Stuck Engines

[gkhashem]

This would be a first for me, I am going to be looking at a car that was taken out of long term storage with a stuck engine.

What should I be looking for so as to have some comfort that there was no damage done freeing it up.

[James Landi]

George,

I've had a good deal of experience with this kind of challenge.  My initial inspection would include the  following:

 Is there evidence of water in the crank case... an over full crank case can indicate that the cooling system was not treated with antifreeze, the block is cracked and ice in the water jackets defrosted and filled the crankcase with water--since water settles, oil will show on the dip stick as being very high and the tip of the dip stick may indicate some trace of water on the tip. TO verify this disaster, draining the crank case of the engine with a cracked block will provide ample evidence, as water will pour out before the oil. In this case, the engine may have some parts that are of value or have less than no value, as the engine must be removed and is junk.

An engine can be stuck when moisture accumulates in parked engines... the warmth of the day, cooling of the night creates droplets that, overtime rain down on the valve train and in the combustion chambers.  So if the radiator appears, upon inspection,  to be holding water, and the crankcase dipstick is showing a normal level, the engine can be stuck because of moisture and rust, as well. Perseverance, patience, and time are required to un stick this kind of engine challenge.  Removing the spark plugs, shooting in large amounts of PB Blaster Penetrating liquid, Marvel oil, ATC transmission oil... all help to break up the rust and lubricate the cylinder walls.  Letting that mixture sit in the cylinders will help you to begin the process--it is,  oft times, an arduous task of slowly moving the crankshaft to break the rust.  Sometimes a wrench on the front pulley with a long breaker bar can turn  the crankshaft a fraction of an inch (this is progress!) ... sometimes, "bumping" the starter momentarily will gradually break the engine loose.  Sometimes, getting the service plate off of the bell housing and using a crowbar on the ring gear can provide the necessary leverage. I've encountered situations where I've had to remove the cylinder heads, and by doing so, provided an opportunity to inspect the valve train, check for valve movement (in the valve guides), and then visually assess just how many cylinders appear to be most challenged with rust. Applying the rust breaking solutions in each cylinder and monitoring the drop in liquid is a good indication of how stuck an engine is.

I've had satisfactory success by patiently applying rust penetrating solvents and physical force that, over time, gets the engine un-stuck.. Once that is accomplished, getting the engine to turn over without plugs, taking compression readings, and assessing the condition of the ignition system ,carburetor, fuel pump, gas tank, and finally the cooling system are all very important steps in the process of successfully bringing a car back to life.   There are many YOU TUBERS who do this on a weekly basis... I suggest that you explore "Vice Gripe Garage" as he resurrects old, stored cars, and his process and approach is sound.   Hope this helps, James   

[TJ Hopland]

It is free and running now or just free or is it still stuck?   If its still stuck are they saying they tried to free it?

[dn010]

In my case, the last time I had to deal with this, I had an engine that apparently blew a head gasket. The coolant went into one of the cylinders and the car was parked and left that way for decades. When I got ahold of the car, I removed all the plugs and filled the cylinders with Marvel Mystery Oil. Two days later between hitting the starter and at the same time using a socket with breaker bar on the crank pulley bolt, it began rotating little by little until, finally, it was free. That engine ran, it was smoking pretty badly and ultimately I ended up pulling the heads to find one of the rings on the piston that was stuck had broken and the cylinder was scored.

Back then I didn't have a bore scope, now they are very cheap and small - if you have one, I'd send it down into the cylinders first to see what you're dealing with. I'd also send it down into the crank case or anywhere else you can access to rule out bent or broken parts before trying to get it rotating.

[gkhashem]

The car is running now. Just looking for any telltale damage lurking.

[TJ Hopland]

I think you will have to just go by what the sellers tell you.  Only other option would be for you to tear down the engine and look for damage yourself which doesn't seem like it would be worth the trouble if it seems to be performing correctly. 

Is this such a high value car that its really going to make a difference?

I'm thinking you just treat it like any other used car. 

[dn010]

If it is now running I am back to putting a borescope down the plug holes. Check the cylinder walls. Does it smoke?

[Clewisiii]

I naively thought I would be able to break my engine free and slowly work it around with a tune up and start it.

Not a chance. It was completely rusted solid. I had to pull the engine and trans together, unbolt all the pistons from the crank in order to rotate the trans to separate it.


I broke two pistons beating them out of the cylinders. And that was after soaking in Marvels and a gallon of PB for a month.



There was oil in the pan. but no water in the block. but lots of rust.





I had bought new heads. I was surprised the machine shop wanted to restore the originals.

[James Landi]

"The car is running now. Just looking for any telltale damage lurking."

 I'd use a vacuum gauge-- highly revealing and EASY and quick.  I'd check the relative level of blowby...I'd use a borescope , as suggested,  and do a compression test...You'd know if your first trip will be to an engine rebuilder or not. Also, check to ensure the head gaskets aren't leaking using a carbon monoxide test of the cooling system .   Tell us what you discovered.  James