errr - do i need a new engine?

[Meghan]

welllllllll... it was raining really hard cuz we were getting one of those Tropical Storm Eduardo bands and I was driving along going slow and avoiding puddles at all costs... i have a CAI... I pulled up to a red light and then went to take off again and my car had NO power whatsoever... so i pulled into a parking lot right then... my friend that was following me got in my car to see what was going on and i started driving in the parking lot... it was driving fine... then BAM... it shut off violently... threw me forward and i hit the steering wheel :uch::... and then it wouldn't start again... it didn't make any weird noises

had it towed to the closest dealership and they called me the next day to tell me that theres water on my pistons and all in my intake... he also used the term "hydrolocked"... now i know if i hydrolocked it then i filled a whole cylinder up with water, correct? and more than likely cracked the cylinder wall, bent a rod, etc... he said i needed a new engine, well since thats not something thats covered under warranty and i really wanted a second opinion i went and picked it up... while i was there i asked him what was cracked, bent, or broken in the engine - he said NOTHING... now why can't they just flush out my engine, change the oil, plugs, etc and be done with it if it didn't cause any internal damage??

i took it to a different place and i'm waiting for my insurance company to go and look at my car - its covered under comprehensive damages - but the place won't touch it until insurance gets there...

what do yall think??

[AUTOBOT]

If it hydrolocked you will need a new engine or atleast a rebuild which can be just as costly as a new engine.

[coupe2k]

I hydrolocked my Saturn SC2 without a CAI during some bad storms here in Minnesota (don't ask– I still don't know how). Mine just stopped running. I had no idea until it was towed to the dealer.

It was covered under insurance, but my insurance opted for the rebuild.



[Edited by coupe2k on Sep 11, 2002 7:59 PM]

[jrh382]

Thats why when you get a CAI, you should get a AEM bypass valve to avoid problems like this. Better safe then sorry.

But to get an engine to hydrolock, you have to be in a lot of water. I mean, is your filter almost touching the ground? Usually its under the battery or in the fenderwall, and you would have to be in a few feet of water to have any problems for it to reach that high.

[BlackDevil]

i don't believe the whole cylinder has to be full. water doesn't compress, no matter how little there is in there. there does have to be a substantial amount tho, that it doesn't burn up... alotta guys use water injection where its sprayed in as a mist (like fuel) and it helps to keep the temp down and reduces detonation.

if you don't know what hydrolock is you really shouldn't have a cai...

and you shoulda taken it off if your going to be driving in monsoons. im sure insurance won't cover it cus you had the cai on there uzzled:

[Tryptik]

All I have to say is sorry to hear about what happened.. Hope insurance company doesn't fvck you over with you have the CAI on and all... Good luck to you..

[MechaniX_034]

Uh oh......see what the insurance says. This is gonna be one expensive job if they decide not to cover it. Good luck with it Meghan, hope everything works out.:rambo:

[Meghan]

insurance is covering it... getting a brand new engine... they didn't even ask questions... hell, they wanted to reimburse me for the intake also... roflmao - now if the dealership would just get it finished...

[Tryptik]

Originally posted by Meghan
[body]
insurance is covering it... getting a brand new engine... they didn't even ask questions... [/body]

Woo Hoo.. Condratz to you then..

To tell you the truth, I didn't think they would cover it.. Did they even look at the car..?

[Meghan]

yes they did... they had the dealership dismantle it, they sent an estimator out and he looked at it... he said he wanted all new parts put in...