car feels like a 3 cylinders !!!!

[babyblueMX3]

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hey guys, I've got a problem...so far you've been really helpful a thank you for that..

Yesterday I was driving with a friend when sudently I missed shifted second..Didn't do nothing at the time..When we arrived to our destination..I noticed the car had the regualr ticking sound..It was loud..I figured ****ty..hla's are gone...So I figured well I could still run with the car..My understanding was it made a ticking but didn't hurt the engine...everything was like that until I parked the car for the night..
Next morning I start the car...The car idle good but felt like a spark plug was bad..the car was sputtering like if I was missing gas...anyways..I decided to take i for a ride...the car felt like it only had 3 cylinders working..no power at all..no acceleration...I went to the gas station right by my house thinking I was missing fuel (I was under the E mark)...So I filled up the car and came back home...same thing..the car feels like ****..I drove back to my house and the car has a hard time keeping the idle...
now what could be the problem?

bad hla? - cracked retainer?

any input would be apreciated guys..
I'm ready to tear down the heads

[lakersfan1]

Do HLA's fail suddenly like that? I was thinking timing belt tensioner did a complete fail and let the timing belt slip.

[perhapsadingo8yerbaby]

Originally posted by lakersfan1:
Do HLA's fail suddenly like that? I was thinking timing belt tensioner did a complete fail and let the timing belt slip.

I agree. Start by doing a timing check and see whatcha get...

[jordan69]

loud ticking that started right away could be one of your spark plug wires went bad and its grounding out and making a loud ticking sound and would also cause the spark plug to not fire properly.

[babyblueMX3]

it's not like a spark sound...it really a metal to metal sound

spark plugs and wires are a year old btw
msd 8.5mm sparkplug wires
ngk plugs

mm I'll check for the timming...but any other inputs ?

<small>[ September 18, 2004, 01:48 PM: Message edited by: babyblueMX3 ]</small>

[babyblueMX3]

update...the car won't start anymore

[johnnyb]

distributor maybe?

[babyblueMX3]

nope disty hasn't been touched so that's not it...if the disty was bad it would start at all..but it cranks and it feels like it wants to start but it doesn't ..

in regards of the timming..to check that I have to remove the timming belt cover... and the only way I can see is i have to take the belts off..tensioner arm..and then i can take it out..Is there another way I can take it out..I mena I don't think I should have to take all this out ?

I noticed too a spark plug wire wasn't correctly plugged..I pluged it and nothing changed

[johnnyb]

if your disty was bad it would try and start... I've had the same problem with other cars where it wouldnt start but would turn over and sound like it was gonna start.

my advice is do a spark test on all the cylinders, If you have no spark then its your disty

[dewthis]

Do a compression check, it will tell you if you have a dead cylinder.

[babyblueMX3]

ok guys..I'll do both things you've ask me to do...I'll tell you the results soon

[hgallegos915]

dang..that sounds like if you ran your engine without oil..if its metal to metal banging sound. its a warped camshaft.if its that. i ALWAISY check my engine oil everytime i leave.because ive killed 4 cars that way. the engine seizes...u can remove the oil pan and check the bearings..if ones loose..well ur best bet is to rebuild the camshaft is pistons havent beend amamged..or get a new engine..klze it!

[babyblueMX3]

Originally posted by hgallegos915:
dang..that sounds like if you ran your engine without oil..if its metal to metal banging sound. its a warped camshaft.if its that. i ALWAISY check my engine oil everytime i leave.because ive killed 4 cars that way. the engine seizes...u can remove the oil pan and check the bearings..if ones loose..well ur best bet is to rebuild the camshaft is pistons havent beend amamged..or get a new engine..klze it!

well it's already klzed.and the oil is full so I rule that out

and the metal to metal banging sound IMO is the camshaft that's banging the hla since it probably not fonctioning anymore..Well acording to many other people I've talked to..so my guess is that the hla's were bad but that shouldn't stop my car from starting so there's something else

<small>[ September 18, 2004, 05:31 PM: Message edited by: babyblueMX3 ]</small>

[bmwm3guy]

aww man steve, I know EXACTLY how you feel. BTW for the timing belt cover, yes you gotta take the belts off and the two tensioners. YOu also gotta take off the crank pulley, which isnt always fun, even when I had my motor out. My advice would be to bring it to a shop and check the timing. My car is in the shop doing exactly that right now =D

Good luck dude. If you need a hand, gimme a call I'd love to help and figure out whats wrong.

[PATDIESEL]

To check the disty, pull the plugs one at a time and leave them in the head loose from the spark plug. Have someone crank the car, if you hear the ark then the disty is probably ok. HLA's won't do anything to keep the car from running, all they do is lubricate the cam better. If you ran the car out of gas it might take a while to get it to crank. To make sure you are getting gas just pull one of the gas lines from the fuel rail and have someone turn he car over a few times, you'll see the gas come pouring out of the fuel rail or the line which ever you pull. To check the spark plugs pull the plug and install it back in the plug wire then hold it close to the strut mount bolt, have someone crank the car and wathc for arc between the end of the plug and the strut bolt. If all that and the timing checks out you may need a mechanic. You might also run a diagnosis, I don't remember exactly how to get the CEL to flash for codes, but I'm sure a search will find the info.
Good luck