What should I tell my installers about GM coolant fill procedures with my rebuilts?
A.If you rebuild model year 2003 GM 4.8L, 5.3L or 6.0L VIN V, T and U truck engines, your customers may be unaware of new GM coolant fill procedures. The following is good information to duplicate and include with a rebuilt engine. Following this procedure will ensure that the engine coolant system has been filled
The Future Of Boring Is Exciting
Boring out cylinders to accept oversized pistons or sleeves has long been a common practice in the engine rebuilding business. Boring allows worn blocks to be salvaged, and stock cylinder bores to be enlarged for more displacement. More recently, boring is also being used to install special cylinder liners with hard surface treatments in high
The Smooth Science of Cylinder Honing
The basics of honing cylinder blocks hasn’t changed much in recent years, but what has changed are the type of abrasives being used by many engine builders. Silicon carbide and aluminum oxide honing stones of various grits have long been used in power honing machines and portable hones to finish cylinder bores. These types
Little Engines, Big Money
For the rebuilding facility familiar with typical automotive or heavy-duty engines, the small displacement, four-cycle, air-cooled engine may seem insignificant. After all, these one-cylinder motors, which may produce just 5 hp, are found in lawn mowers, rototillers and kiddy go karts, for cryin’ out loud! Although the small four-cycle engines from Briggs & Stratton, Tecumseh,
Hot Heads: Valve Bowl Porting…Boost Power And Profits
Valve bowl porting is a smart way for shops to boost power and profits. A few new tools and a little knowledge can score big with performance heads Many shops in the country are getting lots of calls and opportunities to do cylinder head porting work. Many shops are stock rebuild businesses that are afraid
Jobber Rebuilt Small Parts Report
Most rebuilders will tell you that the markethas never been more competitive than it is today. Many will alsotell you that the past 12-18 months have been difficult in termsof maintaining their sales levels of rebuilt units. However, although total units sold may be downindustry wide, according to a recent survey of 1,000 jobbers acrossthe
In Pursuit of Quality: Tom Vecchi, Engine Supply, Inc. incoming PERA president
Tom Vecchi, president of Engine Supply, Inc.,Phoenix, AZ, and incoming president of the Production Engine RemanufacturersAssociation (PERA) hasn’t spent his entire business life in theengine rebuilding market. However, since acquiring Engine Supplyin 1988 with his brother-in-law, Len Joy, who is chairman of theboard, he’s learned enough to know that rebuilding engines isnot an easy way
Washington Way: The Activities Of ACC
Americans have a love/hate relationship withtheir motor vehicles. We love the freedom and mobility the automobilegives us. We love the feel of a good car on the open highway andhow it handles on a challenging stretch of road. And we love thestatement that a car makes about who we are and what we want. On
1998 Market Update – Electrical
The information provided in this article is excerpted from a presentationmade by Doug Barron, Manager of Freedom Battery Design & Application,Delphi Energy & Engine Management Systems. The presentationwas made at last year’s Independent Battery Manufacturers Association(IBMA) Convention in Chicago, IL. Barron’s comments pertain to the future requirements of automotivebatteries. However, they also address the increasing
Machine Shop Market Profile Part II
In Part I of our annual review of the machine shop market, which appeared in our July 1998 issue, we provided average production numbers in 1997 for cylinder heads, engine blocks and crankshafts reported by machine shops. According to our survey respondents, custom engine rebuilders/machine shops averaged 18.29 gas and diesel engines rebuilt monthly during
Machine Shop Market Profile
Interviews conducted with parts and equipmentsuppliers, as well as machine shop owners and custom engine rebuilders,generally point to market demand which has remained flat whenengine production numbers are compared to year earlier figures.Recent survey results of machine shops concerning production year1997 confirm these assumptions. Automotive Rebuilder magazine conducted a surveyof the machine shop membership of
Ideal Supply – “Farming” For Opportunities
As the winner of our fifth annual "MachineShop of the Year" award contest, Ideal Supply Co., Listowel,Ontario, can claim a number of "firsts." It is the firstCanadian recipient of our award and, to our knowledge, it is alsothe first machine shop which has obtained ISO (International StandardsOrganization) 9002 certification. About two hours due east of
“Heading” In The Right Direction: Heads Are A Hot Commodity These Days
Heads are a hot commodity these days, but itdepends on the application. Some heads like those for Chevy 350and Chrysler 2.2L/2.5L engines are always in demand, but pricesare low because of the glut of cores that are available for theseengines. Even so, anybody who’s selling heads these days has tohave them. The hot heads are
Management Efficiency Through Your Computer
Nothing is enhancing the efficiency of businessestoday more than the fast-paced technology present in workplaceseverywhere. Your challenge as a modern leader is to creativelyuse this technology to guide, coordinate, inspire, coach and monitorthe work of your employees. Depending on the size of your company and thenumber and responsibilities of your employees, you may be ableto
Labor and the Law
Grit, grime and grease are just a few of theworkplace unpleasantness with which you contend. Employees areexposed daily to hazardous materials such as solvents, paints,cleaning and restoration products, as well as welding fumes. Protecting your employees’ health and safetyis not only the right thing to do, the law requires it. Your failureto be familiar with
Cost Accounting In The Shop
Do you feel that your shop has the type ofcontrol over costs, expenses and productivity that it needs tosurvive in today’s market? Do you understand how to calculatethe actual cost of each job that you do and the efficiency thateach of your employees achieves on a daily, monthly or annualbasis? Unfortunately, most shop owners do
Cleaning With Jet Spray Washers: Replacing Solvent Cleaning Processes With Aqueous Cleaning.
As more environmental regulations phase outmany chlorinated solvents and ozone depleting chemicals, manyautomotive machine shops and engine rebuilding operations arereplacing their solvent cleaning processes with aqueous cleaning.Some argue that while replacement chemicals have been found, theirtotal safety and part cleaning applicability has not been researchedenough. According to many rebuilders and equipment makers, developmentsin aqueous cleaning
The Nitty Gritty On Small Parts Cleaning: Many Ways To Clean Small Engine Parts
Tom Nichols, CEO and president of AutomotiveMachine & Supply, Inc., Fort Worth, TX, said availabilityis most often the key to why his shop cleans and reuses smallparts. Nichols said each day his shop cleans and reuses many smallparts, including valve locks, shims, springs, retainers, rockerarm assemblies, cam bore caps, nuts, bolts, etc. "Becausewe only
1997 Shop Kinks
Machine shops and custom engine rebuilders are, and always havebeen, a resourceful group. Our industry was founded on the principalof bringing component parts from a condition of disrepair to onethat offers equivalent performance to that of a new part. Rebuilt engines offer cost savings and performance benefits thatcan not be found with any other products,
Valvetrains: Better Materials & Design
Pushrods would seem to be an endangered species these days, atleast as far as most new engine designs are concerned. The onlybrand new engines built in recent years with a pushrod valvetrainhave been Chrysler’s 8.0L V10 for the Viper and Dodge Ram, andGeneral Motors new "LS1" 5.7L small block V8. All therest have either been