4.2L I6 Head Removal/Engine Restoration

[OctaneRider03]

Did your buddy ever get his money that I owed him?

He sure did! To my understanding he laughed pretty hard upon opening it? What'd you put inside??

 

[Voymom]

He sure did! To my understanding he laughed pretty hard upon opening it? What'd you put inside??

Oh....about 550 pennies with a dime thrown in the mix lol. I sent him a lovely letter telling him that I wanted the dime back, because with 6 kids...every dime counts

We paid up....but no one said how lmao

Glad he got a good laugh out of it!

 

[TBGal]

Mmmm.. Damn I love the taste of Jim Beam.

Hello everyone, I'm here. If you have any questions, I'm right here to answer them! Ask me here or PM me! -Octane

Ha! Once you've had Rock Hill Farms, you can never go back down to Jim Beam.

Only question I've got is about your taste in beverage, sir.

 

[OctaneRider03]

So. The engine has been running superb, no issues what-so-ever, I'm pretty stoked about that!

However... I dropped third gear yesterday. I should have seen the signs a long time ago, but I never wanted to face the music until now... Ah, screw it. I rebuilt the motor, I guess the transmission was next in line

Good times good times here in North Carolina!

The engine's running! That's all I care about, hah! -Octane

 

[OctaneRider03]

View attachment 23232

Here she is.. Sitting out front of AAMCO.. A LOT of work to get done after the tranny rebuild. -Octane

 

[Pittdawg]

View attachment 9750

Here she is.. Sitting out front of AAMCO.. A LOT of work to get done after the tranny rebuild. -Octane

Are you rebuilding with stronger performance/aftermarket parts?

 

[OctaneRider03]

View attachment 23233

Question to you guys, you see that bow-tie? See how it's been scratched to hell? Can I replace that piece alone or do I no crap have to get a whole new steering wheel.... It's driving me crazy..

 

[OctaneRider03]

Are you rebuilding with stronger performance/aftermarket parts?

Not yet. I'm focusing on keeping everything stock for the moment. I won't start looking into internal reinforcement until we kick off "Project Solace" next year. -Octane

 

[McGMT]

View attachment 9751

Question to you guys, you see that bow-tie? See how it's been scratched to hell? Can I replace that piece alone or do I no crap have to get a whole new steering wheel.... It's driving me crazy..

You might be able to stick a new one in there, but if you cannot find just that alone it is part of the airbag assembly...

 

[OctaneRider03]

You might be able to stick a new one in there, but if you cannot find just that alone it is part of the airbag assembly...

Great... Maybe I'm better off just letting my friend repaint over it..

 

[Sparky]

I'd just put a nice new shiny decal over it myself.

 

[OctaneRider03]

Haha! Maybe I should do that!

Here's my video update for you guys, pretty much saying how things are going and showing you how it's been acting since the rebuild! -Octane

[video=youtube_share;U1H7llgg3ro]http://youtu.be/U1H7llgg3ro[/video]

 

[fletch09]

View attachment 9751

Question to you guys, you see that bow-tie? See how it's been scratched to hell? Can I replace that piece alone or do I no crap have to get a whole new steering wheel.... It's driving me crazy..

try contacting High Voltage.
he made me some white and some red vinyl bowties to fit over mine.
i would think he still has the measurements

 

[OctaneRider03]

You know it's funny.. People say that AAMCO doesn't do good work on transmissions. Yet, I saw an Envoy AND Trailblazer loaded on the lifts out back of their shop.

AAMCO is most certainly the way to go when you either don't have the assets to do it yourself or just can't do the rebuild yourself period.

I would recommend them to anyone, and in a few days, I'll prove that. -Octane

 

[TBGal]

Good luck on your new project. I look forward to hearing your updates.

You may need this, though...
Rock Hill Farms



Seriously, it is outstanding good bourbon.

 

[mid30]

Great Thread, like reading a good book. found it at work this afternoon, didn't have time to read it all, came home to finish. Wife was wondering why I was so quiet and my nose stuck to the screen.

 

[OctaneRider03]

Thanks man, I owe to the members here at GMTN! Couldn't have done it without them!

If you've got any questions feel free to ask! -Octane

 

[OctaneRider03]

Here we are, transmission's been rebuilt and so far, everything's power filled! There's one issue though... My engine temp sensor is now officially going haywire.. The meter reads steady, at dead center, then drops to the far left and bounces back depending on if I'm at an idle or not. Good times.

Also, there's this...

View attachment 23370

Stupid BCM.. Stupid ABS... I anticipated a few things going wrong after I did the rebuild but DAMN! Haha! Back to work we go! -Octane

 

[OctaneRider03]

Somebody mind elaborating with me a bit? I mean seriously, what the hell is "dash integration"? -Octane

 

[jimmyjam]

AAMCO is most certainly the way to go when you either don't have the assets to do it yourself or just can't do the rebuild yourself period.

