[black sheep]

as the title says, i took my engine out in prospecs of replaceing the 4afe with a jdm 4age cuz i thought i really tore up my engine (it was making a loud clanking sound). well, i got motor out and on a stand, took my oil pan off and come to find out all my connecting rods are still there but there is a lot of play at the bearings where they connect to the crank shaft. my Question to yall of the wonderful group is:

1. do i have to take the whole motor apart to replace the bearings?
2. is it worth replacing the bearings?
3. should i save up the money and get the jdm 4age?

p.s. this is in my 91 geo prizm hatchback(kinda rare from my findings) so i really dont want to scrap the car out

 

[C.Stewart]

how many miles on the motor? You could replace the rod bearings without removing the rods ( might be kinda difficult though). And are you sure the clanking sound was coming from the motor? If there is a lot of play between bearings, the crank could be out of round to, so that means that would need machining. A full engine rebuild kit for these engines are under $500. You would need to take a lot of measurements to determine what needs to be replaced and machined. Do you have experience in any of this?

 

[blb]

If the bearings spun, then the bearings were starved for oil and the crankshaft is most likely damaged and will need to be turned, and then oversized bearings will need to be installed, or the crankshaft will need to replaced using standard bearings. Pull the caps, measure, and compare to factory specifications to know what you need to do next.

 

[freakinbox]

You might be looking at replacing the crank, or at least getting it machined. I am in a similar situation with my Ranger currently.. spun a camshaft bearing. I ended up picking up a motor off someone for $200 that needs a lot less work than mine.

I would just stick with doing a swap on it rather than sinking the money into your 4afe since the 4age is what you actually want.

 

[Prizdog]

4AGE!!

PS:
I have a Prizm too. There are awesome and quirky weird little cars!