Things obviously have moved on since I did anything of this nature, 20 years,. it was a thriving industry at one time. I used to tune engines as a hobby ( long story ) and there was a shop in Glasgow called “Piston and Components” who’s counter only had a pile of reference books they could look up everything you could possibly need to rebuild an engine. Pistons , bearings, rings sets, valves, valve springs you name it, not just standard sizes but plus sizes for rebores and regrinds, and 90% in stock. You could drop off a crankshaft on a Monday and pick it up on a Wednesday reground and with the correct oversize bearings. Sounds like the dark ages now.
Mechanical reliability is better now inspite of a lot of the horror stories, better fuel, better oil, better oil circulation and crank case breathing. Better quality control is likely another but you wonder at times.
I’d say £1K is a reasonable guess for ex works cost, largely automated probably. Its amazing how these nightmare jobs like cam belts become a piece of cake when the engine is out of the car and sitting on a stand.in front of you.
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