New Motor Shopping - 1998 4.6L "W"

[wgwexpedition]

Hello all. Bought a 1998 XLT with the 4.6L "W" motor a few weeks ago. Well, it appears that the head gasket gave up the good fight and started spraying coolant all over my starter. I was hoping it would be a heater hose or the intake drizzle, but after crawling under it yesterday with it running, it is actually misting coolant between the block and head right above the starter.

I'm not interested in a used motor or replacing the head gasket. The truck has almost 180,000 miles and I just can't see investing the time and money into a motor with that many miles. So, my search starts. I was hoping to get some comments about the following rebuilt motors and their re-builders:

Oreilly Auto Parts has a PowerTorque - $2679 w/timing cover and oil pan installed, 3 year unlimited mileage warranty.

Advance Auto Parts has a Spartan/ATK - $2679 w/timing cover and oil pan installed, 3 year warranty.

Autozone has a Surefire - $2664 w/timing cover and oil pan installed, 3 year warranty.

Autozone also has a Marshall - $2799 (doesn't specify timing cover or oil pan), 3 year warranty.

PowerSource - $2199 w/timing cover and oil pan installed, 3 year unlimited mileage warranty.



I'll do the swap myself and save some labor charges. I've done a few, even a complete rebuild, have the tools, space, and time so that doesn't concern me. Oh, yeah, not looking for super performance, stock is fine with me.

In anyone has any comments about the above engines (or other recommendations), I'd love to hear about your experiences.


Thanks,

WGW

 

[stamp11127]

Auto parts stores are middle men. Nothing wrong with them but most can only tell you what the computer says. Recommend comparison shopping with an engine builder. I googled "ford 4.6 crate engine" and found a few links, one of which is below.

4.6 Liter Ford 2 Valve Engine | Remanufactured Engines | Accurate Engines

I have no knowledge of this company - just posted it for the information they provide on their pages. One thing to note is the manufacturers of the parts used. All are well know in the industry. Also compare a Ford crate engine from the dealer.

One thing I would be curious in knowing is how "tight" of a motor they build - what clearance specs were used.

Which ever way you go, remember to change the torque converter/input shaft seal when you put it back together.