not running 85

[old blue jeans]

Whelp....

http://cincinnati.craigslist.org/cto/5250982817.html

[Mustakrakesh]

Whats wrong with it?
I'm on my way through I could maybe justify getting it repaired? taking it with me back to Canada :O

[old blue jeans]

I have no idea. It was running great the day before. I was planning to sell the old friend, and was taking a drive in the truck I'm replacing her with. I came back for her, and she didn't want to go. Sounded like a truck load of pea gravel under the hood. Maybe some bearings froze? But I really have no idea and I would love to know, because I took such good care of that car. Honestly, my best guess at this point, is that the car was actually A.I., it knew I was planning to sell, and it died of a broken heart.

Anyway, the rust is mostly superficial. It was garaged during the winters in Ohio, so she never got salted. I'd take less than 500$, especially to somebody here on this forum.

[keith]

Is the motor running but the vehicle just won't move? That could be a broken CV joint, easy repair.

[dlb]

yes, more details on the problem. does the engine run but sound terrible? does the car move? if you're lucky, it's an easy fix and will be able to get much more for it once it's running again.

[Petros]

a bad starter/bendix drive would make a "gravel" sound when you try and start it, but it is unclear when the noise happens. "did not want to go"? does that mean start and run? or it runs okay but makes the noise when you put it in gear and try and drive it?

I wish people at ask for help would give more details, it always seems like pulling teeth to get more information to help them. my pet peev "it wont turn over", I always say "i hope not, that would be hard on the paint and body work". "did not want to go" is just as vauge.

Please provide more details, exactly what happens when you turn the key, engine running? put it in gear and start to drive? when does the noise come?

[old blue jeans]

All good points. I've just been so busy at work with harvest, etc, I don't feel like I have time to deal with these things. I'm also maybe not willing to take on another project.

I didn't listen too much when I left the car last, and it was dark.

What I did find:

It wanted to turn over, but the noise was so awful I just stopped. In fact I'm convinced it actually would have turned over but the noise was so loud. It was running perfect the day before.

So, earlier that day, I changed the oil, changed the plugs, added some gas and then DROVE (car ran great) to pick up the truck on Sunday night. I drove the truck on Monday, and I went back for the car Monday evening.

I tried to turn it over twice because I wasn't convinced the first time. I've never been stranded by that car. So I tried again. Again the second time it sounded like somebody was rattling a can of gravel under the hood of my car.

I looked for leaks, checked the plugs were all in the right place and connected (although it drove fine the day before after changing the plugs), I tried to find smells, moisture, oil, animals, anything... nothing, I found nothing out of the norm. All the fresh oil was still there, coolant was all there, and no leaks.

I haven't given up on it yet, but I start a class tomorrow to get certified to do PV. I'll check back on her next week. I'm also suspecting that its something I missed, and also small. We'll see.....

[ARCHINSTL]

Kind of far out, but - could you try a push-start? That would eliminate using the starter. Perhaps try it several times.
I'd bet Petros had the right diagnosis.
Tom M.

[Petros]

do not turn over the car! it will damage the roof and be hard on the paint, it could also break the windows!

do you mean it will not start and run on its own? sounds like the starter might be making all the noise. easy check, see if the starter bolts are loose, sometimes they back out and will cause the starter motor gear drive to grind because of misalignment. If they are tight, it could be the bendix drive on the starter. the push start test would tell you if it runs okay, but only makes the noise when you use the starter.