maxbasscat wrote:

Do not know yet. Probably previous owner had tried to ‘rescue’ the car as it did have new full set At’s on when we believe it was left, 2016 on tyres and still got pimples, so we feel it may have had some attention, some kind of rescue attempt on 142k after all why would you not try after installing £500 of tyres? No real evidence of catastrophic failure anywhere that we can see. Odd thing it looks like no one had taken anything off or tried to investigate. It is odd it has the feel of it just stopped was set aside and not touched. There is resistance in the crank and we are not going to try and force it.

Having first thought of most obvious non start options we then thought it might be seized. No real give in manual attempts to turn over, we mugged up of how we may free it up, so for about a week or so we fed penetrating oil then diesel into pots to see if it might just move a bit. After a week or so we tried to turn over gently (manually) but did not budge. There did not appear to be any oil on dipstick so we initially thought it was run dry and had bottom end issues. Again nothing obvious.

The view now is to start taking bits off / strip away and discover and then have a proper look underneath in sump looking upwards. We expect there will be some bent bits in there.

When we have enough stripped away we might give it another attempt at manually turning over. My son thinks it is my wishful thinking hence the provision for a swap.

I believe the answer is we do not know and are going through a process. More soon but it will be slow.

Nearly 12 months have passed. Hereafter I am generous in the use of the Royal “we” it is not me doing this work but a mechanic who is considerably more able! Like some project cars this has been taking a back burner but recently we started to undo those bits that might give us a clue on the engine failure. I will post some photos in due course safe to say nothing is easy to take off underneath a 15 yo car. ( I am told)

Dislocating the transmission has be the starter to eventually get the engine out, there is a useful video to follow from “them that have done it”. American chaps Whatever did we do before You Tube?

Transfer box out then gear box off last week revealed the massive rear end of the engine. We thought we would try again turning it over as we might be able to get better purchase on gearbox end. To our absolute amazement we saw that there was metal debris at the flywheel. For what ever reason it had jammed the flywheel teeth. Borrowing the flywheel from our spare engine, we thought it could not be that easy or could it?

We cleared the detritus out and the engine was free. No other damage visible. Absolutely unbelievable that such a small amount of metal debris could seize this beast of an engine. On the back of the flywheel is a riveted inner plate ‘reductor’ ring maybe….. it had disintegrated to a shrapnel. Feeling really adventurous now and of course thinking it won’t start , we linked the gearbox wiring back up and a put up really ad hoc battery set up for the power. We had to give it a go after review of what further damage we might do. There are no photos, I wish I had recorded it but it did happen
Well it only went and fired, first turn too, only for five seconds or so but what a blast without the exhaust.

Now starts the investigation of why and how whilst the gearbox is out and off for testing.

Hoping I might soon have a 4.4L AJ engine for sale but can I be that lucky again. More soon!