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Too Much Power?
I bought an '05 Supercharged edition Monte Carlo with roughly 88,000 miles on it. I believe that it had a blown head with tell tale signs of boiling coolant in the overflow and white smoke from the exhaust which I didn't notice when I bought it. I had an engine put in from an '00 GTP with about 66,000 miles on it. I had the PCM tuned right after I bought it with the original motor that I suspected had the blown head. I was driving through Indiana and went to pass a dude on I-94 and wound it up to about 94 MPH and it was like it hit the limiter or governor (which I know isn't possible at that speed with the tuned PCM) and I heard a "clunk". I then heard a rattling that sounded like a heat shield ratting on the exhaust. I then heard what I thought were pieces of the engine falling out on the ground and saw white smoke from under the hood. I pulled over as quick as I could and smoke was pouring from the hood, I popped the hood to discover a fire burning on the intake manifold and oil blown ALL over the engine compartment. The fire extinguished itself and I had it towed back home only to be told that it threw a rod.
My question is basically: How in the hell did this happen? I don't "rag" on my car and I don't jack rabbit off the line all the time. Do I occasionally take off fast? Yes I do. Do I occasionally speed? Yes I do. Did this engine have a problem when it was put in? Was it my driving? Was it the tuned PCM? Is it too much power to the wheels with the supercharger? I'm open to discussion on this and will answer any questions as honestly as I can. I'm just looking to discover if tuning this PCM was a mistake? Or if its my driving style or habit? Thanks guys..... |
Where did the oil come from that started the fire ? Valve cover, Intake manifold or supercharger ect. Doesn't sound like your driving had anything to do with issue unless you forgot to mention about grabbing a lower gear (drive or 2nd )which would cause rev limiter to kick in. Usually when you hear of a fire with these cars its the Fuel pressure regulator is leaking and that usually involves the intake to crack and or blow off the car. Does the car run or does is sound like chitty chitty bang bang ?
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In theory it could be any of those situations. My guess is:
- Either it was just bad luck (sometimes that happens). - The engine had problems you were not aware of (such as previous owner(s) may have neglected proper maintenance like regular oil changes). - Who ever had performed the tune on the car ran it way too lean and/or created situations for some dangerous knock levels. Who did the tuning? And did you get anything that would allow you to monitor your fuel trims and knock levels (a Scangauge II is pretty good for that)? |
Originally Posted by michelob
(Post 715117)
I bought an '05 Supercharged edition Monte Carlo with roughly 88,000 miles on it. I believe that it had a blown head with tell tale signs of boiling coolant in the overflow and white smoke from the exhaust which I didn't notice when I bought it. I had an engine put in from an '00 GTP with about 66,000 miles on it. I had the PCM tuned right after I bought it with the original motor that I suspected had the blown head. I was driving through Indiana and went to pass a dude on I-94 and wound it up to about 94 MPH and it was like it hit the limiter or governor (which I know isn't possible at that speed with the tuned PCM) and I heard a "clunk". I then heard a rattling that sounded like a heat shield ratting on the exhaust. I then heard what I thought were pieces of the engine falling out on the ground and saw white smoke from under the hood. I pulled over as quick as I could and smoke was pouring from the hood, I popped the hood to discover a fire burning on the intake manifold and oil blown ALL over the engine compartment. The fire extinguished itself and I had it towed back home only to be told that it threw a rod.
My question is basically: How in the hell did this happen? I don't "rag" on my car and I don't jack rabbit off the line all the time. Do I occasionally take off fast? Yes I do. Do I occasionally speed? Yes I do. Did this engine have a problem when it was put in? Was it my driving? Was it the tuned PCM? Is it too much power to the wheels with the supercharger? I'm open to discussion on this and will answer any questions as honestly as I can. I'm just looking to discover if tuning this PCM was a mistake? Or if its my driving style or habit? Thanks guys..... Some folks are hard on cars and after they are done with it it's junk. My wife for instance has some of the worst driving habits and if you say something she gets upset. So I just make sure that everything gets extra maintenance I just retired from a job that we drove rental cars for a few months at a time. The people I worked with said it's not mine I don't care. I treat everything like it's my own. So what I am saying is most likely the different engine may have been a SCATTERBLOCK from the start from bad driving habits on the first 66K. :whatdidimiss::bang head::oops: It would have been difficult to find that out if you had not been able to drive it in it's original package. |
Originally Posted by Jeffs02rwdSS
(Post 715124)
Where did the oil come from that started the fire ? Valve cover, Intake manifold or supercharger ect. Doesn't sound like your driving had anything to do with issue unless you forgot to mention about grabbing a lower gear (drive or 2nd )which would cause rev limiter to kick in. Usually when you hear of a fire with these cars its the Fuel pressure regulator is leaking and that usually involves the intake to crack and or blow off the car. Does the car run or does is sound like chitty chitty bang bang ?
