if its running fine, it didnt hurt anything. i dont have too much know-how on hydrolock. strange i went mud bogging once (not by choice, tried to take a short cut),and my volant didnt suck in anything

 

I couldn't disagree more. I hydrolocked mine one time, and it took a few days before the rod let go. I was climbing a small hill in second at 4500 rpm. It blew a hole in the front and rear of my block.

http://forums.focaljet.com/zetec-tuning/454790-one-real-account-hydrolock-cold-air-intake.html?highlight=hydrolock

 

So should I attempt to just buy another car?? I dont want a con rod going out in the next few weeks, leaving me perhaps stranded somewhere. Do you think it would be cheaper to rebuild my engine this weekend or to buy a different car??
http://forums.vwvortex.com/zerothread?id=2515009
Always wanted one of these, and I think I could scrounge up 2800$
Any thoughts would be GREATLY appriciated.

 

If you decide to go with another engine I have brand new and complete 2.0 Zetecs for $800. plus trucking costs from Detroit ($250-$300). There is no trade-in or core charge either. Send me an email and I'll send back photos.

Gerry Dedonis "KSGerry"
dedonis@kans.com

 

If you are skilled enough, you could replace the rods and pistons without removing the entire motor, in a day or so.

Costing you: a new head gasket ($30), new windage tray gasket ($30), new head studs (?$50?), used or new rods+pistons (?$50-200?), and new rings ($60).

I see it as a couple hundred dollars, and a whole day's work. If you're up to it and have the tools needed (nothing major, jackstands, torque wrench, drill with hone bit, and ratchets).

You'l have to pull the head, pull the oil pan and windage tray out, remove the rods and pistons (through the top), hone the cylinders with a crosshatch so the new rings will seat, and reassemble everything.

I've done it before, but I replaced the block at the same time. I would recommend doing something now though, unless you're a gambling man. It would suck to blow a motor on the freeway on ramp, just as you're merging in front of a semi truck.

Also, don't forget that your insurance will replace the motor in this situation, under your comprehensive coverage. I might give them a call if I were you, you can document the towing, so they won't suspect fraud.

 

Hahahahahaha
Insurance.
I have crashed too many cars/gotten too many tickets with my previous car when I was younger and stupid to afford any sort of comprehensive coverage. I have basic liability and had a CAI on it at the time, so insurance pretty much wont do squat.
On the plus side, I found somebody willing to front me money in case I need to buy a car/bunch of engine.

 

I don't know how you guys kill your motors driving thru puddles. For a couple months I was running with no inner fender well with my CAI (I had a few laying around and accidently threw the one that that was actually on the car away) which was a horrible idea as the wheel would just fling water on the filter. If it rained I had to really dog the car if not the car would suck up the water that was layered really thick on the filter and puff goes nice moisture clouds out of my exhaust. usually I would just drive it really slow home and if it was really bad I'd pull over. Get home knock the water out of the filter the next day and was good to go. I guess its ok to "spray" the filter but not to "dunk" it.

 

I'd change the oil and call it a day.

The first thing I would have done would have to get the water out of the intake and then change the oil.

 

Already changed oil, before that I got as much of the water out of the engine as I could. Seems to run alright....much more valvetrain noise than before, im sorta scared about that

 

Already changed oil, before that I got as much of the water out of the engine as I could. Seems to run alright....much more valvetrain noise than before, im sorta scared about that

I wouldn't be if you got all the water out of it.

I have heard of people around here putting sleds(snomobiles) thru the ice in the winter and getting them hydrolocked. They said that as long as you get the water out, put fresh gas and oil in, they usually ran just fine.

 

Remember that our valvetrains are so loud that after you do any type of work on the car it seems that its messed up.

 

Personally, I would change the fluds (as you did) and try to remove the water.

Also, as for selling the car, thats kinda crappy for the person that buys it. If I were you, I would pray to god (or allah, whoever) and drive it. After a day or two change the oil again and keep driving it. If something does happen, a tow truck will cost you a little bit, but whenever that happens I would replace the engine. I would wait and see if it dies before buying and replacing the engine.

 

It's just a matter of time. The "valvetrain noise" it likely a loose bearing or something else unsavory.

