. It is probably this piece merely wasn’t cleaned out earlier than the engine was reassembled. Yikes.
Because the pistons are faraway from the crankshaft, the primary offender of the harm, a spun rod bearing, is revealed. The bearing is usually disintegrated, and certain triggered the engine to make a horrific knocking sound (if it was nonetheless working, that’s).
Take this video as a warning. Do your analysis earlier than you convey your automotive to a mechanic. You do not wish to find yourself just like the proprietor of this engine did.