My '91 corolla has got terminal rod knock and its sounding twice as bad as it did last monday. I figure I have less than a week before I'm driving down the road and hear my click click click click end suddenly with a click click clack clack clunk.
I get the knock at idle, under acceleration, and while on the highway, but it doesnt happen all the time (but most of the time for sure)... Sometimes it will go away if i coast in gear and lightly press the gas to load the engine a bit, but as soon as I let off the gas again (or press deeper) the clack comes back. Last monday it would only knock loudly when I held steady revs w/no load or when I first started the engine. It would also knock during the breif oil starvation when going around an exit ramp at speed. The rest of the time you could hear a little unhappy sounding whirr and occasional click click. I have been driving more conservatively than usual in an effort to prolong the life of my engine as much as I can, and the oil is full... How long do you think it'll go like this?

I plan on putting a new engine in my car but I'll need something to drive in the mean time. Something $500-1500. I'm thinking about a '91 teg, crx, another corolla, or something. What do you guys think?

10/10/2005 9:57:55 AM

really impossible to say how long it'll last. could go for another 1000 miles or it could go another 2 miles. my ram has had a light rod knock for the past 6-8k miles. switch up to heavier oil like 20w-50, that'll help it live a little longer. or just dump a couple bottles of that mollasses looking "smoke away" stuff they sell at the parts stores in with the oil that's in there. i would really reccomend just doing a quick and dirty bearing replacement on it though. that's probably your best bet financially in the long run. less physical work than replacing/rebuilding a motor too.

10/10/2005 10:35:33 AM

1. put in thick oil
2. sell
3.
4. profit

10/10/2005 10:37:40 AM

or you could hold it on the floor in neutral and take video.

10/10/2005 10:41:06 AM

Demolition derby candidate...

10/10/2005 10:44:27 AM

rod bearings are cheap, and it doesnt take long to drop the oil pan and pop the caps, id throw some in there and save the engine for now until you can do it right. it would take less than 3 or 4 hours and at about 30 bucks for some bearings, its worth not destroying the crank

10/10/2005 10:48:04 AM

I didnt realize it was that easy to replace the bearings. If it makes it through this week (with some heavier oil) I'll fix it this weekend.

I did kinda want an excuse to buy a car. A fellow corolla enthusiast (dont laugh ok) offered me a short ratio transmission and a 4age, so I have been considering swappin all that and make it into an autox/race car, and I'll certainly need another ride in the interim.

If I get a new car before she blows I'll set a brick on the pedal and film the fireworks.

The demo derby is out of the question as I want to keep the body

[Edited on October 10, 2005 at 12:16 PM. Reason : d]

10/10/2005 12:15:54 PM

Quote :

"I didnt realize it was that easy to replace the bearings."

it's not, he doesn't know what he's talking about. on a fwd car, expect to spend about a full day doing it. the majority of that time is spent getting everything out of the way to drop the pan, then putting it back into place. it's not all that hard, but it is a little time consuming on a fwd.

10/10/2005 12:23:21 PM

That figures. Guess I'll pull out some cash and see what I can find. Anybody know of any for sale deals right now? I've been looking but more options are always nice.

Thanks you all.

10/10/2005 12:55:34 PM

Hey Ivan,

How long does it take to replace rod bearings on a 6VE1?

10/10/2005 1:13:59 PM

well after adding a bottle of high viscosity no smoke oil stuff it does not sound any better

10/10/2005 1:28:38 PM

^^dude, i can do them in like 20 minutes, no problem easy as hell.

ask Tuite how long it takes to destroy them (twice)

10/10/2005 2:02:50 PM

Dude...it all depends on which 'yota chassis you have as to how hard it is to replace rod bearings. I can do the Teg's in about 4 hours, 'cuz I have no lower crossmember in my way.

It's not really THAT hard, and you might be able to get a few more miles outta 'er.

If it's like my Teg was, though, I threw some bearings at it, and it replied by spinning them in less than 20 miles. Then I took a hard look at the dent in the oil pan (which I had paid no mind before), and I got a look at the imprint of the oil pickup on the inside of the pan.

10/10/2005 3:03:00 PM

Ivan,

when I found out that zu is putting the new DI engines in all new rod bearing warranty claims, I was almost tempted to drive around town with no oil in the engine

10/10/2005 3:04:02 PM

without reading the thread, i'll say...

once upon a time, i had a 3000GT with rod knock. i pulled the motor, replaced the crank with a new forged one and new bearings and that was that, ran fine...so, if the crank isn't fucked, just pull the pan if possible and replace the bearings for now.

the only issues i had were because the person who had rebuilt the motor before i bought it had had the crank turned by possibly the shitties machinst ever...you could feel the grooves on every crank bearing surface when i pulled it apart from where he had turned them. i called the guy i bought it from and he said the machinist told him it'd help break in the bearings with it being just a little rough like that . it was rough enough to completely destroy the bearings in about 3K miles...none of them 'spun' thank god so i didn't have to even pull the top end apart or replace the rods, just wore so bad they were smacking around like hell. my oil pan looked like somebody had poured flakes of bronze in the bottom when i pulled it apart . Oh well, that was one fast fucking car when I was done, AWD is awesome. Ok, enough rambling for me, back to school work, hope you get it going.

