has anyone came across an engine that was hydrolocked? my car was driven through a flood and the engine is now seized, i took the plugs out and i tried turning it with a breaker bar but its just stuck. im trying to get the oil pan off but it seems to be snagged near and engine mount on the passenger side, any advice?
can a piston be cracked or what do you think the cause for the stuck engine could be?

 

The oil pickup tube comes down in the middle of the oil pan so it can be a bear to get off. I've never done it with the motor still in the car. On mine the fuel line runs just under the passenger side of the motor, just enough to hang up on the oil pan. If yours is the same you can try loosening the fuel line. I just took apart a motor seized from sludge and what was left of the bearings was shiny flakes stuck in the black crud at the bottom of the pan. It'll give a good indication whether the motor is worth saving.

If the block was full of water for some time maybe the bearings rusted? Would have had to displace most of the oil I'd think for that to happen. How bad was it when you drained the oil.

 

Was the engine running when it ingested water? If so, start looking for anoher engine.
If it's been sitting for a while and has seized, it will likely be rings and pistons stuck to the now rusty bores.
A rebuild will be in order.

Regards, Andrew.

 

yes the engine was running when it ingested water, i got this car for 1000 bucks from my friends mom it sat for only 2 weeks so the walls cant be that rusty could they? so far all electronics work.

1.drained the oil their was some water in it maybe a 4 oz amount.

2.took the pan off and took off only bearin cap #5(this one because when i took the plug out it was the only spark plug with water on it) and the bearings look brand new with no scores or any wear at all wat a relief!
-----now the engine will turn over 180degrees but gets stuck, so i believe that narrows it down to a bent connecting rod. if it was a bad piston it would totally be seized? or bad rings it would still move?
3. took off the valve cover and the camshafts, next is to take off the intake, exhaust manifold, and cylinder head to pull out the piston w the bent rod.

im new to volvo cars so does anyone have any advice for the work im about to do?
thanks for your posts andrew and seamonkey

p.s the oil drain tube was definitely in the way, without my engine hoist this was a frustrating job, i managed to get the pan off in the car by taking out the 2 vertical engine mount bolts on the passenger side because that was what was jamming the pan up. so i pryed the mount up w a long screwdriver and stuck the handle of an adjustable wrench between the mount and the cradle to get the pan some room and i shimmyed it out quite easily after that.

 

Marine dealers are experts at hydrolock problems. You might call and ask whether they can deal with a non-marine Volvo. Worth a call at least.

 

two connecting rods were bent, cyl 1 and 5, pistons valves and head were fine rods took all the impact, turbo may be shot but im going to give it a shot anyway when i get the parts. ordering rods for 130, head gasket for 50, head bolts(12) for 50, vvt solenoid gasket(3), exhaust flange gasket(5), liquid compound gasket+roller (20), one piston ring i broke(20) for a total of about $300 including new oil. should be an extremely cheap fix

$1000 - salvaged '01 c70 with 70k driven through a flood
$200 - cost to get it titled
$300 - parts to fix

priceless.

 

Hope it all works out for you, but be warned, I've never seen a computer controlled car run right ever again after being submerged. You may still need to buy used computers etc.

Regards, Andrew.

 

problem solved, total cost for repair in parts $550, work done by myself a 23 year old tinkerer . engine needed two connecting rods #1 & #5 and a piston in #5, throttle was stuck from a month of corrosion so that needed some cleaning for the electronic throttle to have enough torque to open it, and i misinterpreted the timing mark for the crank(the mark on the crankpulley should be directly pointing at the top middle of the cylinder head. car runs like a champ, going to sell for the right price. thanks everyone for your help