Its nice to have a spare motor, that you can rebuild at your leasure.

Or like in my case, where my motor was a 13B to start with, not a 13BT.

 

i dunno where the hell u get ur info but all u gotta chnge between series is intake manifolds,injectors,n front covers.thats it.why would u wanna put back that nasty 88 turbo if u get a nice one on ur 91 motor.

 

how do i test compression with the engine out of the car and the transmission still in the car?

Also, I'm asking again, what should i check to be somewhat secure that the engine will work in the car?
(check inside oil pan...., check apex seals through exhaust ports....)

I need to know because i start work on the thing friday morning.

 

c'mon guys

 

I'd check the apex seals through the exhaust ports, then just turn it by hand and make sure all the 'tough to turn' (making compression) spots occur evenly throughout the rotation.

 

You really don't need a transmission...it's the starter motor that turns the engine, which only mounts to the transmission housing. You'll need to figure a way to mount the starter by itself to the engine so it can engage the flywheel thus "turning the engine over". Using a good battery and jumper cables attached to the starter oughta do the trick, but as you can tell, it's gonna be a hassle. This is why I don't trust sellers who speak of compression and miles when the engine stands alone. I bet 9 out of 10 used engine sellers do not actually check all there engines. I'm not saying that these motors are no good, in fact I have had very good results with these used motors from Japan. I just know it's not easy to check for compression with the engine out.

Even still, many of them have sat for long periods eventually causing deposits to stick the apex seals causing inadequete seal for a good compression. This is one of the reasons ATF is used...to breakdown the carbon deposits and free the sticky apex seals. So even though the compression is low it can be just a stuck apex seal that needs a little lube and spun around a few times more...

Sensei

 

thank you sensai

 

the best way to do the compression test with the engine out is to remove the bellhousing from the trans which i believe is 6 bolts and bolt it up to the engine with the starter bolted to the bellhousing. connect battery voltage to starter and hook up compression tester to engine and there you go