Engine replacement

Hi all,

I'm an avid reader to the Forum but havent posted before....!!

To cut a long story short, recently we bought an 05 TDV6 to replace an old 530d BMW (family and all that) and it sits proudly alongside "Old faithful". Now "Old faithful" (O.F) is a good old 300TDi 98 Disco, bought 5 years ago from an awful trader....but she was cheap. O.F got jealous and started giving me stick..! I've serviced her regularly and always loved her. We've had all the normal problems (head needed skimming, brakes all round, suspension, alternator, water pump...in fact she broke down after collecting her..!). SHe's not heavily modded but has BFG's all round and a light bar and has occasionally been seen over Salisbury.

The other week, she sailed through another MoT only needing a tie rod end....! WHen the missus fetched me from the airport the other day, O.F sounded rough. I took it to my local "indie" (Hugh at Membury) and he found that some son of a something had absolutely butchered the crank pulley at some point in the past trying to get it off. Anyway, after agreeing to "botch" it for me (my idea, not his I hasten to add) as the woodruff key had slipped around the end of that shaft and knackered the whole bloody thing....she chugged on a while, all the time, we knew it was nearly the end and that the easiest thing was to just swap the engine out.

She aint worth a lot (O.F.....not the missus) so I hunted around for a used engine. Good old eBay brought results...and would you believe, the most suitable is in a 300TDi Disco, about 200 yards from my house, that lost all drive whilst pulling a trailer on the motorway!

I went to see the dude, who after 3 battery changes found one with enough oomph so i could hear the thing running. It was a very cold morning and the 300 TDi had sat for about 6-7 months. A few turns and she started. LOTS of whit/off white smoke, which was getting less as it slowly warmed up (couldnt drive it remember!). The seller is absolutely positive that it is a good engine....says out of 5 200/300TDi's he's owned....it was the best etc. So, I agreed that for £400 I'd take it (all ancillaries included...and he's breaking other bits too...PM me if you need anything off a 96 300TDi Disco!). It's been regularly serviced and has 130k miles on it. He's even going to pull it out of the Disco and for a fee....help me (or rather me help him) bolt the good engine into my Disco.

SO....sorry for rattling on...BUT...should I be worried about the smoke? Been sat a long time. Very cold day. Sounded less rattly than my old engine when cold and he seems genuine enough. I'll stick a clutch and timing kit in it when we swap over as well as fresh oil and filters.

Thanks all....

as long as it cleared i wouldnt be too bothered by that ,but i would check coolant to see if it was a rusty colour, and starting with a few turns can be a good sign of fuel side + compression