killerbulldoggy

I was traveling down the beltway, weh n my car starts decelerating, i'm loosing oil pressure, and my temperature shoots through the roof. So, i'm forced to pull over, but since theres no shoulder i'm dodging traffic and nearly get hit several times while i call a tow truck. WHen its safe, i look under the hook and can clearly see that my water pump is blown and theres radiator fluid all over the place. There also water dripping out from underneath here. ANyways, its getting looked at soon. Do you guys know what could have caused this?

Jasonty

A small animal trying to take shelter between your fan and radiator, sitting on the fan shroud? I've killed 2 cats that way. The engine starts up, and they get scared, so they make a run for it through the fan, but never succeed. It kinda sucks. Poor kitties.

Steve Straus

siezed pump bearing/shaft, impeller disintegration. Some newer replacement water pumps have these cheap stamped impellers instead of cast iron ones. Eventuallly they just fly apart.

killerbulldoggy

Damn, sorry about the kitties. I doubt it was that for me, since i was driving for about an hour before anything happened. The cars in the shop getting the pump replaced. Thanks for the kittie story

FeedVaal

[QUOTE= Do you guys know what could have caused this? [/QUOTE]

28 year old water pump?

saudivette

Muslims believe that Allah makes all the decisions, about everything, for everyone, all the time. They refer to this as Insh'Allah which literally translates to mean "if God wills it".

So.... your water pump flatlined, Insh'Allah. Get it? I hope this helps and brings you inner peace...


have I been here too long?

UKPaul

If it's anything like my cats, perhaps it was having a deep sleep? I can start an unsilenced 750cc twin in my garage & it can be several mins before one of them decides that it's not gonna get anymore sleep & wanders out (whoever said cats are expressionless hasn't seen mine scowl!). Thanks for the warning about cats and Vettes - ignoring wiping out my pet (the only thing that really understands me ), I bet it smells something awful after a couple of warm days?!
The water pump could just be old & tired. The pump on mine went a couple of years back, it was just old & gave up the fight, but it did get me home. They get quite a hard life when you think about it, especially when people tighten the belts too much. I pulled a failed one out of a Saab once & took it apart (I must have been particularly bored at the time). The impeller had corroded so badly that it was just a small, odd shaped lump of metal, it was hard to see how it worked at all. Another good reason to run antifreeze.

Only if Allah wills it so.

1970 Dave

In an odd sort of way you are a bit lucky--had one that came apart and the fan blade went completely through the radiator--parts flew around the engine bay and made a few other "little problems"--glad you are OK--new pump, fresh antifreeze/distilled water, maybe a new thermostat while you are at it, possibly new heater hoses and she'll be good for a lot more smiles

75Rag

Nothing good can come from that. Unless, of course, you catch the cat dead center ... that way when rigormortice (sp?) sets in you've got a unique set of book ends.

killerbulldoggy

Got some bad news. Apparently the engine was soo hot, that the heats warped and are now no good. The shop is cahrging me approx 1300 dollars to replace them. What do you guys think i should do? Are changing heads that difficult that a kid like myself could do? or should i just ... let the shop deal with it. The only problem with teh shop doing it is its way too much money for me to spend right now. i'm so depressed

Clint's C3

How do you know the heads are warped? Are the head gaskets blown? The shop may be trying to make a fast buck.

Have you started the engine after the WP replacement?

killerbulldoggy

NO, i havent been back to the shop. The guy told me that the heads were warped and that the gaskets had melted to the engine block. Of course, theres no way for me to test to see if theyre lying. God, does anybody know of a pair of good cheap heads for a small block l-82 350? The guy at teh shop also says that the engine could be damaged and i would need a new one. .....

MEGALADON

wcsinx

Heads aren't that hard to install. It just takes the right tools and some patience. Definitely a DIY job for your average wrench turner. '78 smogger heads suck ballz anyway.

And no, your mechanic isn't lying to you. You said you saw your oil pressure drop, so you very well could have lost a journal.

Clint's C3

Yep, bad news if your oil pressure dropped. You may need more than heads.

killerbulldoggy

The guy managed to change the water pump and then start the engine. But he said that water began to spray quite a bit, although i'm not sure where. Any suggestions on what could possibly be wrong with the motor?

Fevre

For about $1500 you can get a long block LM1 eng with about 270 hp after a cam swap, I did the cam swap before install resusing the stock lifters and summit 204/214 cam but would got the 214/224 cam if had do over, no change to the stock heads on the LM1 needed for either cam. Prolly get near 300 hp with the larger cam (with headers of course).

lowvette

Using a machinist straight edge you should be able to see if the heads are warped. A good machinist wouldn't mind showing you the head warpage. Cheap heads would likely require some type of machine work - like grinding the valve seats or installing bronze valve stem inserts. A severly overheated engine can be expensive to fix.

saudivette

Where was the water spraying from? You must have warped the heads into drill bits?!?!?! From what I've seen, a good indication of a warped head is water in the oil or oil in the water. Pull your dipstick out and make sure it looks like oil, not milk. Pop your radiator cap and make it looks like water, not milk. I've never heard of head gaskets melting to the block either - if it got that hot, I'd reckon other stuff would have melted?!?!?

If this guy managed to start it, what did it run like?

If the heads are buggered, they are reasonably easy to change. You'll need a decent socket set, a torque wrench and and an engine book for the tightening sequence and the torque values.

I'm still sus though, melted head gaskets and water spraying everywhere Get this guy to show you...