Weld it up or swap it out - WWGRMD?

So, I bought a new to me O2L/G2 rally car (ex-Deaton/Deffenbaugh Civic) that has roughly 18-19 events on it...definitely not a virgin, but (with some love and attention) will be a perfect ride to get into the wild world of stage rally.

2nd gear synchro was shot, so the trans needed to come out for a rebuild (or replace with a JDM trans with helical LSD), which necessitates pulling the motor and trans as one.  We get that done and start spinning out all the various bolts to separate the trans from the engine.  Rear bolts get spun out of the rear motor mount, and before the last one is removed...the motor mount comes off in my hand.

Closer inspection reveals this is not a design feature (ignore the disgusting oil/dirt marinade).  

That open "reverse C"?  Not supposed to be open, and as one of three mounts holding the motor in place, pretty critical.  The missing section has also gone AWOL.

I talked to a local fabricator and he thinks he can repair it...clean it up well, put a stainless steel bolt where the hole should be, then start laying down welds until a "bridge" is built over the top.  This guy has done good work for me before and if anyone can pull that off, he can...just not sure of the longevity of the fix.  He thinks it's a $3-400 job, and we'll need to mount the trans after it's done to make sure everything aligns correctly.

The other option is to strip this engine down for spares and replace it with a JDM motor of the same type and displacement.  This will run between $900-1,200 (plus shipping), but I'm getting a known good motor with ~ 55K miles of street use, versus a motor that's been hooned at redline for almost 20 rallies, with unknown history prior to that.

Pulling the drivetrain is not the toughest job in the world, but I'd rather not do it more than needed.  I'm leaning towards option #2 and just swapping it out, but would appreciate any feedback.

Thanks!

Jason

that 3-400 dollars should buy another engine, keep looking

I would get a steel bushing of the proper size.

Weld that to a piece of sheet metal.

Bend sheet metal to fit down the side and along the top.

Drill holes in sheet metal

Drill and tap flat sections of aluminum.

Put bolts through flat sections of welded steel and into drilled and tapped aluminum.

GTXVette said:

that 3-400 dollars should buy another engine, keep looking

agreed.  300 to 400 doll hairs to weld that up is cray cray.

The welding is totally doable but I think he's yanking your chain, that's a one hour job tops.

Thanks guys...I figured the quote to weld it up was probably on the high side, but involved a certain amount of "I really don't want to do this, but if you're going to make me, I'm getting BS pay".  I can appreciate that, but it's enough money that a replacement motor with lower, easier miles is probably the right answer.

wvumtnbkr, that's a cool idea that I hadn't even considered.  If I don't tear this one down for parts/spares, I may want to give that a shot.  Bending and basic welding of steel is within my wheelhouse...cast aluminum, not so much.  

Onward!

which engine is this?  Which transmission?  Someone on here may have this part sitting around. You should be able to pick up honda transmissions for short money, save the ITR or CTR unicorn stuff.

How much are you gonna spend on towing/food/lodging/entry fees to run a stage rally?

How pissed are you gonna be if this thing breaks immediately on the first stage and ruins your weekend?

I'd replace it.

He lost me on the use of a SS bolt in that mess. I think you can fix it, but that's not how I would fix it. I presume this is aluminum? It doesn't weld that well for something like this, especially since it's super oily and would need to be baked to get it clean enough. You could make a mating part after taking off the existing mess and machining it flat and attaching some bracket you make like wvumtnbkr  suggested, but it will take time, and you'll want to know the wall thickness of the stuff you're bolting to, and you'll probably want a few pins also.

Fueled by Caffeine said:

which engine is this?  Which transmission?  Someone on here may have this part sitting around. You should be able to pick up honda transmissions for short money, save the ITR or CTR unicorn stuff.

It’s a Honda H22A1 out of a 92-95 Prelude Si, greased up and shoehorned into a ‘93 Civic hatchback.  Most of that vintage Prelude around here have either rusted away to dust or been butchered by kids...the few I’ve found locally look to be near death.  The transmission started life as a JDM replacement and had a KAAZ LSD added shortly after, so if I don’t rebuild it immediately, I’ll keep it to do so down the road.

That said, if there are any GRM’ers in the Northeast tripping over a Prelude Si motor, we need to talk.  

cmcgregor said:

How much are you gonna spend on towing/food/lodging/entry fees to run a stage rally?

How pissed are you gonna be if this thing breaks immediately on the first stage and ruins your weekend?

I'd replace it.

Exactly.  Some money now to not lose lots of money later seems like the better option.

tuna55 said:

He lost me on the use of a SS bolt in that mess. I think you can fix it, but that's not how I would fix it. I presume this is aluminum? It doesn't weld that well for something like this, especially since it's super oily and would need to be baked to get it clean enough. You could make a mating part after taking off the existing mess and machining it flat and attaching some bracket you make like wvumtnbkr  suggested, but it will take time, and you'll want to know the wall thickness of the stuff you're bolting to, and you'll probably want a few pins also.

I may have the process wrong, but yeah, I think the SS bolt was only there to “make the hole” as weld material went over it?  I was thinking the same too...cut it flush, make new awesome part, hot glue into place, but I’ve never had to fix something like this either.  If it was a less stressed/critical part, I would probably give welding a shot, but I’d hate to find out the hard way that the fix didn’t work.  I figure it can be a good parts donor - head, distributor, alternator, oil pan, etc - and the block can be scrapped or turned into a bitchin’ coffee table.