One thing I dont get is why you guys spin bearings on an engine that only has 30-50 miles on them. which most of those miles are not rough miles. I mean these engines come from a city that is non stop traffic jam. most of the life of those engines was idling and not seeing more than 4000 rpms. maybee not all of them but probably a majority. so these engines are hardly ever if ever abussed. So why do you guys spin the bearings a couple of hundred miles after driving. I think I know why and I have a secret solution.

Most of these jdm engines we buy have been sitting for a while (couple of months maybee more or less just depending) so the bearings in these engines havent seen oil for a while and might have very little traces of oil if not any oil on them when you get them. Im thinking you guys just put a new filter and throw some oil in them and crank her over and it starts. So guess what. 70% of wear comes at startup. You just started the engine while no oil is on the bearings and it takes about 4-6 seconds before that engine sees oil pressure when you first start it up when it hasnt been started for months. so when this is done the engine starts and you just put torque and pressure on those bearings without any oil at all on them. dont you think this would do some good damage to those bearings right off the start. sure it is just 4-6 seconds. but you just put years of wear onto those bearings when doing this. You cant do this. This is why I think you guys spin so many bearings. At a normal start up in an engine that is started and run every day is different. there is still oil on those bearings after you shut it off and let it sit for a day. The oil doesnt drain or dry up that fast. so it has protection from that oil every time you start your car. but when the engine has been sitting for months with no oil in it the oil that was on those bearings is no longer there. Maybee a trace but not near enough to keep that damage from happening. Dont worry there is a solution.

When you get your engine change the filter. and get one of those bottles with the pumps on the top of them that people use to spray water or gasoline and put your 4 quarts of oil into it and remove the spray gun and attach a fitting onto it that will screw into your oil sending unit. take out that sending unit and screw that in and pump up the bottle and the oil will start to be pumped into the engine while this is happening slowly turn the engine over by hand. What this does is it pressurizes the oil system and primes the oil pump and pumps oil through all of the passages and lubes everything that gets oil. do this until all of the oil is into the engine and since it primes the oil pump you will not have any air in there so when you go to start the engine for the first time it gets oil pressure right away instead of the oil pump having to do the job of sucking the oil and then pressurizing the system. that is why you donts see oil pressure for 4-6 seconds when you go to start it up. By doing this you should save your bearings and have no worries about getting oil pressure at first startup. They did this to my engine after it was rebuilt and when I first started it up it got oil pressure very quick just like when you shut of your car and then go to start it back up again. It was instant. This saves a lot of life on the engine by doing this. So again by doing this you wont put any wear on those bearings.

This is my secret tip. It is the way you should do it when you get your engine. did anyone else know about this tip. I mean really you guys shouldnt be spinning bearings on a practically new engine. The life of most of those engines are gentle miles. so I think this is the reason you guys are spinning them.:)

leave some comments on what you think about this theory. i know this process worked when I had mine done. I got instant oil pressure and you dont put any wear on those bearings because you turned the engine over by hand and you dont put any pressure on those bearings when doing this and it lubes everything that gets oil. its a great method to save engine life.

sorry for the length but I think it is important for you guys to hear this and apply it when getting your jdm:D

or maybe an easier way (but probably slightly less effective) would be to remove the coil wire and crank the engine over for a few seconds to prime the oiling system.

Hmmmmmmm man that sounds pretty straight forward and makes sense because I mean after sitting around for a while just like you said all that oil is going to drain down out of the bearings. IM doing a avenir swap very shortly and I was really thinking bout replacing the rod bearings but maybe I should consider this..........

from what I understand though, in Japan a lot of these motors are very neglected, just because people say they have 30 to 40k on them doesnt mean its true, come on how is that possible, if you believe that than your a sucker, I needed to replace a timing chain tensioner on my jdm motor that had 30k on it,m I dont think so, another thing to think about is it seems that all these motors spinning bearings are det's you dont seem to see the plethora of jdm primera motors spinning bearings and there subject to the same amount of time and other bs as the det's. It is a good idea though what you suggest, and can't hurt. I don't personally believe that it is the reason for all the spinning bearings though. I know many motors that have sat fora long time and just turn right over and run awesome, but nonetheless it is a good idea.

