To rebuild or not to rebuild...advice!

[Buford]

I have a 71 2500 GMC Custom Camper. This truck was originally bought by my grandfater and passed down to me a couple years ago. I still have all the paper work (even original window sticker). The engine was rebuilt 46,000 miles ago and runs very strong, but.......that was in 1977! My problem is that although it runs good and the vitals are great, 33 years has not been so kind on the seals and it leaks all over my driveway. I was thinking of pulling the motor and just replacing the seals and gaskets but I'm not sure if I should just rebuild it while it's out. I'm waying the pros and cons. My biggest con is that you don't really know what your getting in a rebuild until it's broken in. I've had piles of crap (snapped crank after 16,000) and great motors. The current motor just sings down the road, and always has. I hate messing with something that works. What do you guys thing?

Thanks!

[RustyParts]

I've always believed "If it ain't broke don't fix it". By the way, nice truck.

[big blue 72]

seals and gaskets are cheap. Go for it!

[big_al_71]

I would fix anything and everything that needs attention...

[cdowns]

i'd just get a bag of speedy dri and clean the driveway every couple of months

[oldblue1968chevy]

id pull it and clean the engine bay up (degrease paint) and put seals in the motor, its just gonna cost you time..

[epashhans]

It's pretty easy for things to get carried away. The whole "well, I'm this far, I might as well..." comes into play and pretty soon you have entered a whole new world. If you can stay true to your initial goal of fixing leaks and thats it, go for it. I've seen more weekend jobs turn into a full blown 5 year resto than you could shake a stick at. I'm guilty of the temptation myself! But very happy in the end too.

[1949gmc]

What exactly is it leaking? Just engine oil or is it putting some other stuff down, too? I'd say just pull the pan down and change the gaskets and seals if it's just engine oil. What kind of tools do you have? Engine puller? You'll obviously need one if you pull the engine. Harmonic balancer puller? You'll need this to change the front seal. Torque wrench? You'll need one of these to change the rear seal.

All in all, I'd say don't pull it if you don't have to. If it runs great already, do as little as you have to to make it stop leaking. No real need for a rebuild if it has so few miles on it.

The last thing you want to do is to rip it all apart, then have it sit for who knows how long, until you've gotten to the point where you're looking at the piles of parts thinking "What the hell did I get myself into?" How many of us have been there? Huh? Huh? Let's see those hands. I thought so. You've got a great looking truck... you should be enjoying it, not looking at pieces of it scattered all over. Just my two cents.

[Jacfourteen]

Change the bare minimum to get the leaks stopped if it is running good. you probably don't need to pull the engine, just drop the pan.

[JDL]

You should be able to fix all leaks with out pouling the engin. Except the rear main seal and the oil pan gasket. the oil pan can be done in the truck you just have to lift it up.

[Buford]

I'll probably pull the engine that just put new gaskets on it. This is not my first engine so I have all the right tools to do the job. Plus, I have to get her back running to put the camper on and do a little camping. Anyway, thanks for the feedback!

Cheers!

[tim21391]

in my opinion... if the motor is already out of the truck why not rebuild it?? you can find cheap rebuild kits on summit.. and since its out you can go ahead and run the parts through a parts cleaner to remove carbon build up on pistons and such an i bet it will fire a lot better.. like dip the heads and such..

[beebster]

leave it alone and just drive the heck out of it.
my .02

[FLEET72]

Do a compression check / perhaps a leak-down test. That should give you a more definitive answer on whether to rebuild or not.

[Buford]

I'm going to leave it be. Just add oil as needed. I did a compression test today and they were as follows:
1- 141 2- 141
3- 141 4- 142
5- 138 6- 130
7- 142 8- 141

The number 6 cyclinder is about 8% of the high of 142. I figure that's pretty good. Thanks all!