Alright, I'm new to the whole forum thing, but I'll give it a shot. I consider myself pretty knowledgable when it comes to working on cars, but my avenger always likes to suprise me. This is a little vague, but I'll do my best. I was driving and all of a sudden I hear something kinda pop, the engine dies, and I roll to a stop. Under the hood, there is smoke along with antifreeze coming from the front (belt side) of the engine. Approximately under the head which is next to the firewall. I try to start the car and it turns over, but no fire. There was no oil dripping, no trail of metal behind the car, only leaking antifreeze from the area I just explained. I'm not sure but here's a general idea of what I'm imagining. I'm not sure exactly what the hell blew (head gasket, water pump, various other sh*t) but I get the impression that it may have done something to the timing belt, which would explain the engine turning but no firing. I don't know, It just happened and I'm not really in the mood to look at the car right now. If anyone has any ideas, please let me know.
first thing i'd do is pull the timing belt inspection covers off and see what the belt looks like. then a compression test. sounds like a good chance your water pump went out and took the timing belt with it. it's an interference engine so you may have some bent valves.
okay, so I popped off the timing belt covers (the ones at the heads/valve cover) and found that my timing belt was ripped to shreds. I'm now trying to figure out what caused what. Was it the timing belt that caused antifreeze to go spilling out of the engine, or was it something else that caused the coolant spill and the timing belt just happened to be an innocent casualty? I dunno. I'm probably gonna rip the rest of the front apart tonight or tomorrow to get a better idea of the extent of the damage. How should I go about checking to see if the valves have been bent?
« Last Edit: March 15, 2006, 11:45:10 PM by Robert »
I'll pray for you. If your timing belt took a dump your valves are probably cashed, like Downer said. Have you ever replaced your timing belt? If not it could've just been time. You're supposed to replace them every 80k miles.
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Mod List. Um WAY too many to fit on here. But the engine can handle about 800HP
a compression test will tell you if the valves or pistons are toast. you may be able to rent one from autozone or something. something like this. http://www.partsamerica.com/product_images//img/equ/3612.jpg i think the v6 is usually around 210 or so. not sure. but if its anything close to 0 you're out of luck.
I thought timing belts were supposed to be changed every 60K...I still got a lotta life left in mine but im tryin to make sure so THAT sh*t doesnt happen 2 me
yeah, around 60k is the recommended interval to change it. depends on how lucky you feel. at the least you should pull the covers off and take a look at the belt to see what condition it is in.
How do you know when your timing belts are bad?.. WHy would they cost so much tho? I went to some local auto stores which I do not wish to name and they were like 20-25 bucks for a new one. ...i dont get it...
If the belt is cracking/peeling/ect then definately replace it. I sure wouldn't take a chance in having it snap. If you pay the 30 bucks now, you won't pay thousands later!
How do you know when your timing belts are bad?.. WHy would they cost so much tho? I went to some local auto stores which I do not wish to name and they were like 20-25 bucks for a new one. ...i dont get it...
To put it bluntly; Because it's an @$$ load of freakin' labor!! For the do-it-your-self'r, it's at LEAST 12 hours of work. At an average of $80/hr for labor at automotive svc centers, you can see how it adds up so quick.
A belt is $20-$30, a water pump is likely under $50 on most cars, and anti-freeze is a whopping $5. If you're willing to get dirty and spend some time, it's a heckuva lot cheaper to do it yourself!
and that's the truth.. if you do it yourself just remember to have someone to help you if you get stuck or you've never done it before. becuae you will run into problems. and have access to a good set of tools. it is not an easy job for most of us, but it can be done..and for much less.
umm...if your coolant is low..your car WONT start..fix your coolant n you should be all set...I lost some coolant and that same thing happen so..hopefully Im not late and you spent $300...
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For the do-it-your-self'r, it's at LEAST 12 hours of work. At an average of $80/hr for labor at automotive svc centers, you can see how it adds up so quick. 
