Stopped on Hwy and won't start

Hey all,

2000 Honda Passport, V6, 135K miles.

Scenario:
Wife was at a stop light after a 150+mile trip (almost home). Started hearing a "clapping" sound. As she accellerated, clapping got more rapid. At about 65-70 miles an hour (why was she continuing?) the car shut off, and won't start. Just "clicks". Had it towed the remaining 30 miles back to the house.

So, my first thought was timing belt. But it's in tact. So maybe it jumped a couple teeth? I cannot turn the crankshaft with my little 14" breaker bar, so is it seized? Valve &/or piston damage? I guess my question is, what's my next step? I confirmed the timing belt is still there (didn't take the cover completely off, mind you...just "peeked" behind one side). Now with serpentine belt off and spark plugs out, I should be able to turn the engine manually, right?

Any and all help / suggestions is GREATLY appreciated. Just found out we're pregnant with our first and cannot afford a mechanic to tell me what you guys hopefully can. I'm mechanically inclined enough to be able to do most of this stuff with the help of y'all and the Haynes manual :screwy:(naive???).

Thanks, guys

Is there oil on the dip stick?

These later 3.2's are notorious for having the number one rod bearing seize or spin if you don't keep the oil level topped up. A broken timing belt would not cause valve damage. Non-interference engine. If it was run low on oil, that could be bad news.

Is there oil on the dip stick?

There is oil on the bottom of the dip stick (where it should be on a cold engine). I know she was due for an oil change, but only overdue by a couple hundred miles.

**UPDATE** Talked to the wife. She DID have her oil changed about 1000 miles ago. I was thinking she never got around to it. (I know, I should have done it, but she insists on going where they also wash and detail her car!)

These later 3.2's are notorious for having the number one rod bearing seize or spin if you don't keep the oil level topped up. A broken timing belt would not cause valve damage. Non-interference engine. If it was run low on oil, that could be bad news.


Yeah, I was relieved to hear that this particular engine was a non-interference as I read through the forum posts. What steps should I next take to rule out these possiblities? I'm sure it was fine on oil from the last change....it's never had any oil leaks or anything...never ran hot.

It's hard to help diagnose this sort of thing over the internet. I would say that if you have the spark plugs out, and a breaker bar on the crank pulley bolt and can't turn the engine, it's toasted. Any bad bearing will require the engine to come out and be rebuilt or at the very least, crank pulled, reground and bearings replaced.

Thought of one thing - is it an auto or manual? If auto, yeah, doesn't sound too good, but if it's stick - did you try turning it in or out of gear? If in gear, you might be trying to move the vehicle at the same time.