Originally Posted by The_Maniac
(Post 715125)
In theory it could be any of those situations. My guess is:
- Either it was just bad luck (sometimes that happens). - The engine had problems you were not aware of (such as previous owner(s) may have neglected proper maintenance like regular oil changes). - Who ever had performed the tune on the car ran it way too lean and/or created situations for some dangerous knock levels. Who did the tuning? And did you get anything that would allow you to monitor your fuel trims and knock levels (a Scangauge II is pretty good for that)?
Originally Posted by drivernumber3
(Post 715126)
Well when you have a used engine put in the car, you have no idea what the driver who put those 66K on it did.
Some folks are hard on cars and after they are done with it it's junk. My wife for instance has some of the worst driving habits and if you say something she gets upset. So I just make sure that everything gets extra maintenance I just retired from a job that we drove rental cars for a few months at a time. The people I worked with said it's not mine I don't care. I treat everything like it's my own. So what I am saying is most likely the different engine may have been a SCATTERBLOCK from the start from bad driving habits on the first 66K. :whatdidimiss::bang head::oops: It would have been difficult to find that out if you had not been able to drive it in it's original package. |
If you really want to know the cause, a good engine shop will most likely be able to figure it out. As the junkyard is taking it as a warranty swap, you'll probably never know.
There are too many possibilities for us to speculate what the true cause was without being able to personally pull it apart. |
Originally Posted by bumpin96monte
(Post 715135)
If you really want to know the cause, a good engine shop will most likely be able to figure it out. As the junkyard is taking it as a warranty swap, you'll probably never know.
There are too many possibilities for us to speculate what the true cause was without being able to personally pull it apart. |
Originally Posted by michelob
(Post 715137)
I understand is there a "break in" period I should be following with this new engine? The guy who owns the shop where the engine is being swapped out at has sold the business and he told me "oh you were driving like Mario Andretti"----which I wasn't. I'm just curious though should I be following any kind of "break in" period? Like do I wanna keep it under a certain speed for a certain amount of miles?
If someone would have made a comment like that to me about how I drive MY car, I would have flipped my sht. No reason you shouldnt be able to beat on it as long as you dont do anything its NOT designed to do.. Neutral drops and whatnot... |
Originally Posted by wht02monte
(Post 715138)
No break in period, but I would take it easy and REALLY listen and feel for anything abnormal.
If someone would have made a comment like that to me about how I drive MY car, I would have flipped my sht. No reason you shouldnt be able to beat on it as long as you dont do anything its NOT designed to do.. Neutral drops and whatnot... The plot actually thickens and I didn't post this initially but the guy originally said "Oh you broke the crankshaft in half"....I was like WHAT?!?! How did that happen? Which I subsequently found out to be a lie since there is no way oil would get on the external side of the engine with a broke crankshaft not to mention that its damn near impossible to do so. My buddy said there is an off chance I threw a rod and it went through the crank case and that "might" have broken the crankshaft, but he flat out said "The guy is lying to you". Sad to say I think me and this mechanic are parting ways at this point he has sold his business so I'm gonna give the new guy a chance. |
Originally Posted by michelob
(Post 715137)
I understand is there a "break in" period I should be following with this new engine? The guy who owns the shop where the engine is being swapped out at has sold the business and he told me "oh you were driving like Mario Andretti"----which I wasn't. I'm just curious though should I be following any kind of "break in" period? Like do I wanna keep it under a certain speed for a certain amount of miles?
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