my book says i must have engine out of my 87 sammy to get the crank out. is this an irifutable fact or what? has any one out there got a trick up their sleeve? i am not lazy just scared to take off parts that might lead to more drainage of my offshore account.   i had tested my compression and all 4 cylinders fell into the 150- 160 range dry, i did not retest with oil as it slipped my mind but i thought that was reasonably good, so i had hoped to pull the crank get it fixed up and put it back in all new bearings and thrust washers and a driving i could go....... what do you think?

how exactly are you going to pull the crank with the flywheel attached to it still??  

I guess you never thought of that!

anything i have worked on in the past can be seperated from the flywheel under the vehicle, if this cannot be done then so be it i was just askin!

how exactly are you going to pull the crank with the flywheel attached to it still??  

I guess you never thought of that!

As easy as it is to pull a Zuk motor,
I wouldn't try to part the crank from
the engine while it's installed, it's just
going to take longer, and you will probably
get oil leaks and all sorts of nasty things,
that and the rear main is a one piece seal
as well as the part that it slips into.

took me 2 hours to completely take my motor out and dissasemble it, and 3 hours to put it all back together and put it back in...  not that big of a job, just make sure you do it good!, its always a bummer having a rebuilt motor with an oil leak or somethin... on the other hand in my lj80 I was dumb and left the motor in while i worked on it..

thanks guys is there a certain rebuild kit that is better than others?

Your compression is good, I say drop
the crank, leave the head on and pistons
in, get the crank turned 10 under, get
main and rod bearings and reinstall, you
could put in a new oil pump while you are
in that far, and replace the timing belt,
should be good to go after that

Get help if you are not familiar with doing
this kind of work, the book is good, but
you want the rods and mains torqued right
and the pan sealed up good for no leaks.

As far as parts, grey Permatex (sp) silicone
instead of an oil pan gasket, rod bearings,
main bearings, front and rear main seals,
oil pump (optional but a good idea) and a
timing belt, get good quality name brand
parts, don't skimp on critical parts.

Wild

thanks for the constructive input wild, i had pretty much decided to go that route but i hadnt considered the pump or belt but i will now and a good look at the clutch pressure plate and throw out bearing too. i had heard from a friend that with aluminum engines exact torque is imperative so i had that in my head already. hopefully i can get this back together for under five hundred. just for mains and rod bearings my quote was 140.00 i really wasnt sure what my compression should be at. i really apreciate the help. dave

Your compression is good, I say drop
the crank, leave the head on and pistons
in, get the crank turned 10 under, get
main and rod bearings and reinstall, you
could put in a new oil pump while you are
in that far, and replace the timing belt,
should be good to go after that

Get help if you are not familiar with doing
this kind of work, the book is good, but
you want the rods and mains torqued right
and the pan sealed up good for no leaks.

As far as parts, grey Permatex (sp) silicone
instead of an oil pan gasket, rod bearings,
main bearings, front and rear main seals,
oil pump (optional but a good idea) and a
timing belt, get good quality name brand
parts, don't skimp on critical parts.

Wild

Compression over 120 is fine,
150-160 is great, thats's one
reason I said just do bearings.

I forgot to mention the throw out
bearing, I have an auto trans, so
I don't really think about it, but do
change the TO bearing, would suck
to have to pull the motor in 6 months
when it was just apart and could have
been done then

will pull it out next days off and take crank in for polishing or turning wichever it needs then ill know about the rest. is there a way to test an oil pump or do you say unload it due to filings running through it?

It's good insurance, but at your
low milage it should be fine, I blew
a turbo in Moab last year from a
worn oil pump, best check is the pressure
at warm idle, should be steady at about 30
PSI, but steady is the thing you are looking for
actual PSI will vary with weight of oil, if it's
low like 10-15 at idle, I would be worried

Oil pump is about $120 and should come
with a gasket for between the pump and
the block, it needs to be trimed at the mateing
surface between the block and oil pan, bolt the
pump on and then trim with a sharp single edge
razor blade

pulled motor and redid bottom end turned crank ten on the mains and 30 on the rods $158.00 cdn would have liked to change at least the rod that had the spun bearing but money and time not permitting. new bearings $140 cdn, oil pump$ 160 cdn, seals$ 80 cdn, thro out bearing$ 50 cdn. runs pretty good but i still have carb kit to go then some body work, then a lift then some tires hahaha........... it just dont end. i see a neighbour down the road has five samurais that i can see from the road but his yard is locked up and hes never home, so i think ill leave him a note begging for some parts. thanks a gain to everyone who gave me good advice. dave