thinking rebuild..new block or keep old?

[89LXNB]

Fongo,
May I suggest you do a few things before you tear your motor apart?

Do a compression test. Find out just where you stand beforehand.

Do a leakdown test to see just how much power you are losing from blowby.

If you do not have one, buy a $40 dollar code scanner and run a full diagnostic routine and then a cylindar balance test.

I think you should at least consider performing these tasks on your vehicle before you tear your engine apart. I would hate to see anyone throw a lot of $$ before they did the above. The 302 is legendary in durability and I can tell you first hand that with regular oil changes(this is key) and maintainence you could EASILY see 200,000. I know, I had 242,000 on my Mustang before I decided to overhaul the motor. The only reason I did so is because I had to go in anyway to change out the timing chain.

Good Luck,
Dan