Originally Posted By: bigt61
Originally Posted By: UltrafanUK
Originally Posted By: bigt61
UOA wasn't that bad considering. That screwdriver may have already done enough damage to kill it. Once you start breaking up that carbon by hand, it usually doesn't end well unless you pull the motor apart and go all the way. In this case, not worth it. I'd just button it up and run cheap dino for 3000 mile OCIs with cheap filters. Keep it topped off and hope for the best, you may get lucky - those motors are pretty tough.
How on earth do you think a cheap dino is going to shift what is some serious sludge and varnish, some kind of miracle ??
It will take at least a day for a good car mechanic with the right tools to clean it properly top and bottom. Even if it is fully cleaned there is no guarantee that the engine has not already been damaged. The HG, VVT, turbo and timing chain are all potential weak points for an engine with poor oil flow iisues. Oddly enough when some muppet fails to change the oil the turbo will often fail well before any other parts and that does offer some degree of protection to the block.
For some odd reason some folks think that a major brand idle only use flush can damage an engine during the 10 or 15 mins it is in use, when I've never known of such an issue. If the engine is also a dripper in addition to a black death victim, I would use an engine stop leak additive or switch to a thicker HM oil, depending on how bad the leak is.
This is a 95 Caprice - a beater worth $500 to $1000 at best. Any money spent on trying to desludge it is wasted IMO. Just keep it running on cheap dino and keep it topped off if it leaks. That's it. Save your money for a nicer, newer next car.
I disagree with part of your statement. It may be a beater car to you but it's a treasure to me. As the saying goes- "one mans trash is another mans treasure." KBB has it worth at $1,500 and change but they go for a lot more on ebay. Even before my TC was totaled, I was searching these Caprices with the lt1. Just so happens when my car was totaled this particular one came up right after. It was meant to be, per say. Could have I afforded to buy a newer car? Sure, not brand new but you get the point. Here's a couple of pics. No cracks in the dash or leather. Original paint.