Brief little update. Engine tear down is complete, but finishing late left little time for cleanup and inspection, etc. Once the exhaust manifold was pulled, a quick glance inside the exhaust ports showed the front rotor was very wet.. further lending to the blown coolant seal theory.
The teardown itself... well, it was less than smooth. I've never had dowels be as stuck as these were which just made it take a bit longer. Its all apart now and I need to clean everything up a bit more. There is a good amount of corrosion on the front housing and some pitting near the coolant jackets. Definitely looks like a front water jacket seal failed. Bearings looks really good, eshaft looks really good and most irons/housing appear good. This engine was FILTHY inside though so it's going to take some good cleaning to verify it all...
More pics and full writeup on the site to follow.
