Possible rod bearing?

[0range_240]

I took the car to a local shop and they said it was a rod bearing, and that I should rebuild my motor for 1800 bucks.... but firstly im not gonna pay that much if I can do a swap later, and secondly I dont know if they are just pulling my leg so they can do more work on the car.

Is there any definitive way, besides yanking the motor and checking, to tell if a rod bearing is gone? I tried listening with a stethescope, but the noise seems to be quite uniform all over the motor, with it being clearest over the #2 cylinder on the valve cover on the intake side... if it was a rod bearing, where should I place the stethescope to listen for it? and what should it sound like?

when I listened to the side of the block, the knock sounded very distance and muffled.. HELP:help :help

[slakker]

With a spun rod bearing You would not need a stethoscope. It sounds as if there are about 15 aluminum cans bouncing around on top of your pistons. It is usually one bearing, being there is one for each. It usually only happens when it is starved for oil. Why did you take it there to begin with?

[0range_240]

A friend recommended I take it to them to have a "professional look at it" .. but I was told by my other friend, who has alot of experience in KA's, he said it would be excessively loud, not just barely noticeable... he also said that if it was a rod bearing, it would've seized or something when I went over 4500 rpm...

I would say its no louder than the valve tick you hear when the motor is first started and cold... so how positive should I be its not a rod bearing?

Are rod bearings all or nothing? like they dont go very gradually do they? guy at the dealer said it was just starting to go, and would get worse if I didnt do a rebuild

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thanks for the help so far slakker

[navysnail]

they are pretty much all or nothing as far as i have heard. if you have not lost oil pressure or been low on oil, i can't see why it would go bad. and yes, it would be more than just barely noticeable. i think that slakker has a pretty good description af what it would sound like. if it was at redline, it may just blow a fist sized hole in the block. i have seen that hapen in saturns. the click may just be an injector, not bad or anything but sometimes injecors are loud, or it may be the tming chain so then it would be in the front of the engine.-hope this helpsmichael

listen to see if it gets alot worse. if it does, then i am probobly wrong about everything i just said its just i never heard about them starting to get bad and then geting worse and worse.

[DAEDALUS]

Spun bearings are loud and sudden; worn bearings get louder over time. The very first thing you should do is measure your hot oil pressure, as 240kid alluded to.

For about $20 you can have your oil analyzed. The report will indicate if you have a bad bearing, from any metal they find in it.

For guys who really care about their cars, I would recommend an oil analysis every 15-30k, just so you can monitor and track your engine's wear. I'll do this when I get a new engine in my car.

http://www.blackstone-labs.com/auto.html

[yellow_jacket]

Just pull the oil pan and check them. Then while you got if off you can replace the bearings.

Rod knocks usually progress pretty rapidly.

[s13sr20chris]

rod knocks usually make a double knock noise when revved. what i mean is at idle its "knock, knock, knock" when you rev it up its "knocketa, knocketa, knock". thats the best way i can put it.

[slakker]

Hard to describe, Ive also seen a fist sized whole ounched through the block The rod put a pretty nice hole in it. It was on a toyota

[0range_240]

Okay so ruling out a rod bearinghere is what I have checkd

- timing chain- injectors- vaccuum leaks to EGR or anything like that

I DID pull off my rocker assembly, except I have NO idea how to check if one of my rockers is no good anymore.. keep in mind I have hydraulic lifters

[DanielIser]

Actually this happened to me about 7 or 8 months ago. Get it fixed immediately. Mine ended up trowing a rod out the side of the motor so i swaped in the sr20 instead. It ended up being nothing more than a loose bolt on the part of the rod that connected to the crank. Everytime the crank went around the bolt would tap from being loose. I am extremely glad it messed up but would have rather been able to sell the old motor rather than part it out. It is relitively easy to fix if you have time and the necesary tools to pull apart the bottom end of the motor.

[DanielIser]

Hard to describe, Ive also seen a fist sized whole ounched through the block The rod put a pretty nice hole in it. It was on a toyota

Ya, well when mine went it left a hole big enough for me to visually inspect the top end of the motor by sticking my head in the newly added hole and looking up. Ruffly about the size of a human head has been carved out of the motor. All caused by a loose bolt.

[Nathan]

Wow, I feel slighted now, when my old motor threw a rod before I bought the car, it only left a 2"x3" hole and took out a chunk of the ac bracket

[0range_240]

is it possible to get at the con rod bolts without removing the engine?

I am almost positive its coming from near the top of the motor, not the bottom..

any other suggestions?

[DanielIser]

You can get there by removing the the lower and upper oil pans. that is to say it is on the lower end of the motor.

[DAEDALUS]

Orange_240, I assume you mean the wristpins? I think you can remove them from them from the bottom, but I don't think you'll be able to put it back together from the bottom. You need to compress the piston rings...hence the pistons have to go in from the top. But that's a lot of work without knowing for sure. Diagnose as much as possible before opening it up. Measure the oil pressure. Oil pressure is dependent on bearing clearances. If your hot oil pressure is fine, then suspect something else.