Hot Rods Damage a motor by hydro-lock

As Hnstray already stated I have seen cars that have been on their sides have damage to the engines - especially if the car had been on its side for a extended length of time. Whenever a car like this would come in we would turn it over with no plugs in it and some would throw oil like crazy.
When they would get running again they would push blue for awhile until they got good and hot.

 

Where you live a starter isn't even needed if you get it parked right. LOL

 

The big damage happens if you decide to pull start it

 

You ought to see what a hydro-lock will do to the innards of a Wright R-3350; it will continue to run on 17 cylinders for awhile but trashes everything in the case. Cost over 200k to replace it...

 

EGR cooler failure is one of the most common failures these days. With our customers that use our oil analysis program, we can see it developing, low level coolant additives in the oil for a long time, until the cooler finally lets go and they end up with water in the oil. A very common ailment.

 

Couple of stories. At the great flood of the NSRA nats a few years ago, water got up into motors. Saw several guys go out and try to start motors with draining water. You could hear those puppies lock up when they tried to start up.Then a couple years ago had a friend with new car (39 ford), new crate motor. After a huge rain (this was in L'ville also) go and and try to start .It "locked up" when he tried to start.I "thought" i knew a lot about SBC.Several folks giving ideas/opinions on whats wrong. You guys know the scenario !! Older guy walks by ,looks at motor, says pull number 8 plug. Pulled it, you could hear water run out.Put plug in ,started right up. The car had a louvered hood on it and a trendy Cadillac air cleaner on it. It has a recessed area where it bolts to carb. .it sucked/leaked water down carb.Fast forward 18 months, Soooo I hav a 52 chevy pick up. It sets for a while. i go out to start it. It cranks a little then sort of stops like low battery. Then picks up and cranks. Did this a couple of times, I check Battery, good , starter new. I figure i got head gasket leaking. Went out to start it ,turns over a little then completely stops.We had a lot of rain. I remember the old guy Telling us to pull #8. I do, and of course it is the hardest plug to get too.Soon as i pull it, A LOT of water runs out. Put plug back in. cranks first turn, runs like a charm.52 chevy pick up hoods have a seam that runs length of hood.I have a large chrome air cleaner with thick K/N filter. I look close at wing nut. see water .It is right under the seam. For time being i put two big strips of foil tape over the wing nut.(looks cool,really). I have not had another issue like that again.

 

I have owned several cars like that.

 

I had two experiences with hydro-locked engines. Both occurred while cranking. The first was a truck I bought that had been wrecked. It had been cranked over with water in the cylinders (set outside with the front clip off). It was a Ford with a 360. I had it for about a year and while driving down the interstate, the bent rod broke. It continued to run with a miss, but I had it towed back home. The rod flexed long enough that it broke in the middle.

The second was a Pantera. I worked at a L-M dealership and we kept 2 or 3 Pantera's in stock. One just didn't run right. It didn't miss, but it was a bit down on power. A customer took a test ride and the engine started making a noise. We pulled it and found two bent rods. Pantera's had a problem that snow would set on the grate behind the rear window and when it melted it would run down into the air cleaner. Try to start it and you had a hydro-lock.

 

I had a little Tercel I used in a bump to pass race at our local dirt track....had a bad head gasket to start off, so I poured some of that liquid head gasket repair stuff in it, and ran it. The morning after the race, I went to back it off the trailer and...... BANG!!!! It sent a piston through the side of the block. (Amazingly the damn thing still ran lol)

 

This is a small block Chrysler rod where a cylinder wall let go at about 7 grand

 

Exact same thing happened to a friends 59 FI Corvette (twice) He ended up putting a check-spring and ball in the spider. D

 

LOL me too. I should be ashamed of that but I am not just proud that I have managed to get by with whatever was available for a long time

This story if your you and the Gimp.

We lived on Portrero Hill (I may have spelled that wrong) when we still lived in San Francisco on the downhill side of 20th and Texas St. @gimpyshotrods may be able to tell a little about the hill, it was actually marked hill at the top of the hill when I was little. I digress, at the bottom of the hill there lived a couple of brothers who owned a wrecking yard and raced short track. One time that I remember they pulled their car to the top of the hill and rolled it off. near the bottom of the hill when the driver dumped the clutch the tires locked for a bit than Kapow!!! and a big ol ball of smoke rolled out.

that was an evening escapade and the ol man just said, "Well its back to the wrecking yard for them." and laughed.

 

The yard is long gone. It is all Condolandia now. Still just as steep, though.

That whole area is impossibly gentrified.

 

I had this happen one time in my roadster with the first engine in it. It was parked outside and it rained before I could do anything with it. Next day I try to start it and it turned and stopped. Pulled the plugs and spun it. Water shot out of every cylinder. Shot some oil in each cylinder and put it back together. Ran fine. I did put a rubber washer on top of the chrome air cleaner though...
r


Sent from my iPhone using H.A.M.B.

 

Last google pic I saw of it Mary Darita's Victorian was still there (we lived in Mary's upper flat from about '63 to '68) and the Otah's house was still there. Johnny Otah was my first friend in the city.

I took my first solo bike ride on that hill, up the hill to 20th street. The year I turned 9 or 10. T took a right around the corner and smacked the mailbox, then continued down to mid block and back. Broke my pinky finger and the front brake lever.

 

I once saw an International V8 hydrolock after a bolt was dropped into the intake by accident after a valve job and no one noticed. It ran for a few seconds until it punched a hole in one cylinder head and then locked up, draining the antifreeze our the mufflers! It bent one rod about 90 degrees and another about 45 degrees but neither broke. They replaced the head, a couple of pistons and the rods and it went out the door running just fine. I never liked those engines but I have to admit, they’re tough mothers.

 

Just preemptively canned the one on the wife's car, for a new one, as I was working right next to it. Don't ever want to go back down to that layer.