Should I total my Jeep or get it fixed?

Tiny
TBELVIN
  • MEMBER
  • 2002 JEEP LIBERTY
  • 130 MILES
I have a 2002 Jeep Liberty with the 6 cylinder engine. My wife was out running errands, and at one of her stops, the car would not start. I came to pick her up (and try to start the car). I was able to get the Jeep started and drove the short distance home.

I suspected plugged injectors based on how the car was running: refusing to idle (just dieing), very poor accelleration, no power.

I pulled each of the spark plugs only to discover that the plug for cylinder #2 had been TOTALLY flattened. It looked like it got hit VERY hard with something! Also, the plug was full of oil.

I purchased a micro camera to snake into the cylinder to see if I could see if there was any damage to the cylinder. From what I could see (very difficult to navigate around in there) the cylinder walls themselves appear smooth. The one valve I could see looks like it got hit with a ball peen hammer - dented like crazy.

My question: is it worth pulling the head to insure that the cylinder walls are not scored? NOTE: this model year is an all aluminum block. I don't want to spend the money to get ready to repair a broken rod or valve only to find out the entire engine is shot. What do you recommend?
Tuesday, July 31st, 2012 AT 10:43 PM

1 Reply

Tiny
HMAC300
  • MECHANIC
  • 48,601 POSTS
Pull the head to see what damage there is then make your decision. After pulling head check to see if the damaged cylinder piston will shove down. You can check around for a used motor at a junkyard that would be the cheaper route to go and not alot of money.
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Tuesday, July 31st, 2012 AT 11:06 PM

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