Hide it out in the desert. Report as stolen.
Engine blew up in the shop.
- Thread starter Chris142
- Start date
Well......It was running bad when they brought it in. The hiss may not have been all the problem. Pull the pan and see if the crankshaft is blue. With the end of a rod welded to it.
Thankfully I dont deal with customers much and this problem is not my problem.
This has to be given to your boss ASAP.
This is obviously a coincidence, but it's going to be a hard sell to the customer that the shop did nothing to cause it.
I'm pretty knowledgeable and I would find it hard to believe that the engine just happened to destroy itself after I brought it to the shop.
This is obviously a coincidence, but it's going to be a hard sell to the customer that the shop did nothing to cause it.
I'm pretty knowledgeable and I would find it hard to believe that the engine just happened to destroy itself after I brought it to the shop.
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With that many miles and already making a noise the customer should accept it as such. No hard sell involved if you are working an honest business.
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It's unusual that a previously running vehicle that was NOT making obvious noises would just throw a rod out of the clear blue. Sure, it "can" happen, but other than race engines, it usually develops as a light ticking and over time advancing to a tapping, then eventually a knocking. I'm a little surprised there was no knocking or tapping leading up to the failure.
From the OP, I would deduce there were no abnormal engine noises other than a little hissing which was corrected.
That said, get a PROFESSIONAL OIL ANALYSIS done pronto.
That will be you one of your best defenses as it will tell the tale of whether this was a slow catastrophic failure and occurred over time or something sudden.
For a rod to break out of the clear blue I would guess it dropped a valve or the timing chain / belt broke
Find out if the customer routinely used poor gasoline (leading to burned valves).
Is is possible that water incursion occurred while waiting for customer action and the cylinder faced a hydrolock?
research any head work done. Find out if dropped valves are a problem on this model. Find out if the car was over heated at any point in memory or record. It is very unusual for rods to just break. There is a cause.
At 200K miles, there is no way any shop "should" be held completely liable without clear proof of negligence. Maybe partially at most.
If an engine fix was court ordered, a "fair" judge might say you owe 25% at most (if the judge is fair and has common sense)
From the OP, I would deduce there were no abnormal engine noises other than a little hissing which was corrected.
That said, get a PROFESSIONAL OIL ANALYSIS done pronto.
That will be you one of your best defenses as it will tell the tale of whether this was a slow catastrophic failure and occurred over time or something sudden.
For a rod to break out of the clear blue I would guess it dropped a valve or the timing chain / belt broke
Find out if the customer routinely used poor gasoline (leading to burned valves).
Is is possible that water incursion occurred while waiting for customer action and the cylinder faced a hydrolock?
research any head work done. Find out if dropped valves are a problem on this model. Find out if the car was over heated at any point in memory or record. It is very unusual for rods to just break. There is a cause.
At 200K miles, there is no way any shop "should" be held completely liable without clear proof of negligence. Maybe partially at most.
If an engine fix was court ordered, a "fair" judge might say you owe 25% at most (if the judge is fair and has common sense)
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Sunshine, lollipops and rainbows?
Yeah no, probably not how this is going to go.
Shop might also want to give a heads up to their liability insurer if they have one or their lawyer if they don't.
4wd
$50 site donor 2026
He used it too much when it was new 
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I'm wondering how the rod was able to go through the oil pan while the engine was only at idle.
Do they have gap insurance? if so a pickup and a guy in the back to cut the rope on a road far away from most traffic with a ditch to drive it into is a good bet. Just gotta remove the rope from the front and speed away to make it look right.
If it were my car, I would be both upset as well as suspect.
Now, my maintenance practices are probably much better than those of this owner.
And I am usually the first one to notice any abnormality in either function, or sound.
A slight ticking noise that usually proceeds a failure, would’ve been noticed.
But, put simply, if I brought you a running car that wasn’t making any noise and you told me that it spontaneously “blew up“ in your shop, I would blame you.
I would be asking just what the heck you did to that poor car to make it blow up.
Now, my maintenance practices are probably much better than those of this owner.
And I am usually the first one to notice any abnormality in either function, or sound.
A slight ticking noise that usually proceeds a failure, would’ve been noticed.
But, put simply, if I brought you a running car that wasn’t making any noise and you told me that it spontaneously “blew up“ in your shop, I would blame you.
I would be asking just what the heck you did to that poor car to make it blow up.
For those mentioning the shop's insurance. Even with insurance they might not cover the repair. IIRC the customer would have to sue, depending on how high the deductible is the insurance company will only pay above the amount of the deductible, and most deductibles are pretty high. Then they would then only pay if there was negligence on the part of the shop. EG; the tech didn't put oil in the engine, or stripped the drain plug and the oil dripped out. If a filter failed they'd likely go after the company that made the filter. In a case of no negligence and the engine just gave up, they aren't going to pay anything. In any event the customer is not going to be a happy camper.
I wonder if the leaking vacuum , the hissing, contributed to a hot-running condition AND went on long enough to effect some part(s)?
I realize any answer to that doesn't help with your shop's situation.
Any idea what year and model Jag?
You've mentioned Rolls Royce and other premium marques before.
Like they say, use as few words as possible.
I realize any answer to that doesn't help with your shop's situation.
Any idea what year and model Jag?
You've mentioned Rolls Royce and other premium marques before.
Like they say, use as few words as possible.
200k mile Jaguar? Probably not your fault. But good luck explaining that to the customer.
It’s at a much smaller scale but many years ago I upgraded the RAM in an old ThinkPad. Powered on, memory tests passed, called them to pick it up.
They came in, we powered it on in front of them to show them everything worked. They were happy and paid. Went to shut it down and it locked up.
Ended up diagnosing as bad motherboard. We put in a used one off eBay at our cost. That cost us more than what we charged for the RAM upgrade, even ignoring the cost of labor. Sure it was an old computer but you know what, it is what it is.
In your case, if the customer is agreeable, and the shop can afford it, I’m guessing splitting the cost of installing a used engine with the customer is in your future.
It’s at a much smaller scale but many years ago I upgraded the RAM in an old ThinkPad. Powered on, memory tests passed, called them to pick it up.
They came in, we powered it on in front of them to show them everything worked. They were happy and paid. Went to shut it down and it locked up.
Ended up diagnosing as bad motherboard. We put in a used one off eBay at our cost. That cost us more than what we charged for the RAM upgrade, even ignoring the cost of labor. Sure it was an old computer but you know what, it is what it is.
In your case, if the customer is agreeable, and the shop can afford it, I’m guessing splitting the cost of installing a used engine with the customer is in your future.
Customer is going to be suspicious and likely angry. I feel for your manager/owner/service writer as there's no smooth way out now.
Based on your story I truly believe its just pure coincidence and bad luck but the human nature is to look for fault and since they delivered a running car to you and now have a blown engine while in your possession I think its reasonable to expect them to point the finger your shops' direction regardless of what actually happened.
Based on your story I truly believe its just pure coincidence and bad luck but the human nature is to look for fault and since they delivered a running car to you and now have a blown engine while in your possession I think its reasonable to expect them to point the finger your shops' direction regardless of what actually happened.
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100% this.
LS swap it!
4wd
$50 site donor 2026
They will just refer to the most commonly stolen vehicle list …
Out of luck …
This would cover it - presentation is key in this instance.
Agree with UOA/filter examination.
Any shop cameras?
Show them this thread (half joking)
No winning in this situation, but being honest about what DID NOT happen will be best.
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