I bought a used 2004 Tribute (42,000 miles) from a Mazda dealer that 6 months later blew a head gasket. It was towed to another Mazda dealer in a different town where I was informed that the engine in the car was not the original engine--different serial number, plus writing on it indicating it came from a salvage yard. Mazda guy won't tell me where the engine in it now came from, so I don't know how old it is. No record anywhere that the engine had been swapped out. Is there a way to check where an engine came from?

Thanks!

 

Some newer cars have the VIN (Vehicle Identification Number) on the engine as well as the firewall and in that small little corner under the bottom of the windshield. I would start by checking around the engine to see if you can find the the VIN on it, I would think more on the block (lower part of the engine) rather than on the head (upper part of the engine. I do not know for certain that Mazda does this or if it is done on the Tribute though. Thant would be my best guess as how the mechanic/dealer knew this. If you can find the VIN and it does not match the rest of the car you would have to pull a vehicle history report on the VIN either at a DMV, vehix.com or something like that. Then you would know if the engine was from a scrapped/totaled car or even what they call a long block or short block and was a JDM .