Hey fastnx you could do that also. but the thing is that it migh turn the engine too fast. when doing that you have to much up and down movement on the bearings because of the inercia of the piston going up and down too fast. but even doing that is better than starting it up with no oil on those bearings and putting a lot of pressure and sudden force on dry metal bearings. it will do damage when doing that. but yeah that would work also but it will take longer to prime it because the oil pump has to pump out the air and suck the oil from the pan and then pressurize the system. when doing it by hand you blow all of the air out of the system, prime the pump and when turning it by hand you allow the pump to start pumping oil right away and then oils the whole system. that way you have no air in the system.

by the way I forgot to say to take off the valve cover when doing this. while it is pressurizing oil will come to the top also and oil the top while turning the engine over by hand. then when oil and air come out of the passages then you are done. Then you have a completely oiled and primed system. No waiting for oil pressure while your bearings take the damage. then when starting it for the first time oil pressure should hit in a second just like if you shut off your car and went to start it up again. It is a really good technique that everyone that gets these engines or gets one rebuilt should do. adds much life to it. wont damage the bearings and should stop you from spinning a bearing in the near future because you didnt damage the bearings at start up. That is why I think many people spin their bearings is because of the damage caused when just throwing oil in and starting it up with dry bearings and waiting 4-6 seconds for oil pressure to finally hit. 4-6 seconds of force and pressure on dry bearings while the engine is turning over 1k rpms. you get the picture. not good for it. and it will cause enough damage and wear to where you will spin a bearing soon. It doesnt take much wear for that to happen. the wear from doing it like this will loosen those bearings enough to where they are not seated tight anymore and then thats when they spin. my procedure should save alot of time and money. do it right the first time.

again you probably could use the starter to prime it but I wouldnt do it. it just isnt worth the damage that it could still cause. You have to turn the engine over by hand slowly that way you know there wont be damage to those bearings. And when doing this the system will pressurize quickly and those bearings will get oil fast. then you have nothing to worry about.

thanks for the replies and keep it up

Originally posted by sleeping 91ser
from what I understand though, in Japan a lot of these motors are very neglected, just because people say they have 30 to 40k on them doesnt mean its true, come on how is that possible, if you believe that than your a sucker, I needed to replace a timing chain tensioner on my jdm motor that had 30k on it,m I dont think so, another thing to think about is it seems that all these motors spinning bearings are det's you dont seem to see the plethora of jdm primera motors spinning bearings and there subject to the same amount of time and other bs as the det's. It is a good idea though what you suggest, and can't hurt. I don't personally believe that it is the reason for all the spinning bearings though. I know many motors that have sat fora long time and just turn right over and run awesome, but nonetheless it is a good idea.

I understand this. I didnt say all of the motors are not driven hard but most of them. some people might get motors that have been neglected but a majority of the motors are taken care of and are not driven hard. The reason why they say the engines have that milage is because in japan you are only allowed to drive a car for I believe 2 years or maybe its 3 years. but how many miles do you think someone over there could put on an engine in that little time. Most of the people there dont do a lot of long driving so some could have more than others it all depends. and there are always people who neglect their engines and dont take care of them. not changing the oil very often or other other stuff. I guess it is just bad luck if you get one in rough condition. but there are not very many people who get those bad ones because there probably not very many of them. luck of the draw i guess. but most people get motors that are in good condition and look like they dont have many miles on them. and when you get an engine in good condtion that you know hasnt been abused and there are ways to tell, there is no need to go and replace stuff that doesnt need replacing. yes every once in a while you will hear of people who got junky engines with all kinds of broken or worn parts on them but hardly ever. I have seen a lot more people who are very happy with the condition of their jdms. by doing this process I believe that it will save the life of the engine and the bearings and will prevent spinning them in such a short time after first starting it. This is just by belief in why people spin so many bearings. even if it is a sr20det. sure those engines are under more stress but again most of them hardly even see past 4k rpms. because they are just daily drivers and dont get many miles. thanks for the replies

yes, i agree that your method would be better.
Another point though, when an engine is freshly rebuilt, aren't all those wear surfaces coated with assembly lube to provide lubraction at startup? this would obviously have no effect on a used JDM that hasn't been apart, but for a fresh rebuild, i wouldnt think its necessary if lube was used. then again it's not hurting anything so why not

oh I forgot to say that when you do get an engine that you know has been neglected and has more wear than it should have it is a good idea to replace the bearings because who wants to put an engine in like that and have it spin a bearing or two a couple of hundred miles later. I would replace them if i got one in bad condition or even one that looks like it has been abused. it is just the thing to do and will save time and money. on a det it is a good idea to do it anyways that way you know you wont have a problem. but just plain non turboed engines and really good condition dets why bother. I just believe that doing this process will save the life of the bearings. sorry for repeating that but i am just making a point. thanks again

im agreeing with ashton on this one, why not just throw a set pf bearings in while you have the motor sitting out there, it wouldnt really be that much more work if ya think about it. it would be worth it, besides you wouldnt have to worry about them anymore after that

