Mechanic around North San Diego County???

klsoneSC

Registered User
Hey guys,
I am thinking about an engine rebuild some time in the next year or so but my regular mechanic is a foreign and domestic all around type mechanic, and has only worked on my SC and one other and he charges quite a bit. Im looking for a new Ford, Lincon Mercury specialist or a real performance shop that is able to do modifications the way I want. I know I need to cut the technicians some slack with these cars but I just want to meet and do business with someone who works with and KNOWS about this car and doesnt try to rip me off like i'm a f@#$ing idiot!!! (the few places i've tried really didn't seem to want my business and treated me like I didn't know s#!t) I'd like to be able to converse with my technician and have him be somewhat interested in my car, not trying to show off how much I don't know with that typical "mechanic attitude" (no offence, i've just had some poor experiences with mechanics around here). Anyway, i'm in North County San Diego (Encinitas, Carlsbad, San Marcos area) and was curious if anyone has some suggestions or knows anyone or anyplace around here that is a stand out and can give me a fair price on things like tha engine rebuild/upgrade, suspension upgrade, performance upgrades etc... Thanks for any and all responses, hope to see some of you around.

kyle
 
Mechanic/North County

Hey Kyle:

There's a shop I use in Miramar, Delta Auto. Steve Stuhl owns it and really knows SC's. He's done all the work on my car and I can vouch for his honesty and integrity. He's not the cheapest gig in town but he backs his work 100%. He's handles all the maintenance on my SC as well as all performance upgrades I have done so far. Give him a call @ 1 858 695 3995, tell him Val sent you. I'm bringing my car in next week for 3.73's.

Hope this helps,

Valentino
 
Were you looking for a shop to rebuild your motor, and install it for you? Just rebuild it? Maybe build it stronger??? Have it built and install it yourself??? I can recommend a few places around here, but its kind of far for you. If you bought the parts yourself and had them before hand, you could save yourself and the mechanic some time :)

Al
 
I would like to have them rebuild and install it, as I dont have the tools or know-how to do it myself. Yea, I want to build it up stronger (port, polish, hone, new cam, nice pistons etc...) but I'm not sure EXACTLY what I want to do yet. I am totally willing to travel a little if I can get it done by someone who has experiance with this engine and these cars!! I would buy the parts myself and just bring them to tha place if that'll save me some money, as money is my main problem. I dont want to get cheap s#!t or anything, so I would rather wait a while and save up for nice parts. My main concern is having a friendly, SC knowledgeable mechanic I can talk with during tha rebuild process and not get totally ripped off with tha labor costs! Also, I really want to find a mechanic close by me that can take care of some of the little sh!t with my car (140,000 miles on it). Thanks for tha reply Al and let me know about any recommendations you got.

Kyle
 
Well you can start by buying the usual parts that the shop will not be able to find or will take time for them to get. Your choice brand of forged pistons (last longer endure more and are lighter), Felpro gasket sets, valve train stuff if you will be upgrading to bigger valves and thinking about roller rockers. Your choice cam. Any sensors you will think about buying. Also motor mounts since your car does have 140k on the clock.

I was advised by Dr. Fred to get the 95 style pistons (for more compression), the 89 manual cam (has more lift) the 95 style oil pump (flows more oil), to get the heads and block milled (to ensure perfect head gasket surfaces) get all new internals, get the rotating assembly balanced, and to have them bore the cylinders to .040 over. Also try to get zero gap molly rings. This will be a better than stock rebuild but will remain "stock"

Porting and polishing by a shop takes a very long time and gets very expensive. Some shops wont even do it because they think it takes too long and people wont want to pay the full shop rate to have some guy with a die grinder sit and take a few tenths of an inch of aluminum off of the heads. So you might want to talk to a few shops to see what they do.

As far as shops go, I got mine rebuilt in some place here in LA close to my house. Not that I knew their work or had been recommended to them, I jsut picked at random, and I was VERY pleased with their results. I know Mike is a very good engine builder, so you might want to talk to him and see what he can do for you. If I had blown my engine now that I know him better, I'd have him rebuild it and pay him what I payed the shop, just so I know it would get done by someone I trust. But its your call.

Al
 
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Hey, thanks for all that great info! I was thinking about taking the Engine Rebuilding class at my college. They have a real nice garage and you can rebuild your own engine if you want. Do you think it would be possible (or practical) for me to rebuild it myself, with help from other guys in tha class and tha teacher? If I had a shop do everything you suggested would it still cost the same as a normal "stock" rebuild? About how long should it take to do a rebuild with this car? What sensors should I think about getting? I just had my motor mounts and transmission mount replaced when I put my exaust on. What kind of valve train stuff would I need if I decided to go with bigger valves and roller rockers? I talked with Mike via email and he gave me some info and I told him I would keep in touch with him. Anyway, thanks for your time and info Al.
 
It would be cheaper and if they are actually good at it it might not be a bad idea BUT, would you really go to a barber college for a haircut??? The SC engine is actually very complex but its your call, especially with after market stuff. On the shop charging you for the 95 stuff and the 89 cam, it would cost the same since they'd have to replace them anyway, the only thing that would be more expensive are the pistons and any high performance stuff you get. If you are having port work and valve train modifications its better you go to a professional shop that knows about valve train geometry etc. I know very little on this so you might want to talk to other guys about it. I forgot to mention the BHJ Steel Balancer (its a good investment, but kinda pricey).

A regular engine rebuild with installation takes about a week to two but it depends on how busy the shop you take it to is.

Al
 
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