Yes, synthetic oil probably helped a lot. I'd do a compression test and maybe stick a boroscope into the cylinders if I had one before tearing into it. If it isn't hydrolocked and it starts and runs, you could also look for bubbles in the coolant overflow tank. When the headgasket failed on my Landcruiser, I could smell the hydrocarbons in the overflow tank and see the bubbles even though it was running fine.

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1977 300d 70k--sold 08
1985 300TD 185k+
1984 307d 126k--sold 8/03
1985 409d 65k--sold 06
1984 300SD 315k--daughter's car
1979 300SD 122k--sold 2/11
1999 Fuso FG Expedition Camper
1993 GMC Sierra 6.5 TD 4x4
1982 Bluebird Wanderlodge CAT 3208--Sold 2/13

If you are lucky it will just be a blown headgasket but it sounds like the distance is kinda a long way without cooling (10 miles). Be glad it is not in a BMW product.

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Jim

I believe in taking the 'extra steps' necessary to add value and entertainment to my life experience.

Wish I knew just how far I drove in the red...certainly no more than 7-8 because that's closer to how far away I was from home when I discovered the problem. It probably only ran hot 4-5 miles but, that was at highway speed.

When I refilled the cooling system, it was bubbling. Definitely leaking someplace.

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Never a dull moment at Berry Hill Farm.

Dang, Randy, that sucks!

You gotta get back to the old iron head diesels which would shrug this off like nothing!

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[SIGPIC] Diesel loving autocrossing grandpa Architect. 08 Dodge 3/4 ton with Cummins & six speed; I have had about 35 benzes. I have a 39 Studebaker Coupe Express pickup in which I have had installed a 617 turbo and a five speed manual.[SIGPIC]

..I also have a 427 Cobra replica with an aluminum chassis.

I have FIXED MANY things until there were BROKE.

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For the Saved, this world is the worst it will ever get.
For the unSaved, this world is the best it will ever get.

Clk's Ebay Stuff BUY SOMETHING NOW!!!

Haw!

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Never a dull moment at Berry Hill Farm.

That's right, I said it.

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For the Saved, this world is the worst it will ever get.
For the unSaved, this world is the best it will ever get.

Clk's Ebay Stuff BUY SOMETHING NOW!!!

Contact Venus Auto here in Sacramento.


They get engines all day long from Japan with very low miles.

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-Justin

91 560 SEC AMG - other dogs dd
01 Honda S2000 - dogs dd
07 MB ML320 CDI - dd
16 Lexus IS250 - wifes dd

it's automatic.

X2.

I completely understand the potential for one slight mistake to ruin your entire day.

Not quite as bad...........but, I backed the BMW out of it's shed in the dark and got the angle wrong.........too much swing. Checked the sideview mirror to look for the cement pillar at the driveway entrance to square it up and realized that I was way wide of it...........and heading further right.

Hit the brake.........just at the moment the RR bumper hits the old Dodge van (sitting awaiting the junkyard). Of course, the van couldn't care less. The BMW, however, completely destroyed the plastic POS bumper and it wraps all the way around the vehicle.

My sincere condolonces...........my $500. mistake pales in comparison.

Anybody heard of them? They're in Arlington, TX. They have B20Z long blocks in stock. Their eBay listing for one is $1250 buy it now but I'd probably just go to them direct.

I haven't ruled out pulling the head, just doing some surfing to see what options there are out there.

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Never a dull moment at Berry Hill Farm.

maybe an entire running car wrecked from the rear? im always nervous about engines that I get to hear a great story about how well they ran from the PO or yard selling them.

do these guys have any consumer ratings or reviews?

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This post brought to you by Carl's Jr.

another story for R Leo to feel better-

Guy I know who lives down the street, had a 98 or 99 volvo wagon, 5-speed, was in mint condition with low miles before the event I will describe.

He went way out of his way to find an in town apartment that had its own included private garage, which was a little stand along building from the teens with just enough room to park a modern car in it.

Hes a bit of an excitable guy, one day while starting to back out, he starts to scrape one side of the garage. Unbelievable, he has three thoughts that coincide, one, to get out and inspect the damage, two, to cut the wheel the other way and get away from the wall, and three, to get completely out of the garage.

So what he does is open the drivers door, crank the wheel all the way the other direction, and floor the gas in reverse.

ends up bending the door so bad its nearly ripped off as it catches the garage wall, destroying the front fender on the driver side, wrecking the door and front fender on the passenger side, tweaking the hood and front clip, and damaging the driver side suspension when the car slams into the garage stone entrance. End of the story is he totals his pristine car trying to back out of the garage.

I walked down there with another friend and we were both speechless looking at the chaos.

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This post brought to you by Carl's Jr.

Many years ago I had a roommate who had a little Civic (the early ones) and the brakes were in need of replacement. I offered to "give him a hand" with them and didn't really understand his reluctance to approach this basic task...and then he shared this story.

He wanted to change the oil, everyone told him how simple it was. He had some basic tools, so he purchased a drain pan, filter, filter wrench and oil, and slid under the car. He removed the drain plug and let it drain, and then put the plug back in. He changed the filter. Then he added the fresh oil. It looked a little high on the dipstick but his friends had told him it would be a little high until he'd run it to circulate the new oil.

It cranked a little funny, started okay, and as it started to warm up, it just sounded funny, so he revved it a little and the engine quit, with smoke pouring from under the hood. He opened the hood and there was oil around in various places and he couldn't tell where it came from, so he tried starting it again and it just clunked.

It turned out that he'd actually drained the transmission fluid, and then of course overfilled the engine; the theory was that when he revved it it was enough to have the oil level just high enough for a descending piston skirt -- and you can't compress fluids. While the engine was pretty clearly toast, they also assumed the transmission was in pretty bad shape since it had been run on very little fluid. In any event, it was an older car anyway, and this was it's swan song on the way to the boneyard.

That's when he bought the Civic.

Then I understood his reluctance.

Good luck with the replacement engine, R Leo. It certainly sucks, but in the end, it's just some time and money. No one got hurt, there's no long-lasting damage, and you sound as though you're able to grin at yourself, albeit wryly.

Thanks everyone for your support and anecdotes, it helps to keep it all in perspective.

I did more surfing on JIS Engines and I won't be using them. They have a 99.9% rating on eBay but practically all of those purchases were for parts, not engines. Googling "JIS Engines" hit several Japanese car forums (Toyota, Nissan) and none of the comments regarding their engines were good.

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Never a dull moment at Berry Hill Farm.

A fellow I used to work for about 40 years ago liked to entertain at his house. One day he was planning a big todo at his house that evening and was helping prepare for it.

He drove a big T bird ( this was the era when T birds had 430 cubic inch engines with about 500 ft lb of torque so when you punched it they really lept).

As he pulled into the garage in a hurry he accidentally hit the gas instead of the brake and drove through the end wall of the garage....when the car did not slow down he had pushed harder on the gas thinking it was the brake. The dining room was on the other side of the garage wall. The T bird went into the dining room scattering finger food which had been carefully laid out on the table everywhere, and as the wall had been a bearing wall the bedroom above was now sinking into the whole mess, ending up on the roof of the t bird.

So funny things can happen. The biggest problem for Randy is that the engine is not covered by insurance,

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[SIGPIC] Diesel loving autocrossing grandpa Architect. 08 Dodge 3/4 ton with Cummins & six speed; I have had about 35 benzes. I have a 39 Studebaker Coupe Express pickup in which I have had installed a 617 turbo and a five speed manual.[SIGPIC]

..I also have a 427 Cobra replica with an aluminum chassis.