GenVibe - Community for Pontiac Vibe Enthusiasts

My engine started knocking as I got close to home a month ago. Pulled off the valve cover when I got home, nothing looked visibly askew with the timing. Seems odd for a 1ZZ to just go kaput out of nowhere; has anyone else experienced a sudden severe knocking? It was enough to throw a code.

did you get the dreaded flashing check engine light?

Did the temperature go nuts beforehand? or did you see?

When was the last time you checked the oil level & it's condition?

Bookworm wrote: ↑Sat Apr 09, 2022 11:18 am Did the temperature go nuts beforehand? or did you see?

Last summer after purchasing the car, the serpentine snapped. Pulled to the shoulder before it overheated (although it got really hot). Had it towed home and immediately replace the belt. Coolant temperature has been right on target ever since, even when the engine gave out.

Caretaker wrote: ↑Sat Apr 09, 2022 10:31 am did you get the dreaded flashing check engine light?

Don’t recall if it was flashing; it was definitely on though.

tpollauf wrote: ↑Sun Apr 10, 2022 6:20 am When was the last time you checked the oil level & it's condition?

Oil was brand new from the dealer at 80,000 when I bought the car. On the day the engine went, it was at the right level and hadn’t turned to ‘coffee’ yet.

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Oil was brand new from the dealer at 80,000 when I bought the car. On the day the engine went, it was at the right level and hadn’t turned to ‘coffee’ yet.
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(I'm grinding my teeth as I write this): You just bought the car 6,000 miles ago and you got it from a dealer?.............and the serpentine belt snapped shortly after buying it?

Caretaker wrote: ↑Sun Apr 10, 2022 12:26 pm

Oil was brand new from the dealer at 80,000 when I bought the car. On the day the engine went, it was at the right level and hadn’t turned to ‘coffee’ yet.
[/quote]

(I'm grinding my teeth as I write this): You just bought the car 6,000 miles ago and you got it from a dealer?.............and the serpentine belt snapped shortly after buying it?
[/quote]

Let’s keep this about what could be going on with the engine, please.

are you sure it's knocking? do you have a video? pictures of what's going on? etc.

Would it be possible to get a list of codes?

Finally got un-busy and home from work!

Here's a link to the engine sound:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1p3uaWfse2o

Thanks, all!

Did you ever find out what CEL code it threw?

If it makes the sound right away when you start the engine cold, then you could do a quick test. Take off the serpentine belt and see if the noise is still there. If it isn't, then seems like the noise is from something the belt drives. If its still there, then its the engine. But don't run it for very long without the belt, or run without the belt when the engine is hot.

It’s definitely the engine. When I had it towed to the shop, the professional parlance was “toast.”

Wondering if it’s a rod? Seems like something I could do myself.

The problem is _what_ is blown. Throwing a rod can be relatively minor, or it could be 'blow a chunk out of the engine'. A worn piston rod can break, or it can wallow out on the cam, etc.

If you want to spend the time on it, you _could_ pull the engine out, put it on a stand, and take it to bits just to see what happened. I have a 07 vibe with 215k or so on the engine that's still in good shape, that I need to sell. (I'm trying to find where my wife "put away" the title)

Also, no engine light.