My thoughts are that the mechanic is full of ****, or has misdiagnosed the problem due to incompetence. Even if the engine had quit while driving on the freeway, etc, any time I hear an expensive diagnosis such as “replace engine”, I’d recommend taking it somewhere else for a second opinion.
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I will ask again:
yes the care was not driven. Friend tried starting once and it did not start. Mileage confirms.
Already asked and answered
Wondering if it ran out of oil.
How much was the estimate for repair?
just under 8K
In reviewing all of the responses in this thread, it doesn’t seem to have been clarified what is meant when you say that the car would not start. Would it crank but not catch? Would it not even turn over? If the latter then a bad battery could be the simplest answer. If it had a weak battery and had been sitting for six weeks, that is at least a possibility. Without more information from the mechanic as to why they think the whole engine is toast it is hard to know whether the simplest explanation seems not to have received more attention.
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$8k estimate vs battery? Cmon man.
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The OP really needs to clarify with the dealer WHY they say the engine is bad. They should provide a solid reason and articulate it clearly so there is no misunderstanding.
Over the years I’ve seen a number of allegedly major problems which were anything but that.
Example. Pickup that would randomly die and may or may not restart and run fine later. Three tows later the shop claimed “all of the valve springs and rocker arms had failed” and they replaced all of them for over 1100 dollars.
That is light years beyond asinine. The real cause? A burned 25 cent fuse and I had the truck fixed before the tow driver even got back into his wrecker.
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I agree it may be a stretch, but where has the phrase “would not start” been adequately explained?
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You mean when they did Oil Change they forgot a cap or something? Oil change was done August 5th.
Tow service replaced battery with new just to see if that was it when they could not jump. Still nothing.
Are you saying that the starter motor will not physically crank the engine over?
Or does the starter motor engage and there is a solid clunk sound and the engine is not turning over.
So maybe we’re talking about the engine being seized? Coolant leaking into the chambers? Rats got in there? I guess if that’s the case, ought to at least pull the heads.
One possibility (IF the engine is seized) is that a drain plug gasket may have been omitted or reused during the oil change. That could lead to a constant oil drip and possibly over weeks the oil level could have dropped dangerously low while the car sat idle.
If someone were to start it and leave the car unattended while it ran for a while then that could be bad news.
If this were the case I would think there would be a sizeable oil blotch where the vehicle was parked.
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No oil blotch was noticed. I had the car the first 10 days after oil change.
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Possibly seized I guess. It is very rural with foxes and such around so critters are a possibility.
So if we ask to pull the heads would it potentially be just a replacement of parts versus the entire engine?
Do you think the cylinder heads need to be stretched?
Removing the cylinder heads on modern vehicles is usually a 20 hour procedure. Before considering the repair of an engine it is necessary to understand the failure of the engine.
Take notes while discussing the recommended repair and ask for the estimate to be emailed to you for review.