Looking for advice

[abncivilian]

I have a 2007 vibe and it has been sitting for awhile. I decided to attempt to fix it finally. When I last drove it, i heard something kind of sputtering. I think it was coolant leaking out the hose,but I'm not certain. Anyway, at the time, I didn't know what was happening, but the gauges were good including the temp so i tried to make it home. After a few minutes of the intermittent sputtering noise the engine revved loud and turned turned off. As i slowed, i could smell the coolant and started seeing some smoke or steam. I opened the hood once i pulled over and saw where all the antifreeze must've leaked out at the upper radiator hose. I assume it's trashed but i towed it home to see if i could do anything with it. Now that it's not 100 degrees, i checked it out today. The engine isn't seized,but I'm guessing the water pump is messed up. What would be the next thing to check next to see if it is even worth messing with? Or should i just decide on parting it out vs. New motor? Any advice welcomed.

[abncivilian]

Well, I pulled the plugs and there was water on the ends. Guess the head gasket is blown. I bet the heads waited though so it's probably toast..

[Bookworm]

head gasket or cracked head. I've had both go out on other vehicles - neither of my Vibes, though.

Can't really make a good judgement call without pulling the head, although if you've let it sit too long, you could corrode the pistons and sleeves.

[abncivilian]

It's been sitting since around last October. Haha. I think I'm going to just cut my losses and sell it for parts, or scrap. I'd like to change the motor, but that's probably a little above my skill level and I don't have anyone to help me anyway. I don't have a garage so id be out in the yard doing it. Doesn't sound ideal. Lol

[joatmon]

It might be worth running a compression test on it before you punt

[Bookworm]

I'd do two things first.

1) Get a cheap LED boroscope from E-Bay or Amazon. (You can use it for other things later). You can drop it down the spark plug holes to check for obvious flaws.

2) Clean the head of the engine thoroughly with something like Simple Green. Then pull off the intake manifold. (Exhaust would be helpful, but that takes a lot more time). Inspect the engine itself for cracks. You can also try turning over the engine and see if it produces another leak, but do that AFTER you check for corrosion in the piston sleeves with the boroscope.

If you get the scope from a US source, you can use a phone and have it done within a week.

You could also ask around and see if someone else here has a hankering for a scrap car that just needs an engine, and is in your area. The folks here can ask on the FB group(s) for you. We'd need to know your geographical location for trying to get you help locally.

[zbyers]

Joatman and Bookworm both have solid advice. I'd look into it a bit further.

Even if you did need an engine, you can source one from a junkyard (car-part.com). A weekend with some reasonably mechanically inclined friends and adult beverages and you should be able to have it figured out.