S13 overheated, now won't start!?!

[240SXy]

I saw the temp gauge going up so I pulled off the highway, but the engine died as I was pulling in to a parking spot. The radiator was cracked, so I replaced it, but now the car won't start. There is gas in the tank, the plugs have spark, and the engine turns. It just won't start. The car was fine before. I have a93 240SXKA24DE111K milesPlease help, and yes I did search first.:help

[MasterMan]

maby the head cracked and water got in?.. or the block is cracked check your compresson

[slw240sx]

did you check to make sure you didnt have standing water on top of the pistons...

[singlecamhonduhkilla]

u gotta have water in ur block or water in ur oil or something like that.. thats what happened to mine when i got it rebuilt for the second time.. they didnt seal my **** up correctly the first time and it got water in the oil.. and just fukkd my **** up ugly.. u better check.joe

[240SXy]

Thanks, guys. Here's the bad news: Because none of the chambers were full of anything, I thought that the light colored drops on my #3 and #4 spark plugs was oil from my wrench. This morning I checked again, and found the distinct smell of coolant on the #4. Oh man this sucks. Looks like I'll be driving my dad's truck for a little while longer.

[KRPSICHI3]

It might just be your Head gasket.

[240SXy]

What do you have to take apart to change the headgasket? I know it's not simple.

[fuzion]

hehe.. everything

all exhaust/intake stuff has to come off the block/headgonna have to take off the front covers, fan, water pump, radiator + any shrouds, drop the oil pan, etc etc

it's a big pain in the ***, had to do my headgasket a while back, when you have it out you might as well get the head resurfaced and get a valve job done.. get all the carbon off your pistons, clean the intake manifold (i just sprayed some brake cleaner up there and all the oily crap washed out).. I also did the 2ndary butterfly valve removal when I had mine apart..

you're also going to need to order a kit that has new seals for valve cover/headgasket/intake/exhaust etc.

[240SXy]

Thanks.I went to Courtesy Nissan yesterday, here's the scene:Me: Hi, I want to talk to someone about my car.Service Writer: Sure, what's wrong?Me: Well, it overheated and...SW(interrupting): I'm sorry buddy, but you're in the wrong place.Me:?SW: What kind of car is it?Me: 93 240SX.SW: Yeah, you need to go find a used engine and scrap the old one. I'd be happy to put an engine in, but it would be about $6000. Good Luck.Me: Man, I can't believe that. It might be good though, I don't have the best history of major car repairs in my dad's driveway. I wish I could afford Daunttless' 200hp KA...Sponsors? Anyone?

[fuzion]

turn him in and get his ASE cert taken

headgasket isnt that major -- no $6000 worth anyways

you could prolly find an sr20det swap cheaper than that

[themadscientist]

pull the motor you have, take it apart and take the block and head to a reputable machine shop. Tell the machinist what happened and get his honest opinion on your parts. If they are usable rebuild the motor with some good forged pistons and a metal head gasket for turbo duty. stick it back in and drive it while you save up for a turbo kit. It will likely have less power at the lower compression ratio but you know when the turbo kit goes on you have a solid foundation.

Courtesy Nissan huh, that must be sarcastic or something, ***holes.

[Nismo_Freak]

Thanks.I went to Courtesy Nissan yesterday, here's the scene:Me: Hi, I want to talk to someone about my car.Service Writer: Sure, what's wrong?Me: Well, it overheated and...SW(interrupting): I'm sorry buddy, but you're in the wrong place.Me:?SW: What kind of car is it?Me: 93 240SX.SW: Yeah, you need to go find a used engine and scrap the old one. I'd be happy to put an engine in, but it would be about $6000. Good Luck.Me: Man, I can't believe that. It might be good though, I don't have the best history of major car repairs in my dad's driveway. I wish I could afford Daunttless' 200hp KA...Sponsors? Anyone?

I had no trouble with the guys at Courtesy ... being that me and Aries are worthless bastards we might end up going up to Dallas to fix your little problem :icesangel . We would of course like to have expenses paid and would require a lovely cheeseburger at the local awesome food joint. Sounds to me like your head gasket is screwed and you may have hydrolocked the motor when the water/coolant mixture went in.

[Nismo_Freak]

As a secondary alternative you could also find a KA from a guy thats doing the swap and swap motors. This may be the cheapest way out.

[mewt240]

I guess I was lucky when my radiator cracked and I overheated. I got away without having to replace anything other than the radiator, water pump and thermostat. it was about 2 months ago and I haven't had any problems. If my motor was fried I would probably have replaced it W/ another Ka24de ( as long as it was a cheaper total cost than the SR swap). '93 S13 108K miles

[240SXy]

Well, I hate to dissapoint anyone(Nismo Freak), but I went to Intercrew auto salon yesterday and they are putting in a used KA for $1500. They found one that the guy said might need a timing chain, so he offered to install any parts I buy for no extra labor, but then we decided to wait a week because the supplier regularly gets lower mileage KAs.(The timing chain install offer will still apply though) I won't hold anything against Courtesy, it seems to me that the guy just figured the engine would be shot, and he felt like bringing it in would just be ripping me off. Intercrew is cool, I talked to Phillip, who is very nice too all the customers. (Ahem, jotech!) I will definitely let everyone know if their service matches their personalities. This used KA24DE will have a 90 day warranty on the engine as a whole, and any part contained within, so I should be doing alright. Thanks everyone for all the suggestions. I'll keep y'all posted.-Jeff

[240SXy]

Oh, mewt240, you probably didn't push start yours twice after it overheated, a mistake that probably messed up more than my headgasket, and one that I won't make again.

[Nismo_Freak]

Dude... my friend still has his KA I believe (91 model which is the best engine year) and im sure we can do the entire swap for around 500 bucks. Meaning about $1000. Only problem would be getting the motor from Austin to Dallas. I dont have a truck.

[mewt240]

no, I didn't. I did try to drive it to the shop though ( i was stuck on the highway) I gave up when It started smoking/steaming from under my hood w/ only water in the rad. leaking like mad at a stoplight when I exited the highway. had to have it towed. At least people get out of your way pretty quick when they see that in their rear view!good luck with your swap!

BTW- why are the 91 motors the best, because of the cams?

[240SXy]

Nismo Freak, I really appreciate it dude, but problem #2 is I don't have any money. I can only pay Intercrew by maxing out my credit card. So $500 is really no better than $1500 right now. Thanks though, it's cool that my 240 bros would do that.

Mewt240, I think it's the pistons.?.

Man, I sat in my car for the first time in almost two weeks when I was cleaning it out today. I can't wait much longer. Aren't these cars great?:sad

[charliedyal]

It's more common on the DE to crack a head when running hot than blow a head gasket. I've had the same occurance happen to me twice with the same results. First I popped a radiator which ran it hot and cracked the head in the #4 chamber. Next was a water pump and head.

[U12 2NR]

$1,500? .... firstly, that's a rip off. You can get a used ka for around $350 if you look. You can have it installed for $300-400, if you look around. Way less than $1,500. Regardless if you're paying it now or later, you'll still be paying it, so look at your options carefully, some are more nice to your wallet. If I had to spend $1,500 on engine work, you bet your *** i'd be buying an SR and installing it myself.

Secondly, you haven't properly diagnosed your car yet to even think about swapping the motor. Do a compression test man..it's as simple as changing your spark plugs. If your compression is okay, then your problem is elsewhere.