While driving about 40mph yesterday, the car suddenly began to slow down and pressing on the gas did nothing. I was able to coast to a parking lot and stop. The car would not start again. I towed to local shop. Was told I had burned out the starter. They placed the starter with a rebuilt starter that I purchased from a large and reputable salvage company in town who I have dealt with for many years. The repair shop said the engine was locked up and would not turn. They said it made a slight turn at first and then stopped. They tried turning with a wrench but no avail. Their assessment is the motor needs replacing. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
4 cyl or 6?
4 cyl
I can’t imagine a starter failing while you are driving. The shop must have guessed and installed a starter for no good reason. The engine may be locked up for one of a number of reasons. An internal coolant leak can “hydro-lock” an engine, making it impossible to turn over, for in stance.
I had began to have a coolant problem and have my air go out. I added coolant once. Is there a way to unlock a hydro-locked engine?
To unlock a hydro-locked engine, pull all the plugs and crank the engine. If there is water in one of the cylinders, it will spurt out.
When you say “It would not start again”, was the engine doing the regular “errrrrrrr” sound like the starter was actually spinning the engine or was the sound a ‘click - thunk’ with no other noises?
If you pull the plugs and the engine still doesn’t turn, you have a seized engine for what ever reason. You could have an exploratory disassemble done to assess the extent of the damage. However, you might be money ahead to just install a used engine from your favorite salvage company.
Hope this helps.