Expert: Sean Halliday - 8/23/2009

Question
 i have a 2001 4.6 romeo engine that lost compression in the #4 cyl( the piston is cracked)., i called a local ford dealer and he said that the parts have been discontinued? what do you recommend at this point, the eng has been remanufactured one time before and i don't know if the piston is oversized or standard, the only thing stamped on the top of the piston is 75, no other marks, if i go to a junk yard how can i tell if an engine is a romeo or windsor etc.,   help in nc.

Answer
Your problem is why the piston cracked in the first place.Any junk yard will not sell one piston as they will not break an engine for that.Best bet is buy a short block or go to the people who rebuilt the engine before and ask them what the 75 means.Its not a good idea to replace one piston as this engine will need to be rebuilt again which will mean rebored and all oversize pistons,new crank etc.The tolerances will need to be checked to see if its possible.A lot of cost and it would be much cheaper to buy a used short block.