revenge of the return of the son of auction car

[rigel]

so,

this piece of crap i got at auction has been doing pretty well, all things considered. after rebuilding the top end it was semi-reliable for a few months, because i knew that even if it was stalling at every stop sign, it was restartable, without fail, every time.

in january, it got stolen. it was found like 8 blocks away, 2 months later, pretty much untouched. and it wasnt stalling anymore. why? i dont know, but gift horses and all that.

i replaced one of the front wheel bearings recently, and it steers better now. planning on replacing the other soon. i'm sure i'll have questions about that.

WHICH BRINGS ME TO MY QUESTION.

i dont have any kind of knock, but i couldnt pass up some dirt cheap main bearings at rockauto, because i want to rebuild the bottom end but dont have the time at the moment. i'm wondering whether it's going to be worth it, in the sense that maybe i can reduce the wear rate of my crankshaft by replacing the bearings? should i be replacing the rod bearings too, just because im down there? i dont have a lift or an engine crane so taking the engine out fully is a nonstarter for at least the next few months. i dont want to use parts and get all grimy for nothing though.

[MessyHonda]

how many current miles does it have? most of these cars dont need a bottom end rebuild unless its knocking. I would not replace it unless it was making noise. if you just change your oil you should be fine. i would save up to do a total bottom end rebuild. rings and bearings with all the bottom end gaskets.