CRAP-hydrolocked

[rickcdewitt]

finally did it,i forgot to disconnect my factory cold air before going across a creek.the water was only about 2-3 ft deep but the right(wrong?) combination of bow wave and the pass. side dipping down while climbing left out of a creek let the wave go staight in and rearrange the long block .the wierd part is it used to cut out a bit with water in it as sort of a warning but this time it stopped like i had just turned off the key.pulled all the plugs and 2,5 and 6 were full of water. tried to drag it and free it up but its seized up tight.might be time to find a b2 with a blown fm-146 and put all my stuff on it.
i don't know-anyone have a good 2.9 in california?

oops is it supposed to be like that? if you look close you'll see where the counter weight and water crushed the piston into a few pieces

 

[MAKG]

2.9Ls are just everywhere in junkyards. I'd suggest getting one at a pull-yer-own, or as you say pick up a Bronco II with (or without!) a blown FM146. Even in perfect condition, they cost less than $1000.

Though it's late for you, maybe this can help someone else: most 2.9L airboxes have an auxiliary intake tube under the hood. It's too small to do anything under normal conditions, but if the intake is submerged, it's enough to break the vacuum in the airbox and prevent ingestion until the whole airbox is submerged. However, most people don't know it's there and just let it hang, which disables it. Take the tube (it's corrugated plastic, hanging off the back of the airbox), and secure it to the top of the firewall near the hood hinge.

Note that a paper filter is often more resistant to ingestion than a clean K&N filter. Another reason not to use them.... Wet paper doesn't flow well at all.

 

[rickcdewitt]

MAKG do you mean the flex tube that goes to the exhaust manifold?i've been wanting to make a sliding door on the firewall side of the box and run a duct to the cowl.guess i should have done it before the winch.i really like the stability and hauling abilities of my truck but i run with jeeps most of the time(i know it sucks) and my bed is very bashed in from trying to cut corners the way a TJ will.a B2 is very tempting but it would be harder to justify a toy,where the truck is still utilitarian(go ahead and send the hate mail B2 owners).i could just use a trailer with the b2 though.

 

[blackbronc]

Sounds like a good time to swap a 4.0 in. Most of the 2.9 I've seen in the pic&pulls are there with cracked heads. I was lucky and found one clean with rebuilder tags on the heads and wrecked. Look for one wrecked since it was most likely moving when it happened as opposed to a perfect body indicating a mechanical failure.

 

[MAKG]

It's quite easy to check for cracked heads in the field. Pull the oil cap and dipstick. Baby barf and/or snot = cracked. There is some remote possibility that the heads may still be cracked even without the easy signs, but it's much less likely. Also note that cracked 4.0L heads are not THAT rare.

No, I don't mean the warm air side of the intake. Not all 2.9Ls have that, and it won't work very well unless it's near the exhaust manifold.

 

[Hahnsb2]

Damn guess I got lucky whe I hydrolocked my rig a bit over a year ago. Like a dumbass I didnt have tools with me and wasnt able to pull the plugs. Had to bump the starter to force the water out and drove into town without an airfilter and as soon as I got home I changed the oil twice. Still runs great!

 

[compleckz]

Damn guess I got lucky whe I hydrolocked my rig a bit over a year ago. Like a dumbass I didnt have tools with me and wasnt able to pull the plugs. Had to bump the starter to force the water out and drove into town without an airfilter and as soon as I got home I changed the oil twice. Still runs great!

yea i got lucky too, locked up the motor, had a friend pull me out, then got it towed home by another friend, pulled the plugs, cranked it over a bunch, wd40, a few oil + filter changes, new plugs+wires while i was at it, new air filter.. and its still going strong..

my buddy has a 2001 zr2 and he recently hydrolocked, but he had tools on him, so we took in intake off, cleaned it out, pulled the plugs, pulled the fuel pump relay, cranked it for a minute, put it back together and drove home.. i guess we were all lucky..

 

[rickcdewitt]

yeah i think she's done for.i pulled the plugs and got drug to 15 mph then let out the clutch in 4x4 and it spun the 10" clutch before dragging all four tires on the pavement,4hi second gear.tried it forward and backwards,totally locked!it will be interesting to see whats waiting under the cylinder heads and oil pan.damn shame since it was a fresh engine with good oil pressure and compression and no ticking.its drank water before and sputtered but not this.it diden't sputter at all just died like the key was turned off.i diden't hear any metallic death noises either,stereo was off but the engine was at about 3 thousand rpm's.i've been through much deeper water faster and slower than i was going oh well.i can say this though,i'm not putting off getting rid of the cold air any more(or at least making a bypass).

 

[Todd]

Did this many moons ago to my 2.9.


Trying to pull start it was a bad idea if you want to rebuild it, might have made it worse.

As for mine I sucked in a good amount of water at 3 grand, stopped the damn thing on a dime. Pulled her out, flipped it over on the engine stand and water came running out. Pulled the pan and what do I see but # 3 & 6 rods bent like noodles. # 6 piston hit the counter weight of the crank. While having the crank in to get ground they informed me it was twisted.

 

[rickcdewitt]

gotta love the factory intake placement.i don't think i need to worry about reusing any bottom end parts,its locked solid.i have a couple of parts motors that i'll be looking into i guess.with the money i already have into the 2.9l it'll be cheapest to rebuild versus a 4.0 swap.i'de like to do a swap but i think i'll just sell this truck and do a 4.0 swap in a b2 when i'm ready to sell the ranger.



todd did your block survive?

 

[Todd]

todd did your block survive?

Yup. Got a new set of rods and pistons for the rebuild but still used the old crank. The machine work done to it was still cheaper then a new one.

 

[rickcdewitt]

well you called it todd,#6 right up on the counterweight #3 only about half bent.i thought that the motor had been rebuilt or something because of the really good compression,oil pressure and no ticking.but its all 91 stuff, standard bore, decent ridge at top of cylinder.from my experience these seem like one of the few ford engines(v-6's anyway) that will go 200-300,000 miles(the old girl had 198,000miles) like a honda or yota so long as you keep the temp's under control.i have more experience with chevy 2.8's in different rig's and i'll take a 2.9l any day,they don't seem to last like fords german v-6.

i measured the height from the ground to the intake port behind the grill on my truck and it's about 37"s.hmm i wonder if another 2 or three inches of lift would have saved the motor?

 

[Todd]

Hmmmm. My 2.9 was like that as I stated. My buddy Evans 4.0 was the same and your 2.9 was also the same carnage. Must be something about the 2.9 and 4.0 blocks configuration # 3 and 6 like ingesting water when they can.

 

[Evan]

Here's what one of mine looked like:

Not to worry though:

 

[rickcdewitt]

it is kind of odd about these motors filling #6 first.i got to looking and only #4(pass. front) isen't bent at all.1,2,and 5 are about 1/16-1/8" low.hell it turns over good now without the piston and rod,maybe i should pull the #6 pushrods and put it back together

evan were you using the factory intake in the grill when you got swamped?what have you guys come up with to avoid using that drinking straw ford calls a cold air duct?i was thinking i'de keep mine and put a slider where it goes to the air box.then run a duct to the cowl with a slider there also,so i can chose where my air is coming from.