Engine trouble!

[UserName]

First off its a 1989 Lincoln town car but its a ford 5.0L as you know...

I overheated it because a heater hose broke and i lost coolant and it got hot..
it wasnt that hot when i pulled over but it conked out and it didnt start back up. it has an accessory drive fan so it conking out probably made it actually overheat. Now it knocks and smokes white smoke out of the exhaust.

What could i have done when i overheated it to make it knock?
A mechanic told me it might be a blown headgasket
I've never heard of an engine knocking because of a headgasket

is there any way it could be making a knock or tap sound from a blown headgasket?

or am i going to need to rebuild the engine (or get a new engine)?

I just bought this car so i'd have something nice to drive .....now i cant drive it knocking ..... i've had the car for 3 days... .. thanks for the help guys.

 

[UserName]

Anybody?

 

[TrophyHead]

I've never heard off a blown headgasket making knocking noises. It usually just spits out a lot of steam and runs hot. Was it running hot for a long time? Im stumped.

Did you get the car from a private seller or a dealer?

 

[wildstang347]

the white smoke from the exhaust is more than likely a head gasket out, but the knock is more then likely not associated with the gasket.
the combination of high mileage and overheating has more then likely damaged some bearings wich were more than likely loose from excessive high mileage from the get go.
also with a blown head gasket the engine will idle very rough from cylinder or cylinders takeing on water sometimes causeing excessive valve train noise wich can resemble a knock or bad ping.
is your oil light on or gauge very low even while idle is increased? if so, the bearing tolerances have gotten even more sloppy then from before.

 

[UserName]

My engine oil light runs now it didnt before, it sits there flickering...
So that means my bearings are fubared?
Which means i need to repair it by ...?
Oh yeah and i have 129,000 miles...

 

[351wRusty]

if coolant gets in the oil it can take out the bearings..it all depends how long you drove it for with the headgasket gone tho?...and ya coolant in the cylinders can cause some noises also..good luck with it tho

 

[UserName]

Right before it overheated i changed the oil and filter and now the oil is burnt up and dark..... but it doesnt look like theres coolant in it. Since overheating the car has maybe 10 or 15 miles on it at the most..... Like i said before i've had the car for a few days..... I brought it home friday night, did a tune up (plugs/wires/cap/rotor) and oil change w/ oil filter..... and now im left here. Sounds like its gonna be a rebuild..... i bet a 351 would be better to push this boat car..... so..... Is there any way i can know that a junkyard engine will run? My junkyard sells any engine $155 (no accessories) and a 30 day warranty ..... but i dont wanna put another engine in it and it not run......

 

[351wRusty]

ya the oil would look like chocolate milk if it had coolant in it...as for checking junkyard engines..if they have them pulled..they maybe be able to tell you..if not..least u could do it hook battery up to it and test the compression..

 

[wildstang347]

me personally i would remove the heads after doing a compression check 2 see if the rings are still in decent shape giveing a decent reading hopeing cyl pressure is still within acceptable spec and inspecting pistons for damage and determineing wether i would just give it a minor overhaul-gaskets, bearings, chain, pump, etc. removeing pan and popping caps and checking crank journals for serious scratches and if it looks decent possibly just needing a quick hand polishing installing std+.001 or .002 bearings and haveing an engine with fresh bearings&gaskets over something with high unknown mileage. most engines can get 129 plus k on them and still have decent cylinder rings.
i bought a 92 town car with a little rattle 2 it and a flickering oil light from a dealer for 200$ and invested 250$ in a overhaul kit and drove it without a problem for 3 years before selling it and makeing a decent profit.

 

[UserName]

Today i changed the burnt oil - 10W30 to fresh 20W50 and some Engine oil additive (thick like honey...supposed to stop knocks and sounds) and drove it a mile down the road and turned around... on the way back the knock got way worse..... its soo bad now i had to get out of the car because it sounded like something was hitting up against the accessory drive belt or something, but no its the engine making a really bad knock...... so i drove it the rest of the way home and turned it off..... i think this means my engines gone...... Whats my cheapest option to get the car running again? It sounds to me like rebuild it would be cheapest, but im not sure how much that would cost, can anyone give me an estimate on how much it would cost to rebuild my 5.0? Everytime i step forward i take 2 steps backwards!!

 

[wildstang347]

it sounds like you mighta spun a bearing dude! if not actually spun yet will very soon if you keep driveing it. probably junk bottom end now, needing 2 be ground.
if you can do the work yourself you could easily have it back on the road for under 5 bills. i order a lot of engine kits from www.naparts.com due 2 how close i am liveing in the midwest. and depending on the options you choose, for instance a basic rering kit for 5.0L is 139$ consisting of fed mogul rod&main bearings, victor gaskets, rings and pump and chain can be added at very acceptable prices totaling under 200$ for the basic overhaul.
website isnt as detailed as there catalog. but haven't had any problems with products received over 10 years.