Top end knock after TB replacement?

[nthach]

Originally Posted By: The_Eric
Originally Posted By: Brybo86
Originally Posted By: nthach
I also asked him if he ever checked his oil since I checked it out of curiousity last weekend and the dipstick was BONE DRY.

Your friend sounds like a real winner


So I'm a bit confused- in your original post you state the engine was a quart low. Now you're saying that the dipstick was bone dry.

What am I missing?


We drove the car around last Sunday to drop off a few camera batteries to someone who lives in the next town over. We stopped by Home Depot to get a bucket and the auto parts store to get some ATF and oil. I checked the dipstick and it was bone dry. I ask the friend did you ever check the oil and he said no, I let the quick lube take care of it. I added a quart of oil to the engine and it was now full.

 

[nthach]

And my worst case fear was confirmed - rod knock. Since Toyota never made the 5S-FE available in the JDM Camry, a used engine is out of the question and rod knock/spun bearings is a common thing in these engines, they don't tolerate low oil levels and it was leaking like a sieve.

 

[dishdude]

Originally Posted By: nthach
And my worst case fear was confirmed - rod knock. Since Toyota never made the 5S-FE available in the JDM Camry, a used engine is out of the question and rod knock/spun bearings is a common thing in these engines, they don't tolerate low oil levels and it was leaking like a sieve.


After all that work you just put into it? What a bummer.

 

[nthach]

Originally Posted By: dishdude
Originally Posted By: nthach
And my worst case fear was confirmed - rod knock. Since Toyota never made the 5S-FE available in the JDM Camry, a used engine is out of the question and rod knock/spun bearings is a common thing in these engines, they don't tolerate low oil levels and it was leaking like a sieve.


After all that work you just put into it? What a bummer.

It was a learning experience for both of us - I now tackled my first FWD timing belt and my friend said he learned first hand the importance of maintenance and checking your fluid levels. He's now looking for another Camry, a V6 model. He wants to get a new car but I told him to hold off until you're not a contract employee first.

If it was me, I'd rebuild the motor with a reground crank and oversize bearings

 

[CBR.worm]

Is it definitely a rod knock? Not that it ended much different, but a friend had a timing belt done at a shop on his Mazda. At some point in the process the crank got cracked which caused a knock. I didn't see the damage first hand.

 

[nthach]

Originally Posted By: CBR.worm
Is it definitely a rod knock? Not that it ended much different, but a friend had a timing belt done at a shop on his Mazda. At some point in the process the crank got cracked which caused a knock. I didn't see the damage first hand.

I'd read about short crank snouts on Mazdas and Nissans cracking. In this case it was a lack of PM - not checking his oil and not fixing 3 well-known oil leak hot spots on this particular engine(oil pump cover O-ring and 2 distributor O-rings) that led to his. When I yanked the old timing belt, it was more or less ready to go.

His sister also strangely enough has the same vintage Camry, so I will teach her a few basic maintenance skills.