Why do I seem to get all the weird problems?

[Jim Blackwood]

Here is the scenario... '91 stock 1.3L was running OK, had a dribbly injector and had hydrolocked a couple times but then cleared. Went to start it one morning and wouldn't crank. Ended up putting a ratchet on the damper bolt and it turns less than half a turn. Pulled the engine to swap in a 1.6 but pulled the pan and it got weirder. Hard stop when the pistons get near the top (in pairs of course). Cam rotates, valves go up and down, nothing so far looks amiss. Except the engine won't go past that almost half turn. Bores look clear with the borescope. Whiskey Tango Foxtrot?

I'm really concentrating on the 1.6 install at this point and will figure this out later but anyone ever heard of such a thing? No witness marks in the crankcase from things hitting where they shouldn't, no loose or broken rods. Haven't pulled the front cover yet but that'll happen since I need one for the 1.6L, and it's a hard stop with no give to it at all. How could a single failure possibly cause this?

Jim

 

[redidbull]

Something to do with a main bearing maybe? Pull the timing belt off to isolate head and block. Jim

 

[Jim Blackwood]

Yep, good idea, I will try that tomorrow.

Jim

 

[Jim Blackwood]

Definitely a problem in the bottom end. Pulled the timing belt and the cam turns freely with the usual spring resistance. The crank does less than a half turn and hits a hard stop in about the same position with 1 and 4 up then 2 and 3 up.

This is bizarre. Immediate thought is object in the cylinder but in two of them? And the borescope shows clean. Any ideas?

Jim

 

[redidbull]

Definitely a problem in the bottom end. Pulled the timing belt and the cam turns freely with the usual spring resistance. The crank does less than a half turn and hits a hard stop in about the same position with 1 and 4 up then 2 and 3 up.

This is bizarre. Immediate thought is object in the cylinder but in two of them? And the borescope shows clean. Any ideas?

Jim

Is the trans out of gear? Jim

 

[Jim Blackwood]

Engine is out of the vehicle. Flywheel, pan and timing belt are removed.

Jim

 

[redidbull]

Engine is out of the vehicle. Flywheel, pan and timing belt are removed.

Jim

Keep us updated. I'm very curious. Jim

 

[Jim Blackwood]

One of these is not like the others....

Happily I have spares.
A block with no ridge,
A crank with no marks,
even probably a good set of bearings,
and probably even a good set of rings.
Will need gaskets tho. Take two bad ones and make one good.
Once reassembled this can go in the parts Sammy, perhaps reviving it from a premature end.

Leaving me with a potentially usable block and head. Now why is it that heads and intakes are scarce?

Jim