How long did you wait for your motor to be built

holiks03cobra

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It’s been a little over 3 months since I dropped everything off at the machine shop. The last time I talked to the guy at the shop he said he’d get me a timeline of when he would get to me and that was a little over a month ago. Just curious of how long people have waited for a motor build
 

V6&V8SHO

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Miss when tousley had those reman 03-04 cobra longblocks. Stuff just isn’t as available for these cars like they once were.
 

efnfast

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When I've had engines built it's taken anywhere from 4 to 11 months, but that was pre-COVID when parts were easily available. (as compared to 2-3 weeks when buying a GMPP or FRPP crate engine .. they ship fast, lol).
 

01yellercobra

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My son's engine sat at the shop for 2 months without them so much as cleaning it. He ended up picking it up and bringing it back home. Some shops are fast, others not so much. The lack of parts isn't helping either.
 

03' White Snake

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Machine shop had my short block for 6 months. Sat there for 4 months before they did anything to it. I even dropped off all the parts to them with the block. Brand new crank, rods, pistons, all the ARP hardware. They literally were machining the block and assembling the short block and took 6 months. Be patient, especially with the part shortages going on after Covid.
 

LuuisHernandez

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Had my motor built last year. Dropped it off in May and picked up in January


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holiks03cobra

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Had a reman long block, didn’t like the boost I was pushing. Lifted a head.
Had a motor built in 2016, it blew up last year.
I took the shop almost everything they need. They’ll need to order a piston or pistons depending on the final bore size and bearings.
 

V6&V8SHO

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Had a reman long block, didn’t like the boost I was pushing. Lifted a head.
Had a motor built in 2016, it blew up last year.
I took the shop almost everything they need. They’ll need to order a piston or pistons depending on the final bore size and bearings.
Yep I finally took my reman longblock out years later. It took a bunch of beatings and multiple years at 22 psi with relentless wot pulls. I’m not even mad.
 

badcobra

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It's 6-12 months basically anywhere, unless you know the owner of the shop and get moved up in line. Want to speed the process up? Here is what you should do.

  • Have as many parts for your build there when you drop your engine off. Have the block, rods, head studs, main studs, bearings, gaskets oil pump, pickup, pan etc all there.
  • Have the heads gone through and ready to bolt on.
  • If they are assembling everything, have the chains and other related timing components there also.
  • Bring the crank to a local crank shop and have it fluxed, checked for straightness and journals polished so it's ready to drop in when you drop it off.
  • Discuss with the builder that you would like the block checked immediately so you can discuss what the bore size will end up at so you can order pistons. YOU order the pistons, not the builder. Eliminate a delay.
Bottom line, building an engine is a grind. It grinds on the person waiting and it grinds on your wallet. When you are at someone else's mercy, it makes everything worse. If you plan ahead and have a real solid plan, it will make the process go better.
 

BlckBox04

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I can only imagine how long it's going to take to get my LS built
 

03 Cobra DSG

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I just had a motor built, it took under 4 months and that was with having the heads ported. I do think timing was on my side though.


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94slowbra1

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I just got called that mine is ready to pick up, I dropped off in the beginning of May. I dropped literally every part except for valve guides, builder suggested new guides. It took an extra month due to his parts cleaner being down. We spoke once a week just to get filled in. This was clutch for me as I knew exactly what was going on weekly. This guy's basically a one man show doing everything himself. Does all the machining for a big name speed shop in the area that specializes in mod motor builds.
He knew the 4.6 in and out to the point I just said build it and send me the bill. When he called with the final bill I'll be honest, it was much lower than I expected. I have no idea what other shops charge but I think it was more than fair and this included degreeing my custom cams.
Communication is key
 

03 Cobra DSG

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I just got called that mine is ready to pick up, I dropped off in the beginning of May. I dropped literally every part except for valve guides, builder suggested new guides. It took an extra month due to his parts cleaner being down. We spoke once a week just to get filled in. This was clutch for me as I knew exactly what was going on weekly. This guy's basically a one man show doing everything himself. Does all the machining for a big name speed shop in the area that specializes in mod motor builds.
He knew the 4.6 in and out to the point I just said build it and send me the bill. When he called with the final bill I'll be honest, it was much lower than I expected. I have no idea what other shops charge but I think it was more than fair and this included degreeing my custom cams.
Communication is key

Where did you get yours built? Sounds just like my experience.


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94slowbra1

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I called him and he said that he wouldn't do it due to me providing all parts. He was very cool about it but said he didn't want to put his name on something that he may not necessarily recommend part wise. He did talk to me for about 30 mins and gave some suggestions on parts and where to bring it.
Russell built a fellow members motor on here that has been running well for a while and sees alot of boost so I was confident going with him.
 

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