www.zxrworld.co.uk

Just picked up a 1994 ZXR400 and had a catastrophic failure just 70 miles later. Am wondering if I should try to fix or search for a new engine. Would also love to know what caused this, but I'm not sure how to do that. Opinions appreciated. Here's what my mechanic wrote:

So the diagnosis is bad. A connecting rod snapped in half and blew a whole through the engine case. Most likely debris from the break damaged other parts. I'm not sure what would cause such severe damage on such a low mileage engine. No oil would have definitely caused it but the oil is only a a quart or so low now. Most likely low from exiting the engine through the hole in the engine case.

get a new engine ~£350, but keep the old one for parts.

you might get away with keeping the clutch, oil pump, ancillary water pipes, cylinder head etc...those bits can fetch you a decent price, or keep them for spares (thats what i would do).

Yeah, I've made my decision -- I want to buy an engine, preferably clean and low mileage, definitely a UK spec engine. If anyone knows of any, please let me know. Thanks in advance!