In the early 80's I worked at a Fiat, Subaru, BMW dealership. Back then we used see quite a few block heater fires where a short in the block heater electrical cord (normal cause) would light the engine compartment on fire. When we got the cars for repair the hood would be black and paint gone, all rubber and plastic and composites under the hood would be gone or melted including the alternator, wiper motor, blower housing and motor, horn etc.. Usually the radiator had unsoldered itself and had to be sent out for repair or was replaced. Often the inner fenders (plastic), the front tires and brake hoses would be toast. Usually the interior including the dash was okay, sometimes the windshield needed replacement as did the windshield gasket depending on the characteristics of the fire. Headlight and turn signal would require replacement as would grill and trim in some cases. The engines, however, were always salvageable. We would drain the oil and pull the valve/cam covers, whichever it had, and check the severity of the oil burn. Most often the oil was undamaged in which case we would button everything back up, fill with clean fluids and then start rebuilding/replacing everything else. If the oil in the top of the engine was burnt then we'd tear the motor down and clean and inspect it before rebuilding. I don't remember (but its now a few years ago) ever getting an engine that couldn't be rebuilt. The outside of the engines always looked much worse than the insides with the outside, if aluminum, having a white powdery surface and cast blocks and heads showing burnt paint and rusted.
So, in my experience, if all you're looking for is a long block assembly then I wouldn't hesitate on buying an engine from a burnt car if it was inexpensive and passed my quick checkā¦..pull the dipstick and stick your finger in the oil filler cap, if reasonably clean then that tells you the story.
Bill
_________________ Bill H Winnipeg, MB, Canada
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