"Engine Blew-up" Share your Stories

[SumpChump]

Share your blown engine stories...

Who: was driving/owned it/caused it/was simply there when it happened
What: what car and engine and miles
Where: where'd it blow up-highway/driveway speed, rpm, circumstances
When: at Midnight? After a cam change? Etc.
Why: over revved? Oil gone? Unknown?
How: How was it? How'd it feel in the vehicle? Sound as bad as one would imagine? No warning? Warning signs were...? what parts flew out? Was it fixed after $$?

Specifically interested in timing belt/chain blow up experiences but all blows welcome.

 

[anonobomber]

I haven't personally blown one but I witnessed a blowing that was well deserved. A guy cut me off in the middle of nowhere when there wasn't a single car in front or behind me. He floored it in his ~99 Taurus and blew something pretty important as oil and smoke started spraying like crazy from under his car covering my windshield as I hit my brakes to avoid slamming into him from his wondrous cutoff maneuver. He pulled off to the side of the road shortly after and I gave him an ear to ear grin. I pulled over about a half mile later and used a couple microfiber towels and some invisible glass to clean up my windshield so I could see better.

 

[Corvette Owner]

Worse story I heard here was, person went in for an oil change. They drained his transmission oil and put more oil in oil fill, without checking oil dipstick. Person drove out and both engine and transmission failed.

 

[aquariuscsm]

Originally Posted By: anonobomber
I haven't personally blown one but I witnessed a blowing that was well deserved. A guy cut me off in the middle of nowhere when there wasn't a single car in front or behind me. He floored it in his ~99 Taurus and blew something pretty important as oil and smoke started spraying like crazy from under his car covering my windshield as I hit my brakes to avoid slamming into him from his wondrous cutoff maneuver. He pulled off to the side of the road shortly after and I gave him an ear to ear grin. I pulled over about a half mile later and used a couple microfiber towels and some invisible glass to clean up my windshield so I could see better.


Man I would've doubled back so I could drive by really slow and laugh/point at him. Maybe take a few pics haha!

 

[ArrestMeRedZ]

I was driving my 4 year old Datsun 2000 Roadster (56k miles, one rebuild by the previous owner) up a hill road in LA at about 50 mph when it got quiet and lost all power. Maybe 2600 RPM no unusual circumstances. Threw it into neutral and coasted to the shoulder. No warning signs, no parts flew out.
Broke the cam where it attached onto the chain sprocket. I suspect too much play in the chain caused a harmonic. Dimpled the pistons and bent all the valves.
I drove the car hard like most 20 year olds do, but within it's design capabilities. Problem was a design defect in the U20 engine. I later learned that the mechanics at the Datsun dealer would hide when they heard a 2000 Roadster approaching the dealership. Parts guys felt sorry for the owners, and offered a wholesale discount without even being asked.
I did a complete rebuild of the engine.

 

[turtlevette]

The vette had been making a loud clacking noise for a long time. I thought a piston skirt was broken as previously that's what it had sounded like. I was on the highway and some guy was following me when all of a sudden the noise stopped. The rod had gone through the oil pan and the engine continued to run pretty well. I had no idea what was going on until I inspected it later. The guy following me turned on his wipers so I suspected there might be a problem. I guess his car took an oil shower.

 

[NHGUY]

Was behind an old Ford Ranger a few years back,saw a bunch of smoke/steam and smelled coolant something fierce.The guy did not slow down,probably never even saw any steam (it was being blown out under the truck bed) and kept going.I pulled off at the next exit and don't know what happened,but I bet he didn't make it to the next exit after that..

 

[sciphi]

Wife's (was just girlfriend at the time) 1995 Ford Escort 1.9 with 149k miles. She was driving, and we were in the Savannah National Wildlife Refuge. We shut the car down to let some wildlife cross in front, and it made a horrible clacking sound when we attempted to fire it up. It wouldn't catch, just kept cranking and clacking and vibrating. It was isolated to one area of the engine, so likely a dropped valve. It was a long three hours for the tow truck with the occasional gator gliding by.

 

[turtlevette]

Was climbing a long hill in the old suburban when all of a sudden there was a huge screeching sound. Engine died. Pulled over and saw that acc belts had all come off. I put them back on but when I had the wife try to start the engine the crank pulley moved in and out. Broken crankshaft.

