ran low on oil...

My dad's 88' camry was ran low on oil today. ran 25-50 miles with almost no oil! Amzingly, it only developed an rattle and knock ... the knock went away when he added more oil.. Walmart said it was probably totaled. My mom said that she would let me fix it if I could... So thats where I need yall's help. She said that I dcould also replace the engine if I could... I am only skilled in small engine repair, computers, and r/c.. actually I stink at small engine repair but at least I can build one...

The engine did not throw a rod and the block is iuntact..

so: please help me fix this and survey the damage...

Drain whatever oil was in it and look for metal chips. Fill with oil and change the filter. Watch for white vapor out the tailpipe. Look for oil in the coolant and visa versa. These indicate a leaking headgasket and/or warped head. Common after overheats. Do a compression test. Low compression indicates ring, cylinder, valve problems. If you see chips or have low compression on two or more cylinders, start looking for an engine. A headgasket or warped head can be replaced.

My mom just started it... it sounded HORRIBLE!!! 10x louder, shaking... gonna check oil tomorrow. Dunno about oil in coolant. How I check? I use the shiny - yellow type... thanks!

oh my.. thats lot of damage, running with no oil. Oil coolant? is there such thing? ooops.. sorry for the ignorance.

Oil in the coolant (even the yellow stuff) will be pretty obvious. Remember, oil and water don't mix. So suck out a sample with your mother's turkey baster and shoot it into a paper cup. If there's oil in it, it will float to the top.

i think this engine is history.