HI I WAS WONDERING IF ANYONE CAN HELP ME OUT. I HAVE AN '89 VANDEN PLAS (VDP) THAT I JUST BOUGHT OFF OF MY FRIEND, THE CAR RAN FINE UP UNTIL ONE DAY I WENT TO START IT. I JUST FINISHED HIGH SCHOOL WITH ENTRY LEVEL EXPERIENCE AND I RAN THROUGH THE BASIC GAS, SPARK, COMPRESSION TESTS AND FOUND OUT THAT THE HEAD GASKET WAS BLOWN, HAD THAT REPLACED AND ABOUT A WEEK LATER THE ENGINE DECIDES TO LOOSE POWER.

THE CAR HAS 111K MILES ON IT AND I WAS WONDERING, BEFORE I TAKE IT ALL APART AGAIN, IF I WERE TO TRY AND TURN THE CRANKSHAFT WITH THE RIGHT SOCKET AND A 3FT BREAKER BAR, SHOULD IT BE REALLY EASY TO TURN?

I ASK THIS CAUSE THE TECHNICIAN AT A LOCAL SHOP SAID TO TRY AND DO THIS AND IF IT DOES NOT TURN THE THE ENGINE IS CEASED.

 

"Really easy" is hard to define With a 3-foot bar you shouldn't have to grunt too hard, though.

Remove the sparks plugs. With the plugs out is WILL be very easy to turn. If it isn't, you've got trouble.

Will it not turn over on the starter motor?

And can you more fully describe "....engine decides to lose power" ?

This bit of turning the engine over with a breaker bar might be a stroll down the garden path.

This thread belongs in the "XJ40" section. Maybe an admin will move it. But, at least preliminarily, it may not matter much.




Cheers
DD

 

Did the car overheat when the gasket blew? If you had it replaced and it did not blow again chances are the engine is not seized. Do you have coolant in your oil or oil in your coolant? How do they look?

You could just have something as simple as a lack of fuel pressure which is why you are loosing power. With regard to not turning over, do you hear anything when you turn the key to crank?

 

Welcome to the Forum. I've moved your thread to the XJ40 section as Doug + Grant kindly suggested.
Please take time to visit
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ps - please get rid of the Caps Lock !!

 

Travis,

I'm with Doug on this, provide more detail when you say "looses power".

What happens when you engage the starter? Describe the behavior in detail.

Considering the motor has only 111K on it, I would think your problem is easier, but it's difficult to guide you in a direction without having more info. Perhaps, if you have a digital camcorder (w/sound), you can record when your attempting to start it, post the vid on youtube and link it in the post.

There are a host of probables, such as TPS (throttle position sensor), CPS (crank position sensor), CTS (coolant temperature sensor), ....... you get the idea. All of which report to the main computer to which controls air and fuel delivery. Often times we find it's simple items causing the behavior.