yea replace them if you know the engine has been abused or neglected. but if you get one that is in tip top shape and you know that it was well taken care of and not abused why bother. I mean there is still alot of work into replacing the bearings especially if you have to keep trying to match sizes. but you have to make sure it is done right. make sure the oil gap is perfect or close to it and make sure they are seated correctly. it is still a lot of work. but if it needs to be done then do it. but if not then dont. just do the priming and pressurizing process before starting it and it will save the bearings. again this is my theory on why so many people spin their bearings on their jdms because of the damage they do at startup wears the bearings enough to make them not seat right and it loosens them up by creating too big of an oil gap and when they are too loose they spin. it is common sense. but when I get my det if it has any little sign of abuse or neglect out come the bearings. that is playing it safe. I am just saying that most jdm engines are in great condition and dont need to have the bearings replaced if you do this process. thanks for all of the posts. I hope this thread gets a lot more people to look at it and post on it.

Here's food for thought. When we took my avenir apart it was absolutley clean inside. No oil varnish at all. No way to be certain of course, but I guesstimate its got less than 20k miles on it. Here's the funny part, all the bearings looked good too... except for for one set, which showed signs of heavy wear. The engine had never been started. I vote always check 'em while you've got the engine out anyways. It dosn't cost anything but time.

When u say oil sending unit, do u mean the oil pump? and what fitting should i use?

the spun bearings is cause from shipping the motor here. it has nothing to do with sitting for a long period or anything like that. the oil tube sits like a millimeter away from the oil pan. when the motor is removed from the car, they let it rest on the oil pan which crushes it and clogs the oil pick up. my recommendation would be to remove the lower oil pan and pound it back out.

Originally posted by egg
when the motor is removed from the car, they let it rest on the oil pan which crushes it and clogs the oil pick up. my recommendation would be to remove the lower oil pan and pound it back out.

That sounds very viable.

Originally posted by DEAD SE-RIOUS
When u say oil sending unit, do u mean the oil pump? and what fitting should i use?


the oil pressure sensor is what I am talking about. It is on the intake side of the block below where the intake mani goes. its a sensor that has a single wire conector that usually slides on to the metal piece on the sensor. It is the same style sensor as the coolant temp sensor. It is usually located toward the bottom of the block. On my ga16 is is right below and a little to the left of the oil filter. anyways take that sensor out and find a fitting with the same size thread that will screw into its place and the other end of the fitting has a nozzle that you can slide the hose from the pump onto and clamp it. again it has a nozzle one one end that the hose can slide onto and clamp and the other end has the thread to screw into the block. You should be able to get one at any parts store or maybe even a hardware store. you will have to take the sensor with you so they can match up the size and type. then when you put the sensor back in put some of that thread sealer compound onto it and screw the sensor back in. thanks for all of the replies

I agree with egg. I think the oil pan has a lot to do with it as well.

yeah I agree that the oil pan has some play in this also. I think the design of the oil pan on the sr20 is the only flaw with that engine. it is a two part pan and the bottom part of it is too small and the oil pick up is so close to it that any kind of dent in it may hit it or block it off a little. They should have put a bigger bottom pan so that more oil can be put in and so that the pickup tube isnt so close to it. That way you will be able to put more oil in that way you wont have any problems with oil pickup. I mean four quarts is nothing for an engine that size. My best friend has a zx2 with the ztech engine. it is a two liter engine and it takes almost five quarts. a little over four and a half quarts. The oil pan on his car is a very well designed pan. it is big and it holds more than enough oil. he wont be having any oil problems. The same goes for my ga16 engine. the pan is very big and the pickup tube stays well over an inch and a half from the bottom of the pan. my pan has a good size dent in it and I have no problems with oil pickup. It is just a well designed pan. They should have used a similar design on the sr20 oil pan. I dont know why they had to make it so complicated like that and again any kind of dent in an sr20 bottom pan could cause problems. Thats my opinion. I think that this also has part in it along with not doing the priming and pressurizing method also. I mean think about it. It takes a lot of life out of those bearings when starting that engine with dry bearings if not all of the life. thanks again for all of your opinions

has anybody ever thought of extending the oil pick up line or changeing it all together

Originally posted by LONEWOLF
has anybody ever thought of extending the oil pick up line or changeing it all together

The only extra capacity pans i have seen have been from greddy, hks, and i think toda and they used on rwd det's. I do not know if they could be modified for fwd use.

whats the difference between the fwd and rwd pans. they look the same to me.