I would recommend them to anyone, and in a few days, I'll prove that. -Octane

It all depends on who works there. I got my ss trans built at an aamco, and that was my 3rd 4lx0 I took there . Their builder races circle track cars for years he's a sharp guy. I've been beating the dog piss out of my trans since I got it, no probs

 

[OctaneRider03]

Yep, agreed. Mine's been amazing sinc having it back. Stellar dude!

 

[jimmyjam]

In five weeks ill show you what I'm taking about

 

[OctaneRider03]

Bro, if I can finish up the small b/s dealing with all these sensors going nuts I'll hold you too that..

 

[meerschm]

just a guess, but you might have a ground or connector loose someplace. (since lots of stuff seems to be whining and you did have quite a bit disconnected)

 

[OctaneRider03]

I have a huge feeling I know which grounding wire it is too.....

Back when we were doing the reinstall I had a grounding wire on the driver side get pinched off, we had to cut our own wire to replace it in the meantime.

I'm relentless.

Every problem has an answer. I won't stop until the truck's done giving me small minor little issues. I've done everything either myself, or professionally at different shops. This should be an easy fix. -Octane

 

[OctaneRider03]

On the flip side, it drives smooth and like a bat out of hell.

 

[OctaneRider03]

All issues have been resolved at this time. It's amazing how a cheap little sensor can do wonders... So far, no check engine or temp gage drop..

Right now I'm just trying to make sure she's road worthy. If I'm going to Florida, she'll need to be ready.

 

[Sparky]

How bad was it to get to that sensor? Sorry if I missed it but where did the coolant temp sensor end up going since it wasn't behind the alternator like normal?

 

[OctaneRider03]

I had to take the tire back off (front passenger side) and it was towards the back close to the firewall, on the block. It's really close to the exhaust, it was like an Egyptian mind-f#@! to get to.

 

[OctaneRider03]

L Lloydll

 

[OctaneRider03]

Ah! My phone dumb-text that by accident! Sorry about that guys!

Anyway, here you go! -Octane

View attachment 23403

She's road worthy again...

 

[OctaneRider03]

We decided to keep the original colors, and respray everything... Pictures to come in time, right now we're prepping. The initial plan of attack was to spray metallic black, but we didn't want to go through the whole door-jam shpeal, so metallic green and gold it remains. Why am I doing this you might ask? Because my clear coat started to peel near my hood. If you know anything about clear coat peeling, once it starts, you can't stop it. Stay motivated! -Update

 

[OctaneRider03]

Okay guys! I hate to bring this article back from the dead, but we've got a problem. Upon pulling it out of the garage to continue on with the respray, I've noticed a bit of tapping coming from within the valve cover. Yep, you guessed it, the timing chain.

We took it for a spin around the block and noticed that with the higher RPM's the tapping would speed up (due to the chain's evolution all the way around of course). Once we got up to around 65 to 70 MPH, the tapping was gone completely. However, once I pulled up to a stop light, it slowly but surely would creep back up. I haven't driven it in weeks due to the spray job going underway, so I'm not sure what could have happened.

I took the oil cap off the top of the valve cover and recorded the movement I saw inside. If you guys are here, let me know you're with me right now. Then I'll post the video and you can give me your take.

Let's go Nation, yours truly is calling on you once more. -Octane

 

[OctaneRider03]

[video=youtube_share;aMee4qwCJyE]http://youtu.be/aMee4qwCJyE[/video]

Way to bring on the New Year!! Everything engine and transmittion wise has been running beautifully until now! Let me know what you guys think it is before I take the valve cover back off! -Octane

 

[Sparky]

Not doing it tonight but I'll try to remember to take a look at mine through the fill cap. Sounds to me like maybe the guide and/or tensioner came loose? The chain sounds a bit sloppy to me. Just a guess as I don't really have much experience with that kind of thing.

 

[Fire06]

I agree not sure what it was but there is a rubbing , chain loose kind of sound with a knock in there for good measure, just to mess with you.
Read about you and the temp sensor. Wasn't that fun. Who in the hell would design a engine with a part that will need to be replaced and then put it in the least accessible spot they can. I gave up when doing mine once I found it's location and took it to the mech. so he could have fun. He ended up disconnecting the coolant hose that runs through the area to get enough room to do the job.

 

[Mooseman]

I can't look into my filler since I have an X right in the middle and can't see anything really. Mine does make a bit of a rattle, especially when cold but nothing like that ticking noise. Maybe the mounting bolt for the cam gear or a lifter/rocker? I'm afraid the only way to find out will be to pull the cover

 

[Sparky]

Same here! Mine has the same plasic "X" in there. Why does Octane's not?

 

[jimmyjam]

i'm going to assume that is just there as a last resort to catch something that falls in. lee got his head rebuilt so i figure someone removed it before it got hot tanked

 

[OctaneRider03]

Right on the money, Jimmy!