I drive a 2002 crown vic lx with 124,000 miles on it Recently it started heating up and losing power.My mechanic thinks I need a new engine.But I take good care of the car,oil change and all needed preventive maintenance religiously.How can I screw up the engine?I do daily 120 miles of city driving on average everyday.please help!!!
Have a compression check done and a coolant system flow check to learn you next step.
What is the basis of your mechanic’s recommendation? Give some details? Did he say it has a bad head gasket?
Yes,he did.There was also some disturbing sound coming out of the engine.He was very suorised to hear that sound,because I do all the necessary preventive maintenanace on time.
Did he do a compression test? What were the results? Did he do any other tests?
Did it ever boil over?? Is the check engine light on?? Is anything leaking? Any smoke from the exhaust?
While preventive maintenance is the best bet for avoiding major trouble, it is never a guarantee. Things still go wrong. It is possible that you had a condition that resulted in overheating, this can lead to the bad head gasket (or come from it), and then the head gasket can allow coolant into the oil which will wreck the internals in pretty short order. You might be a victim of bad luck.
You said its been “heating up.” Is that overheating? For how long? If it was just a head gasket those can be repaired and though not cheap isn’t as much a new engine. But if you are getting any heavy knocking in the engine, then putting a new head gasket on it might be putting a band-aid on an amputation.
You could go get a second opinion.
Yes,it did boil over.After that the check engine light came up ,and the readind said oxygen sensor.But there was no smoke from the exhaust.
The cooling system needs to be pressure tested for leaks. This takes some special tools. Using the same tools, they can check for a blown head gasket, rare on the 4.6 V8…Then make sure there is no engine misfire, a condition which usually brings up a CEL warning. Change the fuel filter. Check fuel rail pressure. If it still wants to overheat, change the thermostat.
As long as the engine will start and run smoothly and quietly, you do not need a new engine…You might need more work to resolve all your drivability problems, but not a new engine…
Your engine is barely broken in at 124K miles. There’s a good chance that your plastic intake manifold may be cracked and causing your issues.
Are you using this car as a taxi? Is it a retired police car?