Just a bad day in the neighborhood...

[86-1ton]

so, last week my truck wouldn't run... checked fuel lines, pump, carb & filter, plugs, wires, distributor cap... and found the rotor in pieces a couple days later... <CHECK>

today... driving to go get my son from school my temp light comes on, and i hear *BOOM* and steam fill sthe front of the truck... blew a radiator hose... like, on the street to his school... ok, got there shut it off, got him loaded up... i was able to trim the hose a bit to make it fit still, got some water and filled it back up...

SO, now my 350 sounds like a diesel... I'm really beginning to regret buying the truck... it's completely what i've wanted since i was a kid (even have a chevelle, just like i've always wanted)... but COME ON...!

i think this weekend i'm going to the Junkyard... there's a 70/72 Chevy K10 with a small block/4 speed/205 in it... i think i'm getting the engine and taking the transmissio/case out and hiding those for when i have money...

so, anyone know what i did...? there's oil in the motor, and NO coolant in the oil... cook the block and melt a piston or something...?

thanks for letting me rant...

 

[Hogback Fabrication]

What do you mean by "it sounds like a diesel"? Is it knocking? Overheating a motor can destroy the oil and cause it to knock.

 

[K5dreamer]

the "diesel" sound is definatly a concern. but why it overheated and blew the radiator hose is something else.

-have you checked your thermostat? put it in a pot of water and bring it to a boil, preferably with a thermomter in there, and see what temp the thermostat opens at. it may need to be replaced.

- with overheating, as was said, your oil is suspect, and the "diesel" noise, which is normally a tapping or knocking kind of sound, may well be your rocker arms. i would pop the valve covers and make sure they are all tightened to spec.

 

[midnight]

After it overheated and you quick fixed it, did your engine temp straighten out? I had a 350 that had an overheating problem and it used to sound like a diesel engine when it started overheating. If you only have a 'water temp light' to go by opposed to an actual mechanical water temp gauge, it would be tough to measure whether or not it was overheating. A mechanical water temp gauge was the first thing I put on my truck.

 

[86-1ton]

ok i guess i was just overreacting last night... i let the truck sit for almost 3 hours while i went to school, and it cooled off... i got some (about 2.5 gallons) water and anti-freeze, put it in, and took out my thermostat 'just in case', then drove it 25 miles to my brother's house... didn't have a problem the whole way out there... while it's there we're going to get new hoses, new thermostat, and do an oil change (considering i work at an oil change place, that should be easy... HA)

"sounds like a diesel" it sounded like pinging, or detonation but at low RPMs... it would straighten out at high RPMs, and wouldn't idle...

after it heated up, on the drive there, i had no unusual sounds... there was no metal-to-metal noise, ticks, knocks, or pings... the only sound i had was my exhaust tick... yeah, time for some new pipes...

Thanks guys for your input...!

 

[K5dreamer]

you may also want to look into adjusting your carb. with it not running before, and with it overheating, a misadjusted carb could lead to both of those problems, and an overly lean condition could lead to detonation and "pinging" and misfiring at low rpms.

 

[Blue85]

They can diesel when they get too hot. So yours may have been pre-igniting due to the elevated temps.

I lost my fan relays one 102 degree day and it got hot enough to keep dieseling after the key was off. I had to smother the carb with a rag to stop the engine.

 

[86-1ton]

yeah, i know about that dieseling thing when they 'run on' but no, that wasn't the case this time...

good point on the carb - i think it might be about time to rebuild it...