Ok so i bought a 1984 z28 for 500 dollers about 6 months ago. It ran good and all except it had a leak from under the tapet covers i guess they said its called. One day i forgot to check the oil and what happend was it started losing power and eventually died on the road. i opened the hood and the only thing that was odd is my radiator cap had steam pouring out... and now it wont start. I finally got someone to help me fix it and a little money to fix it and were starting today.... can u guys give me any pointers... o and my uncle checked it really quick and said that the engine is not seized and it sounds like it should be starting.. thanks

 

1) its dollars. Please learn to spell dollars...

2) Lets get back to the basics. Are you getting a)fuel b)air 3)spark? If you are getting all three....then what exactly is it that your engine IS or IS NOT doing? Is she firing and not starting? Coughing and sputtering out? Give us more description.

Now, for the more pressing matter.....if you got your car so hot that you had steam coming from the radiator there is a strong likelihood that overheated the engine and did all sorts of damage ranging from a cracked head to a cracked block. Have you checked your oil and coolant since?

 

scott, you forgot the fourth thing, compression. you can have all of the other 3, but without compression, it wont run. how easy does it turn over? can you turn it over with a 3/8 ratchet on the balancer bolt, or do you need more leverage? does it turn back some if you stop trying to turn it? running out of oil or coolant can cause a lot of issues. i just replaced the engine in an fj cruiser that was run 30 miles without coolant. i could turn the balancer by hand

 

Good call. So you wanna bet he fragged the engine???

 

Let's see....
Didn't keep an eye on the oil.
It overheated badly and quit.
Now it won't start.
Put me down for twenty dollers on a fragged engine!
By the way, the engine could have seized when it got too hot and did it's damage, but still be able to turn over once it cooled down.
You could have welded the rings to the pistons, and a compression test will tell what's up with that.

 

Poor kid. This one is gonna end up parked next to a barn somewhere....this is one kid I really feel sorry for. He didnt know much better and has had no instruction at all. Now his car is fragged. Hey newbie, where are you from? Maybe one of us could help you out?

 

I know, it's not a funny situation. And a dead Camaro is never a good thing. Sometimes life throws you some hard lessons, one you'll learn by and never forget.

 

Teach him to salvage the intake and carb and do an engine swap. Im not much for junkyard engines, but in many places (not by me) you can get a running SBC from a junkyard for 300-500 bucks. All he needs is a cherry picker, a 9/16th wrench and a mentor. (OK, maybe a few more sized wrenches)

 

one word, Beatttttt. its time for a motor built. my suggestion dont do it yourself find someone really smart n learn all you can. sorry about ur wallet though i hope you have the money for it

 

well me and my amateur mechanic friend got to inspecting, we did a compression test and found that all but 2 cllynders or w/e sorry for spelling, were only giving off 75. one was 151 and the other was 100. they werent even on the same side. Someone told me that it must be the timing chain... what do you think? o and im in mcalester oklahoma