10/10/2005 3:12:28 PM

^^^my point exactly. it takes you, a very experienced wrench turner, 4 hours to do them on a best case scenario.
^^that's pretty sweet, i didn't know that. i dunno how isuzu went so backwards on their bottom ends. the 4zd1 and 4ze1 bottom ends are nearly indestructable. if you look at a 3.2/3.5 the wrong way they'll spin one...

[Edited on October 10, 2005 at 3:14 PM. Reason : .]

10/10/2005 3:13:52 PM

Ivan,

seems to be hit or miss on the bearings really.

My 3.2 was still going strong at 210k and my 3.5 shows no signs of crapping the bed yet.

I baby that damn engine though every oil change.

10/10/2005 3:22:26 PM

when i was at thompson, there was one in there at least every 2 weeks with a knock.

10/10/2005 3:43:28 PM

there are a lot of idiots out there that don't take care of their shit.

10/10/2005 3:53:02 PM

yeah but you go overboard.

new pcv valve every oil change

m1 every 3k?

might as well use m1 truck and suv plus a bypass filter if you're that paranoid.

10/10/2005 4:04:19 PM

^pcv at every oil change actually isn't a bad idea with those motors. they're notrious for excessive oil consumption due to a poor pcv system design that clogs/dirtys up the valve within a few thousand miles.
^^per warranty requirements, test were done on all oil samples. there were only 2 cases where neglect was an issue. most were regularly serviced at the dealer every 3-5k miles.

10/10/2005 4:17:55 PM

well hell man, what were they thinking?

thats pretty shitty of isuzu to do.

what about a pcv catchcan?

10/10/2005 4:28:03 PM

Quote :

"it's not, he doesn't know what he's talking about. on a fwd car, expect to spend about a full day doing it. the majority of that time is spent getting everything out of the way to drop the pan, then putting it back into place. it's not all that hard, but it is a little time consuming on a fwd."

Quote :

"My '91 corolla has got terminal rod knock "

i don't know about you, but it doesnt take me a full day to remove a plastic mud guard to drop the oil pan on a corolla

10/10/2005 7:58:37 PM

i'll offer you the same challenge i did when you were spewing about how fast you can do a clutch. i'll provide the shop and tools, maybe dustm will provide the car. i want to see it done (properly) in 3-4 hours.

10/10/2005 8:07:52 PM

I have done an engine swap on that era corolla before, if you have any questions, just ask ill try to help. I have seen you have the mechanical ability that If you dedicate youself, and arent a hamfisted klutz, it can be done in a weekend. If youre just gonna swap it out anyway, I wouldnt waste the time/money on slapping some bearings in it just to squeeze a few more days out of it.

Which engine is it?


2WD, 4AGE eng
2WD, 4AFE eng, Fed and Canada
2WD, 4AFE eng, Calif

69, talking out your ass yet again. Even though access to the pan isnt very obstructed, bottom line ITS NOT WORTH it to this fella to put a bandaid on what is a gaping wound.

[Edited on October 10, 2005 at 8:17 PM. Reason : .]

10/10/2005 8:12:34 PM

for just rod bearings? hell yeah, i was throwing 3-4 hours up there for an inexperienced shade tree mechanic, i'm gonna look at the '92 corrolla i was putting cv axles in today at work just to make sure i dont stick my foot in my mouth, but i dare say i could pop those fuckers in there in less than 2, and thats including a dozen cigarette breaks and going out to lunch. i know where you're coming from, some can be a bitch, but on the early 90's corrollas, there is no crossmember in the way, so no taking off engine mounts, jacking shit up, unbolting half the damn front suspension, its pretty cut and dry. hell if you ask me, putting an oil pump or bearings in a 88-96 4wd chevy pickup is more time consuming than even the most irritating fwd. damn you to hell chevrolet, and your oil pickup tube thats .000001" too long to slide the pan over the crossmember.

dont underestimate the power of patch jobs, if it hasnt spun a bearing and there is no major damage to the crank or rods, then it should last another few thousand, or at least enough to sell the car to a born loser

[Edited on October 10, 2005 at 8:19 PM. Reason : just read opt's post]

[Edited on October 10, 2005 at 8:45 PM. Reason : blah just look at my new thread]

10/10/2005 8:17:40 PM

ivan,

not only the PCV, but now we've identified a flaw with the EGR valve gasket. Oil squirts up through there too.

10/10/2005 8:57:18 PM

Quote :

"i'm gonna look at the '92 corrolla i was putting cv axles in today at work"

what, you didnt have 40 minutes time to actually finish that job today? you dont need to awnser

10/10/2005 9:39:11 PM

http://thewolfweb.com/message_topic.aspx?topic=356651

SILVER TOP MOTHER FUCKER

10/10/2005 10:24:10 PM

That certainly would be a zippy little tercel... I need a car with more room than that would offer, and besides, you cant polish a turdcel.

10/11/2005 10:54:30 AM

^^^ no dumbass, i finished that one up at 7 last night before i left, the fuckers sure as hell werent gonna pick it up before i went to work at 6:30 this morning

10/11/2005 12:06:36 PM

95 chevy s-10

$1500

10/11/2005 5:11:44 PM