Engine question

[MaddScientist]

Hi guys, I have a question. I have an '86 IROC with 305 TPI. Recently my oil pump went out, while I was driving, stupidly, I continued driving it to get it home, obviously by the time I got it home (about 2 miles since estimated pump malfunction) I was not doing very good, in fact it quit running rihgt before I got to the drive way, I had to coast it in. The engine did not seize, it will still turn over, albeit very slowly. so I bought a new oil pump for it, with the intentions of fixing it. My neighbor told me that the "bottom end" may be fried (not exact words). at this point I just want to get it running until I can transplant a better motor (hopefully this winter). aside from the oil pump, what else do I need to be concerned with? am I wasting my time on this motor? I need some guidance, as my poor baby is sitting there lifeless......

[DaMoNe6969]

Usually oil pumps wont fail on their own.. Usually they'l fail if your engine is run out of oil.. Was the oil level still ok?? Are you positive its the oil pump?

2 miles doesnt sound like much.. But it is to an engine without an oil supply.. If it'l still turn over ok, you might get away with changing the pump, and the oil.. But you may have already did damage to the crank and bearings.. Pull the pan off and visually inspect everything

[Dober89]

The man is right, running out of oil or having the pump fail can damage your bearings and a bunch of other parts.
If it still turns over though you could just take a chance and throw the new pump in and see how it works.

[MaddScientist]

yes the oil level is/was good, I had just changed head gaskets 2 days before this happened, and also oil change, plugs,wires,etc. not 100% sure it is the pump, but after the whole thing happened, and I checked the oil, and found it to be ok, I remembered that my oil pressure guage would sometimes show pressure, and sometimes not be showing pressure, before, I assumed this was a failing guage, as my temp guage doesnt work, but now i am figuring oil pump since the oil level is ok, and that guage showed 0 pressure at times. I dont know what else it would be, unless maybe is the engine got really hot from something else, like a cooling system failure, would that do what I described?

[4onFloor]

before you change the pump, see if you can get it started for about 5 seconds and see if it knocks.

[MaddScientist]

I cannot get it to start

[89IROC&RS]

well, when the pressure dropped to 0, and you were driving it home, did you hear a steadily increasing ticking, or knocking, or any sounds of engine slowly dieing???? if not, than i would say your pump is fine, lack of oil would cause lifters, pushrods, and pretty much all valvetrain to start making a hellacious racket. as for running two miles without the pump, id say your probly ok, especially if you use synthetic oil, so long as you werent running high rpms, if you were just limping her home, i dont think you would have caused severe damage. the only damaeg i can think of that you wouldnt have heard, would be some accelerated bearing wear. anything more serious than that, and youd already know about it. (aka a piston and rod jumping ship) now what it sounds like to me, with faulty guages, and the engine dying, is an electrical problem. somewhere, just a shot in the dark, what does your positive battery cable look like???? is it corroded or loose or anything??? check every connection, not just the one at the battery.

[ridge_runner]

and when you put the new oil pump in dont forget to adjust the pick up tube right, it needs to be about 3/8 1/2 an inch or so from the oil pan, or you will have this similar problem all over again

[89IROC&RS]

lol, ridge runner, just saw the new pic in the profile, zat you stuck sideways in the mud???

[ridge_runner]

yea go throught and check all your gauges b4 you pull the motor, if possible hook up an aftermarket oil gauge to it, and if you get it started pull the dip stick to see if the oil is above the oil mark b4 you wipe it off, and another way to check, there should be a fitting on your block for an oil pressure gauge, just unscrew it and start the car briefly, if your pump is good it should shoot right out

[ridge_runner]

haha yup thats my bronco, lol, i slid right down into that mudpit there, i was goin up that hil there, its pretty steep and 4wd and some momentum just wast enough, i slide right back down and sunk to the frame, a little while of digging 10 friends and a friends dodge ram cummins diesiel, and i was out, i gave it a work out though, he almost got stuck also, ha

[89IROC&RS]

lmao, driving home or goin fishin??????

[MaddScientist]

ok guys, a little clarification, I did only limp it home, the engine was making an aweful racket, it was very evident that it was hot, very hot, and the engine slowly died, like it was binding up, it was also smoking. I am relatively certain it isnt electrical, although thanks for the suggestion. it did have new oil in it literally days before it happened, i believe it was syunthetic high mileage oil, last I tried , I can get the motor to turn over very slowly, with a full battery, but will not fire. (maybe due to it not turning over fast enough?) At this pooint I already have the oil pump, and cannot do anything else with it, so I suppose based on you guys awesome feedback, I am going to prolly try and put it in, because I ahve nothing to lose by doing so, except time. Thanks I am still open to ideas, thoughts and comments, and I will keep you all posted.

[ridge_runner]

Originally Posted by 89IROC&RS

lmao, driving home or goin fishin??????

just out having some fun during the snow storm, there was no one on the road, after that i went to the movie theatre parking lot with some friends and had alot of fun, it was fresh powder, wasnt icy yet, there was alteast 10 other cars there, when you spun around the snow would fly everywhere like dust, somehow i managed to get my speedo cable wrapped around my front driveshaft, and it pulled it out the transfer case, so it made some noise til i pulled it off, i was out til 3am that night, goodtimes man goodtimes

[ridge_runner]

i learned how to drive a little better that night too, i was drifting like a mofo, and from all the crazy shit i did i did not put a scratch on the truck i came close to tagging a semi that was sitting in the parking lot