CherBear

So, recently got a 93 Cher Sport. Sounded a little pingy, but pretty quiet otherwise. Plenty of power, smooth shifting. So, drove it home the 90 miles it takes to get home (live in a really small town and Reno is the closest city with any volume of cars for sale), and it started jerking at highway speeds. By the time I got home, the engine/possibly trans sounded bad. Oil seemed to be burning off from running off of something and hitting something hot down below like the trans, etc. Turned it off. Started right back up. Started back up the next day (sounded really bad so I turned it off right away), but hasn't started since. Cranks but won't turn over.

Thought about replacing the dist cap and possibly the CPS, so I went out to start locating things, and to see if I smelled fuel after cranking (I do) and to try taking the air filter out, as someone said a clogged air filt can prevent ignition. It's a 93 and been in this high desert, dirty air area for a while so I could see that being a prob.

When I got the air filter open, there was oil all over it, and all over the hose coming off of the throttle body (I think, the big hole that feeds down to the engine?). There was oil pretty much everywhere in that area, so I figured a bad valve cover gasket and was gonna replace that too. Oil on the dipstick isn't milky at all so don't think it's a head gasket.

Think a rod is blown (read somewhere that's what oil in the air filter means).

If so, what engines (year and make) can I get from picknpull to replace it. It's a 93 Cherokee Sport with the 4.0 6.

Im a girl with almost NO mechanic experience so I put an ad on craigslist for help, but so far no one is responding and I definitely can't afford the shops here at $85+ per hour. Read an engine swap takes about 30 hours (also read 8-12, this is a really wide range in trying to figure out what I can afford - anyone know how long it takes to swap an engine on these cherokees?).

Help fellas.

Thanks!

Cheree

dnuccio

I dont think the engine is bad. Oil in the air filter does not mean a rod is blown. Is the oil overfilled?

1976Mustang

Bad CCV Elbow is most likely why there's oil in the air filter.

ok93zj

Or bad valve seals with the bad CCV elbow

sthon

Was it running hot while driving it home? Sounds like the transmission overheated and dumped ATF out the breather and onto the exhaust. Check your ATF fluid. As stated oil in the air filter can be caused by a bad ccv.

CherBear

Yes, after posting I did some research and realized most believe the oil spray is a CCV/CPV issue so I went and checked. They are old and brittle, the hoses have cracking and there seems to be a lot of leakage right around there. Read a couple threads on removing them and when I tried to, after taking the elbow off of the valve in front, realized someone else had tried to do that at some point. It's missing a big chip and the inside of the hose has an impression in the shape of the chip, so I think the hose was tightened down on it that way. May have fallen into the valve cover then, doubt they took the cover off if it went in. If the chip fell in there would that ruin the engine?

It was hot when it was smoking once I stopped, as I had to drive it 90 miles on the highway to get home.

Can't check the trans fluid level though, as you're supposed to do that with the engine warm, and I can't get it to start now. Cranks but won't turn over.

One of the receipts I got with the car showed that a tech thought a rod was about to go in the lower end and that it was very low on oil at the time.

I don't know what level it's at now.... Dipstick shows it's 4" above the safe line, but I know it blew a lot of oil out on the way back. The trans oil looks old for sure but it isn't black. The engine oil isn't black or milky either...

Now Im not sure how to get the CCV valve off. It's doesn't seem to want to budge and is really brittle. Got a flat head screw driver under the lip where it sits in the grommet and was able to get it up a little but then part of the lip just broke.

By the time I got home that night, it sounded like the jeep in the beginning of this video (clicked on it to learn how to replace the Valve Cover gasket, but the video started out being about an engine noise.

dave1123

Do a compression check and I think you'll find your rings are bad. Blowby from the cylinders is pressurizing the crankcase and forcing oil into the filter. If the blowby is bad enough, the best CCV won't take care of it. Oily paper will not pass air so you're running rich. The 90 miles you drove was probably at 55 or better, so that's where you got your oily air filter. This probably wouldn't had shown up when driving it around town.

Do the compression check first, but I think you need an engine swap, or a ring job.

Methinks this one was ridden hard and put away wet.

dnuccio

4" above the safe line?? DEFINATELY overfilled. the no start issue could be the engine locked up because of excess oil in the combustion chambers. first drain the oil and fill it to the proper level. then pull all the spark plugs, move the wires well away from the holes, and crank the engine over. should see a bunch of oil spray out of the holes if thats the problem. definately put in new spark plugs at this point since they will be fouled with oil.


thats what i would try

CherBear

The oil was all over the dipstick the next day after I got back, even after several wipes, which I have never seen before. There's no oil underneath where it's been parked, nothing visible anyway.

It started back up the next day, then wouldn't a couple of days later, and hasn't since. Would the engine sieze just from starting it for a few seconds?

sthon

You said it turns over, right? If it turns over it's not seized. That's not to say there isn't any internal damage.

CherBear

No, it cranks, but doesn't turn over. It started back up the next day after I got back, but hasn't since. Just cranks hard.

wasillashack

Since you said you have a limited mechanical background, I would strongly suggest getting a Factory Service Manual (FSM) for your specific vehicle. It will be the best money you can spend. They are commonly available on eBay, Amazon etc. They are available in printed hard copy or CD format. Cost varies from $20-140 depending on format and completeness. An FSM will answer many of your questions.

Cherokee Talk, NAXJA and other sites are great sources of info, also.

The overfilling may have been the result of an oil change gone bad. I've seen this before when an oil change"technician" has forgotten to drain the old oil before adding the new, result =overfilling=too much oil on the cylinder walls for the piston rings to handle=oil everywhere= your situation. Don't panic, plenty of time for that later, LOL

Good luck!

sthon

If it cranks it's turning over. It's just not firing.

CherBear

Ok, so the engine isn't siezed. So... back to possible culprits like plugs, dist cap, coil, rotor, CPS, right?

If the alt is on its way out would that keep it from starting? Would a jump do it? Batt seems plenty strong and I thought the alt was for charging the batt and converting power while driving. Starter is new, have the doc for that. And bought the batt the day I got it, so it's new too.

Would the CCV being seriously clogged affect starting?

Thanks again to everybody who is replying! I REALLY appreciate it!!

CherBear

Also, how worried should I be that the engine sounded a lot like this by the time I got back?