General Mcgregor
Member
- 980
- 24
- 18
- Location
- Dover, New Hampshire
R.I.P My engine...
This morning before dawn I was driving South on rte 16 in Rochester NH on my way to work. The truck was running great, I was in the middle lane (the right lane was an on ramp that became it's own lane) going 55 at 2500rpm. It was still very dark outside and the traffic on the highway was starting to increase in volume.
Suddenly there was a loud bang followed by a horrible clattering noise and bad vibration. Smoke filled the cab as well as a bad smell of burning oil.
I immediately signaled to get over into the brakedown lane. Other drivers must have been aware that something had happend because they slowed and allowed me to cross. I rolled about 700 yards in the brakedown lane, the noise was extremely loud and I had no idea what was happening. My tach was reading normal RPMs and my temp gauge was normal as well, I was beginning to think it was something in my front axle or maybe transmission.
Once I came to a complete stop the noise was still there. I immediately applied the parking brake and shut down the engine. I got out and took a look under the hood. All I could see was smoke, it was too dark to see anything else and I just happend to be without my flashlight. I could see a fair ammount of oil dripping from the block and onto the roadway.
I was in a really crappy situation, only about 100 yards from my exit and less than a mile from work. If I called a tow truck I would have to miss the majoraty of the morning shift, I could have walked but in doing so I would have left my truck in unknown condition on the side of the highway during rush hour.
I thought back to a thread I remembered reading about an engine that had been blown apart, It occoured to me that the engine was still running after the failure and the only thing that stopped it was when the operator shut it down. I decided I would chance trying to start it and drive it off the highway(since the oil on the ground was a pretty good indication that I would need a new engine anyway). Sure enough it fired right up. I quickly got it into gear and started driving towards my exit. Miraculously it made it... ALL THE WAY TO MY WORK. Whats even more crazy is that it seemed to have no loss of power and even sounded normal a couple of times.
Pretty nuts considering I have a huge hole in the right side of my block....
Yup, looks like something happend with the second cylinder, the bottom of the connecting rod came right through the block.
Looks like it's do or die time, I need to find a new engine asap. I would like a direct fit replacement multifuel but it occurs to me that this might be a good opportunity to shop around a bit.
Pics tomorrow I promise...
-GM
This morning before dawn I was driving South on rte 16 in Rochester NH on my way to work. The truck was running great, I was in the middle lane (the right lane was an on ramp that became it's own lane) going 55 at 2500rpm. It was still very dark outside and the traffic on the highway was starting to increase in volume.
Suddenly there was a loud bang followed by a horrible clattering noise and bad vibration. Smoke filled the cab as well as a bad smell of burning oil.
I immediately signaled to get over into the brakedown lane. Other drivers must have been aware that something had happend because they slowed and allowed me to cross. I rolled about 700 yards in the brakedown lane, the noise was extremely loud and I had no idea what was happening. My tach was reading normal RPMs and my temp gauge was normal as well, I was beginning to think it was something in my front axle or maybe transmission.
Once I came to a complete stop the noise was still there. I immediately applied the parking brake and shut down the engine. I got out and took a look under the hood. All I could see was smoke, it was too dark to see anything else and I just happend to be without my flashlight. I could see a fair ammount of oil dripping from the block and onto the roadway.
I was in a really crappy situation, only about 100 yards from my exit and less than a mile from work. If I called a tow truck I would have to miss the majoraty of the morning shift, I could have walked but in doing so I would have left my truck in unknown condition on the side of the highway during rush hour.
I thought back to a thread I remembered reading about an engine that had been blown apart, It occoured to me that the engine was still running after the failure and the only thing that stopped it was when the operator shut it down. I decided I would chance trying to start it and drive it off the highway(since the oil on the ground was a pretty good indication that I would need a new engine anyway). Sure enough it fired right up. I quickly got it into gear and started driving towards my exit. Miraculously it made it... ALL THE WAY TO MY WORK. Whats even more crazy is that it seemed to have no loss of power and even sounded normal a couple of times.
Pretty nuts considering I have a huge hole in the right side of my block....
Yup, looks like something happend with the second cylinder, the bottom of the connecting rod came right through the block.
Looks like it's do or die time, I need to find a new engine asap. I would like a direct fit replacement multifuel but it occurs to me that this might be a good opportunity to shop around a bit.
Pics tomorrow I promise...
-GM