As some of you know I did a full rebuild of a 2.6l for my Amigo. And with about 1500 miles on it I started having some problems.
Out of the blue (while driving) a really bad sound started. A kind of grinding; metal on metal sound that held with the engine RPM, and not the vehicle speed. (Like a really bad wheal bearing sound, but from the engine) Along with an erratic idle that fluctuated between 100 and 600 rpm. The base idle was set to about 1000rpm. (It was hard to keep it running without giving it gas)
I decided to drive it home (about 10 miles). And had no real problems other than the really bad sound. And of course when I would come to a traffic signal I would have to rev the motor to keep it running. It shifted fine with no odd feelings through the clutch, or anything else that pointed to the problem.
There was a bit of a power loss but not huge. It might have just been my imagination. And the fact that I wasnÆt trying to really get on the gas.
Since then I pulled a lot of stuff apart but I have yet to see anything that could cause my problems. I did a manual crank compression test and it looked good. I put a manual starter on it and turned it over, and couldnÆt really hear anything bad, or locate the sound. Although even after about 25-30 seconds of solid cranking I couldnÆt get the oil to come up into the head where I could see it. (Not sure if it should, or not come up that quick)
So IÆm not sure where to go from here. I havenÆt really worked on it for a couple months. Partly because itÆs been so hot here, and partly because I was so frustrated with the problem. I pulled the timing belt off this morning and spun the oil pump by hand. It turns easily.
Right now IÆm thinking about putting it back together and maybe taking it to a shop. But I know if I do that IÆm going to end up spending at least $1000. And they might not be able to find the problem. And they might screw something else up.
So, what should I do?
Put it back together and try to locate the sound with a stethoscope while itÆs running?
Put it back together and take it to a shop?
Pull the head off and see if I can see anything thats obviously wrong?
Or, Light it on fire, and go get something new.