Jet boat engine came to a stop with a bang bang bang. Valve had sucked down into cylinder and grenaded the piston.

 

[Oil Changer]

'75 Vega. Head gasket went. Common problem.

 

[Bryankkkk]

Ford Escort- Brick on the Gas Pedal, until seized
Hyundai Elantra- Brick on the gas pedal, until seized.
Buick 3.8- Rod knock until it finally let go, was at low rpms unfortunately, wasn't very exciting.

Got 2 more intrepid's to do this year! the 2.7 is next for sure!!

I got maybe 5 or 6 more cars that we blew up but thats to much to list lol.

 

[bullwinkle]

Originally Posted By: sciphi
Wife's (was just girlfriend at the time) 1995 Ford Escort 1.9 with 149k miles. She was driving, and we were in the Savannah National Wildlife Refuge. We shut the car down to let some wildlife cross in front, and it made a horrible clacking sound when we attempted to fire it up. It wouldn't catch, just kept cranking and clacking and vibrating. It was isolated to one area of the engine, so likely a dropped valve. It was a long three hours for the tow truck with the occasional gator gliding by.
Bet you dropped a valve seat-that happened to my mother-in-law's 1.9 Tracer wagon, under 90K miles. Bye-bye car, "Quality is Job 1"!

 

[cb_13]

Do all the engines I killed during cash for clunkers count???
I've never had one blow but a co workers Chevy truck with 350 Vortech was leaking coolant internally because of the intake gasket. Spun a couple of rod bearings. Put a salvage yard engine in it after work one night and that engine spun a bearing as well!! That truck has some sort of voodoo curse on it, nothing but problems while he owned it.

 

[Cardenio327]

Detroit Diesel 12.7 liter.

Over 2 million miles on the engine, I would guess around 100,000~200,000 miles on rebuild.

Only truck in fleet tuned for over 500 hp, tuned to 600 hp if I remember right. One of very few that was opened up to 2150 rpm, almost all of the others set at 1800 rpm.

I let the Jake brake run by accident at about 2300 rpm, which is bad. A couple of miles later it made a brief Jake brake-esque noise even though the Jake brake was now shut off, then the engine stalled and would only crank over, not fire.

I never asked exactly what happened to it because it was basically my fault and I didn't want to draw attention to myself. I'll just assume it dropped or bent a few valves.

 

[Rhymingmechanic]

I used to help a guy work in his garage in exchange for his help working on my cars. He built a small block Chevy for a nephew, and I helped him install it in the kid's early-sixties shortbed pickup. The nephew lived an hour or two away, and drove the truck home after the initial break-in. He didn't make it all the way.

I can't remember if the pan had any holes through it, but it was sort of ballooned. The camshaft came out in pieces, at least one rod was broken, and the pan was full of metal chunks. The strangest thing was a connecting rod nut that was split and twisted open about 90 degrees.

I never blew an engine, but I lost a head gasket at about 100 mph one night in my Grand Prix. My passenger started shouting something about oil, and I saw the gauge needle sailing down from the normal 80 to zero. Antifreeze had sprayed out of the dipstick tube and up over the passenger side of the windshield.

 

[dja4260]

Drag boat race. Kicked rod through pan on a fresh 588ci BBC. My father was not pleased.

 

[earlyre]

worst i ever did was snap the timing belt on an 87 3.8l Olds 98. had the belt replaced($600), but after a week the car sounded like a meat grinder. But that was Nothing a Reman Jasper engine couldn't fix.

 

[Donald]

I was driving my Jeep maybe 30 or 40 MPH and it just died at about 11 PM. Engine would not turn over, like it was seized. I do not remember any loud noises, bang/clunk. Prior to that it had some tapping that I was told was a cracked piston skirt.

The engine was replaced and I was told on the old engine one of the pistons was no longer attached to the connecting rod. I assume a large chunk of piston skirt fell into the crank area and jammed things up.

Engine had 96K.

 

[BubbaFL]

Ford Explorer, 4.0 SOHC

Timing chain guides grenaded. Left cam chain broke and threw itself out through the valve cover.

Ford Windstar, 3.8L, head gasket leak, bent the connecting rod on #6.

 

[crazyoildude]

Too bad you blew them up engine shops pay 150+up for motors that can be rebuilt