Ok, firstly I'd like to say Hi, as I'm a new member on the forum

I think its best to just expain what happened:

I was driving around a roundabout, fairly low on oil, as I hadn't had time to top it up. I was planning to at the end of the day, just before I left work (the oil can was sitting behind my seat ready).

All of a sudden, there was a knock (not very loud at this point), and this knocking sound then repeated throughout the journey, which lasted for about another 10 minutes. Once I had finished work, I topped up the oil and didn't have much choice but to drive it back home, which was about a 25 min journey. As the journey progressed, the tapping got louder, and in the last few mins it started to stall whenever I stopped the car. It would also lose power when it reached approx 3500 RPM.

Right now its sitting on the driveway, and I'm not sure what is wrong with it. A mechanic has looked at it, listened to the sound, and said that it is most likely the "bottom end", and would cost about £1000 to fix, and would probably need a new engine or a considerable amount of a new engine. Since I don't know much about engines at all, I don't know whether hes telling the truth or not, so I have come here in search of a second (and third, fourth etc ) opinion

Here are the details of my car:

1997 Civic coupe 1.6 LS
The engine is a D16Y7, 16v SOHC

Any help/opinions would be greatly appreciated!

 

dude i heard that sound one time and it only took a day before a connecting rod let go and blew a hole clean thru my block.

driving with low oil = bad.

 

yeh it sounds like a piston went thru... sucks for you, you shouldve topped it off

 

fill up with the highest octane gas they got at the station. See if the knockin still occurs.

 

just spending a dollar and 2 mins you could have saved yourself 1k dollars...

 

Yeah, well we live and learn... I just have to do it the hard way unfortunately

I just wanted to be sure it was something really bad, because some people say it might be something simple, guess they are wrong

Thanks for all the input

 

try this link

maybe this?

try those links they show diagrams & explain it, maybe your piston hit an open valve.

 

Thanks SkItZiAnIsT,

I see, and that could explain why I lose power, as if either one of the intake or exhaust valves were broken, there would be a huge problem with the flow.

Thanks for the link to that website, it really helped me understand the basics of how an engine works.

My next question is, is it possible to replace the valve, and would that be all I need to do? Would the piston also need to be replaced? Or would this constitute a new top end? If it does mean a new top end, I have heard that I don't necessarily have to replace it with a D16Y7 one, but I can upgrade it (which, if I have the chance to do, I might as well).

I'm sorry for my lack of knowledge on this But I promise if anyone has the time to help me out I will do my best to listen and be sensible, and try not to be annoying

I have another mechanic who is going to take a look at it soon, apparently he is good, but aren't they all However, just from looking at that website, I feel as though I can understand at least some of what he will tell me, or at least ask some questions that will make sense to him. Thanks once again.

 

if your piston is broken i think its replaceable, im not sure... but youll probably have to take it to a dealer

but face it, you did it to yourself since you didnt take the 30 seconds to add oil... but i would call a dealer tell them the situation ask them what to do. if i were you i would take it to a mechanic i trust not the dealer

 

Believe me I have faced it, I'm not blaming anyone else but myself. Problem is, facing it only stops me from making the same mistake again, doesn't fix my engine, lol

Someone just sent me a PM telling me to fill my tank up with super, because that can help solve knocking problems (doesn't mention loss of power though). And I notice you also say the same thing. I don't really want to do this unless I know the reason why its a good idea - I don't really even want to start the engine unless its really necessary, don't want to cause any more damage. Is there a technical (or explainable) reason why this will work?

I agree about not taking it to the dealer, I've heard of bad experiences - ie, being ripped off, having bad or unnessesary work done etc :/ The mechanic that will be looking at my car soon (and probably doing the work) has been doing work for my uncle for a long time, he seems fair with his prices (according to my uncle) and has done good work for him. Fingers crossed he will know what to do