Stuck Dauntless Engine?

Yesterday I took a look at a 1968 CJ5 with a Dauntless that was for sale. It was rough externally but it was close so I figured it was worth a look. I'm searching for a frame and drivetrain to build on so the body wasn't a concern.
There were some red flags, like the seller stating in the ad that it ran when he parked it but then he lost the key so now it doesn't run. Also I had to meet his mom at a gas station and follow her to the house. Also the ad stated not to send him offers and "first one with cash gets it". Again, it wasn't much of a drive otherwise I wouldn't be going.
The thing was pretty rough inside and out. The front axle was open knuckle so it must have been from a later Jeep? I checked the serial number tag and it wasn't a factory V6 Jeep. It appeared to have a T90 with an adapter. It was missing the cover so the whole lower portion of the flywheel was exposed. I'm not sure if that's normal in these conversions or not.
My big concern was if the engine was locked up or not. At his price I would have been comfortable buying if the engine would turn. The frame was clean and it had a plow setup so I would have been OK price wise after I sold the plow. We tried to jump the starter and could not get it to rotate.
We put a wrench on the end of the crankshaft. There was an ever so slight movement of the pulley but it definitely would not rotate. Yes, the transmission was in neutral.
The seller's mom got the seller on the phone. He was very aggressive and said no way it was seized since he drove it off the trailer 2 years ago. (Experience tells me that probably means 4 years ago at least.) The city had given him notice to remove the car. He said if he couldn't sell it today for his asking price he would tow it somewhere and keep it. We left without buying.
Two questions I have. Am I missing something or should I have been able to turn the crank with a socket wrench? In my experience with seized F134s you get zero movement of anything. How was I getting an ever so slight movement of the pulley?

 

I would just walk away

 

Heck, it could have thrown a rod, the crank turns till it meets the broken parts.
Unless it's dirt cheap, I'd pass.

 

I could be wrong, but I don't know of any BOP bellhousings that have a removable lower plate, to my knowledge, that is a Chevy feature. Was the engine actually a 225? Distributor in front?
Open knuckles are a D30/44 feature, not stock for a 68 27A front axle.
All that being said, how much was he asking? Given it's "frankenjeep" situation, there may be salvageable upgrades on the platform that you or others might be interested in depending on the price.

 

Is the seller calling from jail?

 

The slight movement you saw was the rod to crank gap. Very rare to have the crank seized. Usually pistons/valves.

 

Thanks for the replies. As far as I could tell it was a 225 with the distributor in front. Asking price was $1500 but the ad is no longer there. May have been an OK price considering the plow setup was there but I was only interested if the engine looked OK.

 

My factory Buick bellhousing for the 198/215 takes a separate sheetmetal flywheel bottom cover. That CJ5 could have a 198. Look to see if there are two "ears" at 10 and 2 o'clock on he block/bellhousing.
The slight movement when attempting to rotate the engine could be caused by very light rust formed on the cylinder walls. Not totally locked, but tight. Oil poured through the plug hole can help, as you rock the vehicle in 3rd gear to loosen things up.
That sounds like a frustrated, difficult seller.
-Donny

 

The Jeep I bought, I heard it run. When I took the engine to have it rebuilt, it was wore out. Was a expensive rebuild. Just because it runs does not mean it is a good engine in my opinion

If the spark plugs are still in, it should be hard to turn the crank

 

When a engine sits, there are one or two cylinders that are open to the outside environment. Valves are open, letting air into the cylinders. The air/moisture has to travel thru the exhaust system or carburetor, but moisture can get into the cylinders

 

The factory Bellhousing in my '70 has a sheet metal "inspection" cover that bolts on between the flywheel and bellhousing, I'd guess exposing about 1/3 of the flywheel. How do I know this? Because mine isn't there.

 

It seems every old car I ever looked at the seller has said "it ran when he parked it".

That means nothing to me, so I usually say "I bet it ran a lot better a few years before you parked it".

I wouldn't consider something like that to be worth anywhere near that price. Too many questionable components, and it got parked for a reason.

 

This. People sell cars for a reason.

 

Yea, the front cover. For some reason I had the early Chevy style cover (which bolts to the bottom of the bellhousing and exposes the entire bottom of the flywheel) stuck in my mind.

 

This site isn’t the place for that.

 

My 66 Donor Jeep was a 66 V6 with 27k on it. I gave the motor to a friend, he put it in a jeep, found out it had a cracked block, no wonder it had on it 27k on it. I though about leaving it a V 6, but already had a NOS F 134.

 

Omg! Lmao! Priceless