My pump died & it ran hot several times as I limped home, adding water along the way. I now have low compression in cylinders 1 & 2, possibly more. Cylinder 1 came back at 30, I don't remember 2, & they stopped testing after that. Do I need a new engine, head gasket, rings...? I had the engine rebuilt 2-3 years & would rather not do it again.

 

A tow bill woulda been a better option..............

 

In hindsight, yes. How about options for the present?

 

Probably all of the above, sounds like you destroyed it. I would pull it, tear into it, and evaluate from there, but it sounds like your screwed. Time to look for a JY replacement.

P.S. Don't run the new one with a "dead" water pump. Adding water won't help if it's not circulating through the motor.

 

Perhaps I should add that I'm still driving it & I'm the only one who can tell a difference in the idle. Aside from a slightly rough idle & the CEL being on, there's really nothing noticeably wrong with it.

 

Have you put a pump on it?

 

At this point in the thread, a very legit question.

 

Throw a water pump on it, some Restore in the crankcase and go for broke then.

 

...and check the codes thrown, and remedy them

 

 

New pump & thermostat. Problem didn't really show itself until a few days afterwards when I got on the gas pulling into traffic.

 

Only codes are 42 & 43. I can't really remedy the misfire as it is being caused by the low compression.

 

If you're having misfires and low compression your best bet is to pull the head, if it was severely overheated a blown head gasket (given that your issues are with 2 cylinders next to each other a head gasket failure between them would be prime suspect) or burn valves are a real possibility.

 

It's sounding more & more that an upper rebuild would fix the problem. The shop suggested putting in a used engine, so I wanted to figure out if I needed to find a new shop.

 

If you are mechanically inclined, pull the head and see whats what. New headstuds and gasket arent that expensive.

If you are not mechanically inclined, probably just swap in a good used motor with a TUPY cast head (avoid the 0331 cast head from the 99+ XJ).

Freshen up the gaskets before you install the motor (especially oil pan, oil filter adapter, valve cover, etc).