Surprise Find

Rooster59

When my buddy bought a '94 Marathon this summer it had a rebuilt 295 engine in it a few years old. The owner sent with him a "spare" engine. No information on its lineage. We loaded it in my truck and the new to my buddy Marathon on the trailer. When we got to his house he said I could keep the spare motor for helping him check out the cart pre-purchase and hauling it home for him.

Since then we have robbed the ignition coil off the spare for his cart and the exhaust manifold because his had a broken stud that wouldn't allow us to tighten the exhaust right.

Today I am rearranging stuff in my pole barn to store the pool deck furniture under cover for the winter. I needed to move that spare engine and got curious so I checked the ID tag. It's an EH35C!!! What does that mean? My '96 TXT has an EH29C and I am in search of more power when the piggy bank will allow. So I remember the old sages on this forum recommend using a 350cc Robin engine with a 295cc head for some instant power increase.

Before I jump into this I need to check on a few things.
1. How do I check compression on this EH35C with it sitting on the bench? I can turn the engine over, with plugs in it, by hand with a very tight grip on the crankshaft stub. Can I use a compression tester like this and does my ability to turn it over by hand indicate a rebuild is necessary?

2. Is it really as simple as I have read to take a 350 engine and put a 295 head on it with a new head gasket? Any suggestions on a jet kit, aftermarket airbox/filter, or exhaust? I have thought about the infamous EZGO muffler mod and intend to do that regardless.

Help me out here guys. It may be months until I can afford to pony up for the Vegas Carts kit and maybe this avoids it all together.

BGW

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ORTitan

Rooster,

The EH35C is the 350cc Robin motor, just like you thought.

You will not get a reliable reading using a compression tester and turning the motor over by hand. Ideally the motor should be spun over by the starter. You could however use a leak down tester on the bench and it would give you a reasonable idea of engine condition.

Being able to turn the motor over by hand is not a guide to engine condition, other than you know it is not seized up.

I can't answer your head swap questions as I have not done it myself.

Good luck and most of all have fun!

Rooster59

It was a shot. Any compression test I have done in the past was with the engine in the vehicle, but those were all motorcycles and pickups. Even if all it had was a kickstarter. If it needs to be in the vehicle, now the debate is to swap the head and try it as intended or test the 350, pull it back out for a rebuild, and then swap the head after rebuild. Precision Engineering STL is in my metro area. I could have them do a rebuild like CT or others and save the freight. Haven't heard of anyone who has had them do a rebuild.

meimk

In my area (northern Indiana) there ae several machine shops that do great overall engine work, but they are queasy about sourcing golf cart parts. They'll do the work I need, but I supply the parts.

Rooster59

That's a thought. I could source the parts and have a machine shop of my choice hone or bore the cylinders and lap the valves.

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Rooster59

Since swapping the engine out looks like a fairly simple and brief task I may just slip the 350 into my cart for a test run and compression test. That way I could check for any rod knocks, etc. If the compression is OK and it sounds good then I may swap the 295 head onto it and call it good until I get a chance to rebuild it completely. If it needs it.

Cartmaster

If you are going to do the head swap and try it, then as long as your 295 head is in good condition and you check the block for leaks and throw on a new timing belt you will probably be good to go. It's only usually the really tired engines that won't run on low compression. Take the head off the 350 and check the bores, if it looks ok with no lip at the top, the only real issue would be stuck rings and hardened oil seals. May be worth stripping the engine down, replacing all seals and gaskets etc. There is a manual available with the specs and strip and check procedures plus rebuild procedure. If followed properly you will have a fine engine to play with. With the 295 head fitted you may need to open the main jet a bit. I assume the engine has the carb with it too.

You will be well happy with pretty much twice the horsepower of the old 295 engine
295 = 9hp 350=11 hp 350 with head swap = 18+ hp

this along with shorter belt and 28 degree driven clutch ramp will not disappoint you.

Rooster59

It is a little extra work and time, but I thought I would test the 350 before swapping the heads. That will keep the troubleshooting to a minimum if the 350 gives me a little trouble initially getting it started and I will have a baseline of compression in stock condition. The 295 head should raise compression readings significantly. Once I get the drive pulley off the first time it should be a breeze within a day or two of reinstalling it on the 350 crank.

The 350 has the original carb and airbox on it. I will pull the carb and clean it thoroughly since it is on my bench and pretty easy to get off. Rather than bending over the engine bay to do the same. I suppose the fuel pump should be fine with the 350 since it seems to work fine with my current 295.

If the 350 runs well in its original configuration then a rebuild or at least freshen job would be in order. Including doing a valve job on the 295 head. That should set me up for 5 to 10 years of trouble free running. The S/G belt needs replacing badly. Wish I had noticed that before I added the shorter belt. That belt is tighter than a gigolo's pants. Not sure it is coming off without the help of a very sharp knife.

Is it likely that the clutch can be removed with the engine in the cart? I have a five inch lift but the bolt could use a little drop out of the frame to make it easy to get a clear path with an impact. Maybe jacking up the rear and putting the bumper on jackstands would allow it to drop enough to get an impact with an extension on it.

Rooster59

There are a number of old threads on this engine/head swap but not much recently or follow up on those threads. A few were simple swaps like I am looking at. The others were just the beginning with plans for cams, ss valves, ignitions, etc back when Fast Fred was around.

Does anyone have more current experience to share or does everyone jump to clones or V-twins instead now?

Since all the parts are available to me I want to try it. If it doesn't give me enough power increase it will move to a buddy's Marathon and I will go with a clone or similar.

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Rooster59

Got a chance last weekend to look over the 350 a little better. There is enough dirt stuck to the cylinder fins on the fan side that it might have had a little crank seal leak. Nothing horrible but probably deserves attention. I gave some thought to just taking the 350 to Precision Engineering here in St Louis for a rebuild back to spec first. If I do that there is no harm in pulling the head first just to take a look. I won't have a chance to swap the 350 into the cart for a compression test until at least the holiday weekend, maybe later. Lifting the head first to look at the valves and bores and check the timing belt couldn't hurt.

By the way I found a seller online who offers a full array of EZGO main jets for about $14 each. If the stock 350 jet #92 is too lean they offer a #95 that might help out.