seized engine

[darv]

Me and my husband recently purchased a 95 eclipse gst with a dsm motor he tried driving it this morning he made it about 3 miles away from home and the car died and he couldn't get it to start you can here it trying to turn over but hear a grinding noise while doing so. I've worked on turners in the past but not on a dsm motor please help

 

[Colt4G63 also]

Maybe just a dead battery?

 

[darv]

Brand new battery and alternator

 

[Colt4G63 also]

So you have been having charging/electrical problems... Or are you saying it's brand new since this morning?

 

[darv]

We were losing voltage a few days ago so we replaced the battery thinking it was that but still didn't fix the problem so we swapped out the alternator and everything was working fine.we have been having a cooing issue and an unknown oil leak but the oil was not low.

 

[BogusSVO]

Grinding as the bendix grinding on the flywheel, or grinding like the in the engine?

Unknown oil leak may be the root issue if it is on the timing belt stripped the teeth off n bent the valves.

It should sound like the engine spins a bit too fast.

 

[darv]

We couldn't tell where the grinding was coming from. That's why were so confused. It was working fine yesterday . how can we tell if its the bendix?

 

[Mauispyder]

Hopefully you have the car back home. Try jumping with another vehicle. Besides horrible stuff like timing belts, cars will die if the alternator is bad or installed wrong. It has gas? Jack up and turn the crank with a wrench (wiill have to remove the driver side wheel well splash shield. If you want you can take off the upper timing cover before you do this to inspect the belt as you go. Only turn clockwise. It'll be easier without spark plugs. And don't force it! If all that checks out I'd start checking sensors, wire connections, fuses, relays, starter/solenoid. Good luck, these are great cars!

 

[darv]

Ok we will have try that and yes it is home and has almost a full tank of gas

 

[BogusSVO]

If the bendix is bad, it will clunk then grind on the flywheel, commonly the engine will not turn over.

The bendix is the small kick out gear on the starter

 

[darv]

Crank shaft turns fine cam gears aren't moving..something with the timing? Any suggestions

 

[edged1g]

Crank shaft turns fine cam gears aren't moving..something with the timing? Any suggestions

Timing belt is the only link between crank sprocket and cam gears. (Other pulleys in between). Pull the lower timing cover off and inspect. (Requires removing driver side engine mount and accessory belts)

 

[hotrodssnova]

Sounds like oil got on the timing belt and stripped the teeth of the belt.

 

[Colt4G63 also]

The timing belt is broken. You'll need to pull the head and do a valve job and timing belt and timing components. Make sure the oil pump and balance shafts still spin freely while you're in there, and it would be a good time to toss a new water pump on there too. Make sure you are familiar with how the rear balance shaft is timed, because it spins at a different rate from the oil pump pulley. If you simply line up the mark, there's a 2 in 3 chance it's out of phase.

 

[BogusSVO]

Crank shaft turns fine cam gears aren't moving..something with the timing? Any suggestions

Timing belt is stripped teeth or busted,

Chances are better than 95% you now have bent valves and cracked guides.

Pull the VC, look for out of place rockers and compressed springs that should not be.

 

[Mauispyder]

Google - eclipse timing belt VFAQ and Kim Steele timing belt
That should take you to two Very Good sites to walk you through a timing and balance shaft belt procedure. Print em and read em until it makes sense. Heads are out of my league so I'd remove and take it to a shop, but you might be proficient at replacing valves so that would save you a bit. Make sure to replace the hydraulic timing belt tensioner and the water pump! If I could do it I'm sure you can too! Once it's apart you'll probably see where the oil came from, although it is possible that the oil is a red herring and the tensioner just gave up. Also plenty of good you tube videos on how to align the balance shaft before putting the new belt on.

 

[hotrodssnova]

And don't forget to find the oil leak that caused this to begin with. Chances are its the oil pump seal, or the castle nut o ring.

 

[Anmasher]

Oil leaks kill belts so definitely find and fix that when you do the belt. Normally a belt in car vs on an engine stand is a toss up, but since you almost certainly have to pull the head I would pull the engine and set it on a stand to the whole job. Much easier and you can clean it up and change all leaking gaskets. Craigslist has cheap engine stands and hoists and the job is not much harder than an in car timing belt job.

 

[miliman13]

Well at least Its not actually seized. For that you would of had to bleeded dry. And that would of required aLot more building.

 

[darv]

Thank you everyone for the help and ideas. Now we just need to get it running again and hopefully it is just the timing, and would any of you know why a clutch would stick when it was just replaced also.

 

[darv]

Oil leaks kill belts so definitely find and fix that when you do the belt. Normally a belt in car vs on an engine stand is a toss up, but since you almost certainly have to pull the head I would pull the engine and set it on a stand to the whole job. Much easier and you can clean it up and change all leaking gaskets. Craigslist has cheap engine stands and hoists and the job is not much harder than an in car timing belt job.

All the gaskets were just put in the person we bought the car from resealed the engine about a month before we purchased it

 

[Mauispyder]

Hopefully that won't be a problem then. As you take it apart, keep your new DSM family posted. When I did mine I took the opportunity to pull the front bumper and change the hazy headlights. That also made it easier to pull the stock side mount intercooler and check the condition.

 

[Anmasher]

Thank you everyone for the help and ideas. Now we just need to get it running again and hopefully it is just the timing, and would any of you know why a clutch would stick when it was just replaced also.

Maybe the clutch pedal needs adjusted? Jacks Transmissions has a video on how to do it. That is the easy way; otherwise improper installation or gross clutch failure are about the only other two.

 

[Mauispyder]

Do you mean sticks as in goes to the floor and stays? If so, bad clutch master or slave or air in lines.

 

[darv]

Do you mean sticks as in goes to the floor and stays? If so, bad clutch master or slave or air in lines.

It sticks when you put it in gear and grinds when you try to put it in reverse