03 navigator 5.4 32v tear down and rebuild project

[blue oval guy]

Yeah buddy, that's a job and a half. I hope Ford learned a thing or two with all the chain guide woes they have had over the years. Thanks for sharing please keep us updated.

 

[Andy J]

Alright guys, heres where im at today. I got the oil pan drained and dropped, the pickup off, the oil pump off, and all the pistons removed. The bores in the block are damage free and still have some cross hatch left. The pistons are in great shape, just carboned up a bit, and the oil control rings are pretty stiff when i try to move them. Suprisingly the rod bearings and the crankshaft journals look dang near new. It looks like the oil filter was doing its job. There are very few imperfections in the bearing surfaces and the crank has no visible damage. It looks like it was resurfaced 10k ago. Now heres my dilemma... id like your input. Im entertaining the idea of leaving the crank in the block and rebuilding it from here. Im near the top of my budget and id really like to not have to buy crank bearings and have to have the crank polished. I really dont think theres an issue with the crank bearings, and judging by the rod bearings it would suprise me if there was, but ive been wrong before.

What are your thoughts?

 

[Andy J]

More pics

 

[Andy J]

Here ya go

 

[1955moose]

Those bearings look good, but I'd be leary! Your going to need to buy/ borrow a micrometer, both inside and out, and make sure all clearance are within tolerance. Also do the same on the cylinder bores. Measure them at 3-4 different locations, to check for out of round/taper. This motor looked trashed upon disassembly, hard to believe the bottom end looks that good. You've got a weird rebuild on your hands, some looks trashed, some like new. If it was me, I'd rebuild all, don't try to reuse parts. Use Ford parts if available, top shelf aftermarket if not.

Sent from my N9131 using Tapatalk

 

[JExpedition07]

Very cool thread so far, keep us updated

 

[Andy J]

Sooo the plot thickens. I had to second guess myself just now. When i yanked the pistons, i set them in the bin facing the same way i removed them. Well once i used a razor blade to remove the carbon on the piston tops, it turns out that on one bank the arrows were pointing towards the rear and the other bank had the arrows pointing forward. I was taught that arrows should point forward, but i had to check because my stupid brain couldnt figure out how it ran all these years like this lol.

Im probably going to get a hold of a piston ring cleaning tool. In the past i have used a piece of old ring and over cleaner. The compression grooves are pretty clean but the oil control ring groove is plain nasty. What method to clean the piston grooves and remove the carbon do yall like? Its been a while since ive reused pistons, but at 400 to 500 a set im gonna reuse these lol.

 

[Andy J]

Well, after work today i decided to take the crank out of the block. I figure that im in it this far, why take the chance to get screwed by some bad reused crank bearings. They actually didnt look that bad, but im glad i am replacing them anyway. I also got a chance to take apart the heads. Im pretty picky when i reassemble heads, so everything goes back in exactly the same place. This goes for the rockers and last adjusters and any other part that may have worn into its place to a certain degree. Dont mind my scribblings on the cardboard lol.

All of the parts from the heads are now living safely under plastic, and all will be cleaned and relubed before being installed.

 

[Andy J]

Alright, i finally got all my parts in. The heads are still at the machine shop getting their valve job. There was a burned valve that was cracked pretty good. I used my ball style hone to give the bores a nice cross hatch. I got the main bearings installed, i used the clevite "p" series bearings. They are a bit heavier duty than the "a" series. Something interesting to note is that this engine came with a steel crank. I was expecting to see a cast unit, but i lucked out. These cranks are incredibly strong. I got the crank installed with new main cap bolts from ford. This is my first time using the lucas brand assembly lube and i really like it. Its the consistency of snot and doesnt run like the previous stuff i have used. I got the ring lands and tops of the pistons cleaned off and de-carboned. I used clevite "a" series bearings for the rods. I got the new rings installed on the pistons, used my piston ring compressor, and got them all installed. I got a new melling oil pump and pickup and installed those. When the engine was upside down, i poured some assembly lube and some 5w30 down the oil pickup and slowly rotated the crank to help prime the oil pump. Itll help to build oil pressure alot faster on initial startup. I cleaned off the rear main seal holder and installed a new rear main seal and installed the retainer plate. I installed the oil pan with the permadry oil pan gasket. The crank spins very nicely and doesnt have any more resistance then it should. I stopped for the day. I spent about 5 hours on it today, as it took me about an hour and a half just to clean the ring lands.

Its comin along.

 

[Andy J]

Pics

 

[Andy J]

More

 

[Andy J]

1 more

 

[Ed_Strong]

That's really cool! Very impressive, thank you for doing this.
I wish you had taken video of the process aswell

 

[Andy J]

I will.probably make one when i set the timing, but i will definitely make one of the initial fire up, and it wont be one of those that you see where you know its been fired up previously, if something goes wrong itll be on tape lol.

 

[1955moose]

Andy, I know you probably already know but don't use any synthetic oils the first 4,000 miles. Their too slippery, and won't allow your new piston rings to seat into cylinder walls. Also it's just my opinion but the first oil you put in should be a race oil that has zinc in it. The zinc additives that they sell to add to conventional oil, are hit and miss. Race oil is a little pricey, but it works well to save wear on camshafts on startup. Your reusing your old camshafts, so the 2,000 rpm 20 minute break in on startup shouldn't be necessary. Also be sure to fill your oil filter about half way before installing. Will help with oil pressure upon startup. Your doing everything right, keep us posted.

Sent from my N9131 using Tapatalk

 

[johnboneske]

Very nice writeup! Having a steel crank is better than a cast one all day. Will be nice to see how much more HP and torque it has after you get it done. I bet it will feel a lot better!

 

[Andy J]

When i do an engine break in i would usually use castrol or valvoline non detergent 30 weight oil. You are right about ensuring a high zinc content, i will most likely order some redline or royal purple for the initial break in. Unfortunately on this engine, the oil filter adapter has the filter sitting pretty much on its side so pre filling it will make a huge mess. I have a semi strange way of priming the oil system on these engines but its worked very well. Ill share details and pictures of how i do it. I was going to drop the block into the truck today but one of the motor mounts was wrong when i opened the box. They sent me 2 of the drivers side mounts. I have one on order and ill pick it up tomorrkw afternoon. I will hopefully get the heads back tomorrow so i can start reassembly. Im very excited to see how much better it runs after this rebuild, but i know i have to baby it for the first 500 miles. I think im going to treat the navigator to a k&n fuel injection performance kit and a custom 3 inch cat back once its done. Id love to find a bigger throttle body maybe from a 32v cobra or mach 1 but im having trouble finding one that has the throttle linkage and tps on the right side. Id also like to run a throttle body spacer. I know they dont really do anything, i just like the hiss lol.

 

[Andy J]

The original motor mounts were absolutely trashed so im installing 2 new ones. My buddy at the parts store described them as looking like a little army tank when i was on the phone ordering them and you know what.. hes right lol.

 

[BlueStangGT]

The high zinc break in oil isn’t nearly as critical for these roller type motors as compared to flat tappet stuff. If you’re really concerned about it you can get some from Joe Gibbs Racing, Brad Penn, and probably several other high end brands. When I did my Mustang motor Rotella still had an off the shelf version with high zinc content however it’s been a few years so I don’t know whether or not it’s still available.

This is a great project, thanks for documenting and posting it up here!

 

[1955moose]

Blue stang's right, I forgot you have roller, and not flat tappet cams. On top of that, your reusing old parts! Just stay away from synthetics the first 3-5 k till rings seat in completely. Older Diesel oils were high in zinc, but getting tough to find now.

Sent from my N9131 using Tapatalk