When your engine hydrolocked, water took up a good part of at least one of yout combustion chambers, effectively giving you a really large piston that's too tall for the combustion chamber. Once all the Air/fuel compressed, the water brought one piston to a complete halt. Attached to that piston is a cheap powdered metal connecting rod. Attached to that is the rotational mass of 3 other pistons, 3 other con-rods, a heavy cast-iron crankshaft, and an even heavier and kinetic-energy-filled FLYWHEEL.

I will 90% guarantee that you tweaked a connecting rod. It might not break tomorrow, but it will eventually fail if you keep driving it. I've seen tons of hydrolocked engines. I've seen over a dozen on FJ alone. The result, almost every time, is the eventual failure of a connecting rod.

Engines are cheaper than buying a whole car. I'd take KSGerry up on his deal. $1000 delivered (and maybe some friends to help you install it over a weekend) is a lot better deal than selling a car that you KNOW will blow up on the next owner. Plus it's cheaper.

 

i dont know... i didnt read the other posts as a fore warning. but i was in the same boat as you were couple months ago. me n my father did that same thing u did. dried out the intake manifold, tranny fluid into the cylinders(after we removed the sparks n shot the water out). I drove that car for months, from october till feburary when i totaled it on black ice.

mine was during a REALLY bad rain storm. stalled it once going through this little dip in the road b4 the on ramp. it smoked for a lil bit then it ran fine. then our wonderfully highway was flooded and me being stupid thought it wasnt high enough to get in tried to coast through ya even at idel it filled every cyclinder and my intake manifold. couldnt crank the car, it actually broke the starter from trying to crank it... lol. But like i said it ran for months afterwards.

But my buddy also hydrolocked his zts kinda like my first stall mentioned above but his threw a rod through the block 3 weeks later. so honestly its kinda like gambling, it might be fine and it might not. time will tell. but you said u had triple A so ur covered there.

 

notjeff, keep us informed as this progresses, and keep close tabs on slight changes in that valvetrain noise you're talking about.

When mine hydrolocked, I noticed the problem in the clutch pedal, if I depressed it just slightly I could feel a faint tapping in the rhythm of the engine. It was like 1 time per every revolution, one cylinder was hitting a little harder than the rest. My guess is that that one rod was holding on by a thread.

Good luck with the car, and I wish you the best of luck...

 

Well, I'm taking the car to several mechanics today at the urging of my mother...she has decided I have no clue what I am doing(been working on cars the majority of my life), and she also decided none of the members of [FJ] know what they are talking about. So off to the mechanic I go, only to come back with the same information.

I am assuming that it will be worlds cheaper if I just do some preventitive (sp?) maintenance now by replacing things that MIGHT break as opposed to waiting until I DO break something? I'm way too broke right now, so My mom is nice enough to loan me some money, but like I said, she is in the camp of "If it aint broke dont fix it"....you get the idea.

Off to several mechanics I go...I hope they come up with the same answers you guys did.

 

I wouldn't be if you got all the water out of it.

I have heard of people around here putting sleds(snomobiles) thru the ice in the winter and getting them hydrolocked. They said that as long as you get the water out, put fresh gas and oil in, they usually ran just fine.

see here is the problem. Getting the water out AFTER the engine has stalled from water ingestion does nothing. The water gets sucked in and then the piston tries to compress it. Water does not compress. Its like slamming your pistons into a wall. It stops the engine rotation immediately and causes huge amounts of stress down the piston, rod, crankshaft, and bearings.

Your engine is on borrowed time.

 

so I just got back from every mechanic in the Chino area, and they all pretty much agreed that there is not much I can do short of replacing everything that may or may not be broken. So basically I can't get it replaced until the engine is in much smaller pieces than it is now. If I could afford it myself, then I would go right ahead and replace the pistons/rods/bunch of other stuff that might be damaged, but since I am pretty much on my mother's money, there is nothing that can be done about it right now.
thanks for all the input, guys

 

i'd drive it until it goes kaboom but just buy the new engine now
so you have it.

 

Your engine is on borrowed time.

Thar she blows! There was another hole on the other side of that one. I tried to pontoon the ZX3 across a river that decided to spring up in the middle of a road on my way to work. Hence, the result of my own hydrolock shenanagans... if you do decide to go the new motor route I'd definately recommend getting in touch with KSGerry. He got me fixed up and was great to deal with!