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motor tests while still in car

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red79

Freshman Member
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Hey all, I'm going to pull the motor from my '63 in the near future as part of the stripping down process. Before I do though, I figure I should take advantage of the opportunity to do some quick checks that would be impossible when it's on a tire or stand.

All I know about the condition of the motor is that it's a 1098 with 45k on the clock, and that it ran when I drove the car from the tow dolly into my garage.

Besides compression, is there anything I should check while it's still bolted to the trans, starter, and car?
 
1. Cranks and runs smoothly
2. Operates for 20 min check for oil leaks, water leaks, overheating, oil pressure readings, voltage checks
3. Crank and restart during 20 minutes shake down
4. Put fuel stablizer in fuel supply

When done, I would let the car run out of fuel (cut off supply) to keep old fuel out of carbs will car sits, and drain oil out of crankcase while still hot
 
Thanks for the tips. I already pulled the tank and dash, but I'll rig something up so I can run it again.

On that note, whenever people talk about setting lash on this site, it's always on a cold engine. Is there something that prevents you from setting the lash with the engine hot, while it's running, with the valve cover off? That's how I always do it on my old American solid lifter engines.

Thanks,
Matt
 
Nope, I always do my solid lifter lashes with the engine running. I use feeler gauges same as with the engine off, just that way you don't have to deal with turning the engine over by hand or by rolling the car. Was just wondering if there's something about A engines that prevent them from running with the cover off.
 
I'm not much of a mechanic, but I can't imagine trying to set the valve clearence while the engine is running. I have a hard enough time doing it when the engine is cold and sitting still. It must be like doing open heart surgery while the heart is still beating! Lubdub, lubdub, lubdub, lubdub, woops...
Rut
 
On the V8 the adjustment nut is at the pivot of the rocker (right?), so it's not moving when the engine is running. On the A it's at the end of the rocker making it a bit hard to adjust as it keeps bouncing up and down.
 
Haha it does take a little getting used to the first time, but it's not so bad really, you just need to use a loose grip on the wrench as it's jumping around. The adjusters (on my mopars at least) are on the pushrod side of the rocker like the A engine. I like the beating heart analogy, now I feel like a car surgeon :thumbsup:
 
I have adjusted on running motors before (American) but was unable to do the British motor this summer when I tried. Seems like the rocker tip design is cupped?
 
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