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well i was driving my car and the oil light came on so i was on my way to get some oil to put it in..i didnt even make it 3 mins down the road, when all of a sudden i hear something snap and the car just stops..at first i just think that because i didnt warm the car up it just died but i tried restarting it and i just keep hearing the rrrrrr noise..and then some type of knocking noise..theses guys came along and offered to help but they dont know whats wrong with it either..some say i burnt the engine out..others say i busted a rod or something like that..im befuddled..does anyone have an idea as to what happend? thanks in advance for any info

sorry to be the barer of bad news but most likely your engine is TOAST! It is possible that the timing belt broke, but from what you're sayin about the knock and oil light, it is most likely something Major, i.e thrown rod, seized piston, etc

Well it isnt going to be good news in any case.. quick check you can do for the timing belt.. Take off the distributor cap and try cranking the engine over.. have someone watch the rotor.. if it spins.. timing belt is in tact. If the rotor doesnt move then you know the timing belt is gone.. Assuming that the rrrrrr noise you are referring to is the engine trying to crank over. If the timing belt is snapped.. I have to wonder if its a coincidence that it snapped right after your oil light came on.. possibly something in the bottom end or in the valve train started dragging causing additional stress on the timing belt... Is this a 4cyl or V6 engine?

Tunes67

On my old subaru, I had a cam lock up which caused the timing belt to snap. so even if it is broken, it could be snapped due to the other engine problems

On my old subaru, I had a cam lock up which caused the timing belt to snap. so even if it is broken, it could be snapped due to the other engine problems

Agreed.. Especially with that oil light coming on like that just prior to the engine dieing.. Very likely the engine is going to need serious work in any case.. might be cheaper to put a new engine into it altogether. First thing I would do though is check the timing belt.. then I would take off the valve cover and inspect the cams to see if they still move (turning the cams by hand is not easy to do - will need a ratchet & socket to do it) If the engine was run out of oil completely.. well.. I am not sure I would even bother with it since the damage this causes is usually severe and it would be far less expensive to just replace the engine. But you have to start somewhere in a case like this so the first thing is to assess the situation or damage. It IS possible that the timing belt snapped and the oil light coming on was a complete coincidence.. though I do think this is unlikely.

Tunes67

thanks for the info guys..and it is a 4banger

Have you checked your dipstick to see if there is any oil present in your engine currently?

Tunes67

yeah..i did..there was almost no oil on there..but i still added 2 quarts after this happend..thinking that it might start..well it still didnt..im takin it to my mechanic tommorow morning..but i just wanted to see if any of you guys knew what was wrong so that id have an idea at what it was going to run me to get it fixed

Likely your engine has suffered more damage than its worth. You can buy a replacement engine and have it installed for around $1200.. And considering that car you were looking at on E-bay had almost 200k miles on it.. I think replacing your engine would be a better prospect. Assuming the rest of your car is in decent condition.

Tunes67

yeah..im actually going to hang on to my car..the body is in great shape..its a 95 and i was just looking for just about any shape of an mx3 right now just to work on for another car..didnt really care about the mileage right now..just wanted to make sure it would get my back to my state..

thanks again

Tough to tell if it would go any distance without some kind of visual inspection.. however.. if you do decide to go for it.. make sure you have Triple A (AAA) insurance on it paid up in full before you leave for home. That way if you dont make it you can get a tow all the way home

Tunes67

*edit*

Oh.. and be sure to check the oil

THIS is the reason i always check my oil..ALWAYS at least 3 times a week..even if my car doesnt burn oil..why?because you never know..for any reason you may run low on oil...pan is leaking .gaskets...ive been trought 3 cars,,,2 cars i blew no oil..now i check my car alot of times. people think its an obsession but it has saved me alot of times.

ejuco, you still gonna be able to make it to my place to pick up that speaker box, seeing as your car is toast?

yeah i still can..my car has been out since dec..just never got around to takin it in..i drive my jeep now a days..change of plans though..i dont get off till 9 instead of 6..do you want to go for sometime sunday morning? or will 9ish be too late for you?

Hey if you've got the 1.6 in the rs i have both a 1.8 BP and a 1.6 rs engine
both in good shape, the 1.6 needs new gaskets but id sell it for real cheep just to get rid of it... i blew the gasket and oil spilled everywhere but... it worked wonderful before i swapped it.
if you pay for shipping... ill give the engine to you.