So I was pretty hasty when I was taking apart the motor in an 87 T2 and I did a really shitty job of sealing some of the openings on the shortblock while I was cleaning it (mostly the primary injector holes and the exhaust ports). It was a really damn dirty engine, so I'm convinced some brake cleaner and maybe some dirt made its way into the housings. I honestly did not have anything better than duct tape and shop towels to do the job, which didn't really do well. At the very least, the engine rotates smoothly and silently (excusing the decompressing when the rotors reach the exhaust ports).

Is there any harm in just overlooking this? Or is there a way I can clean the engine without damaging it or pulling it apart? Or should I just accept the fact that I'm going to need to pry open the shortblock and get cleaning?

 

I assume this is a rhetorical musing, not a serious question.

Of course you should tear it apart...dirt is never welcome in a mechanical device.
How many people here would cross their fingers and hope for the best...hard to say.

You know what you should do, the question is, will you?
Put more succinctly: Do you feel lucky, punk...do ya?

 

So then hypothetically what would constitute the minimum I'd need to go out and buy to crack it open, clean it, and slap it back together? Are there any parts that are mandatory for me to replace the moment it's open?

 

From what I've found thus far, I need o-rings for the tension bolts, o-rings for the oil seals, the main oil seals front and rear, rtv, vaseline, cleaning solvent, emery cloth, kerosene, assembly lube, housing freeze plugs, crush washers, and assembly gaskets.

Last I checked, I've got everything except the freeze plugs and main oil seals. Am I missing anything?

 

Not everyone replaces the freeze plugs. And what you change inside depends on what you find in terms of wear, how many miles since last rebuild, etc. May require more than the oil seal O-rings.

 

I would just run it. Maybe try to wash out the inside with some mmo or tb cleaner..