Replacing a 2009 Mazda3 2.0L motor from a theft recovery. I have a low mileage used engine with 6 month warranty on the engine stand ready to go in. The engine seems extremely tight....can turn over on the flywheel teeth, but it will not easily turn over on the crankshaft pulley via the crank bolt. Should this be a concern or are these engines normally really tight?

There is no mechanical resistance turning on the flywheel, and I will pop off the valve cover and verify cam timing and crank top dead center. Engine has plenty of oil and looks basically brand new.

 

Shouldnt use the pulley bolt to turn crank, its not a keyed pulley, ur actually running a risk over tourqing the bolt, use the special tool that is used to hold the pulley in place to spin the pulley