Smoking. Cracked ring...??? What to do

[Zeroclearance]

Chart1, yes the mechanic will see the rod bearing and the crankshaft rod journal, but unless Marc asks to remove a main cap he won't be able to see the condtion of the main bearings.

I side with Clifford, I don't think that Williams is going to "run" up the bill with the exposure that is on the forums right now.   

However, it is in Marc's best interest to have some peace of mind to know how the conditions of his bearings are.   Who knows, they might need to be replaced, and then they might have some life in them.   Rod and Main bearings don't cost much, it is the labor that is the bulk of the dollars.

Marc hasn't told us if he is handy with a wrench, or if he has the patients to pull his oil pan and roll bearing in.   Right now he has the chance to see what the condition of his bearings are.   

Speculating that the mechanic is going to pull a bearing out and "rig" the results is out of line.   I highly doubt Williams is going to go out of there way to stick it to him.

[artvonne]

I highly doubt Williams is going to go out of there way to stick it to him.

  Sorry if I dont share your optimism. All ive learned from this is that Williams wont stand behind their work, and their word isnt worth a plugged nickle.   

[thejumpsuitman]

I was going to post this as a response to the Coach-net thread, but I am going to try to keep posts on topic, so I will answer it here...  The question was why not spend $1,000 on a used engine....

What Brandon said (on the Coach-net thread) is exactly right.  The choice is not $1,000 for a running used engine vs. $3,800 for repairing the existing engine... If I were to get a used one, I would have first had to get the bus home, which would probably be largely at my own cost since I doubt Coach-Net would pay for that distance, while passing a bunch of shops...  Then actually find a $1,000 (or more) deal on an engine that runs good...  Arrange to go get it... Then, since I can't swap it myself, I would have to find somebody honest and trustworthy around here who would be willing and able to do the engine swap (Finding someone like that around here is not an easy task, believe me).  And even at that point, as Brandon pointed out, I would likely have had to spend some money on that engine.  For example, wouldn't it be prudent to pull the heads and have a look... And pull the pan and have a look at the bearings?  What if it doesn't look so good in there?  You're right back to square one, spending money on a used engine.

And as far as getting it home, you can say you wouldn't care if it blows up... But my wife was with me, I am not going to knowingly put her in the frightening position that we could be stranded somewhere unsafe on the side of the road on our first trip in the bus. Can you imagine the engine blowing in our beautiful Eagle on I-85 ramp in the middle of Atlanta?

This all began with my spending $1,200, then investing in the tow (hopefully to be rembursed), now we are looking at a $3,800 quote, but with a $1,200 credit toward that bill.  This all happened incrementally.

One thing I will be able to say about the engine already in the bus is that it ran perfect for 800 miles and the thing that went wrong will be fixed.  And I was more than thrilled with the way it ran before.

Art, I really, honestly do appreciate all the empathy.  Your sincerity makes me feel like we aren't in it alone.  And it pains me more than anyone else that I will have $3,500-$4,000 in this repair, but when you consider all the other factors, I still say from this point in time,that this is the fastest and least expensive way to get the bus back on the road.

Hindsight is 20/20.  So if I knew all of this back in Montgomery before I spent dollar #1, I would probably have looked for a good used engine around there and left the bus there to be fixed.  

But once you're half way through the woods, it's just as far to turn around as to keep going.

[luvrbus]

When you pay a 1000  bucks for a engine Marc that is what you get a 1000 dollar engine and may take you a week to change parts over if it didn't come from the same year and model of bus example Eagle and MCI engines don't mix


good luck

[bobofthenorth]

.....Plus, the way this it unfolded, I thought the problem might have been something they would cover from the first repair or be something relatively simple like a broken fuel line.

..............  Hindsight is 20/20.  So if I knew all of this back in Montgomery before I spent dollar #1, I would probably have looked for a good used engine around there and left the bus, but once you're half way through the woods, it's just as far to turn around as keep going.

BTDTGTTS or as Shakespeare said "we're in blood so far steeped now that turning back were as perilous as go o'er"

And after the fact you can bank on having plenty of armchair experts ready to second guess your decisions every step of the way.  We did a similar process a few years ago in New Jersey except that our final bill came out around $18k.  When I was all done though I knew exactly what I had.  Like Clifford said, a thousand dollar engine is a thousand dollar engine. 

I know you don't need my approval for your decisions but from here it looks like you are making them logically and in the right order.  Good luck.

[thejumpsuitman]

When you pay a 1000  bucks for a engine Marc that is what you get a 1000 dollar engine and may take you a week to change parts over if it didn't come from the same year and model of bus example Eagle and MCI engines don't mix


good luck

Another good point, Clifford.

[thejumpsuitman]

.....Plus, the way this it unfolded, I thought the problem might have been something they would cover from the first repair or be something relatively simple like a broken fuel line.

..............  Hindsight is 20/20.  So if I knew all of this back in Montgomery before I spent dollar #1, I would probably have looked for a good used engine around there and left the bus, but once you're half way through the woods, it's just as far to turn around as keep going.

BTDTGTTS or as Shakespeare said "we're in blood so far steeped now that turning back were as perilous as go o'er"

Ah, doesn't it figure that a Shakespeare quote would become apropos at some point during all of this. 

[chart1]

When you buy a 1000 dollar engine running or not you are buying a core or parts engine.

[luvrbus]

You got the picture Cory lol, but in life you take the hand that you were dealt I don't think William S said that   

good luck

[thejumpsuitman]

Here's another Shakespeare quote that fits...

"When sorrows come, they come not single spies, but in battalions"   

[zubzub]

Had a van breakdown on me while on the road with the wife and kids the other day.  Bloody modern van with tons of electronics, switched some relays around, checked all the fuses, unplugged the ecm to see if it would limp home etc....no go on anything.  Called the tow and a taxi to the nearest town, local shop diagnosed nonsense (we had continued in another van) on the phone they sounded like they had got it fixed with a reboot of the ecm (yeah right) but they said it was running.  $300  fro diagnosis and fuel pressure checking etc...van made it 10 miles before dying again on the side of highway.  Another tow back to the shop, this time they switched in a new coil (BS as the van is still running rough) they tried to charge me another $300 for the 2nd visit...Haha they must be nuts, I agreed to pay for the coil only no  other charges,  van made it 100 miles back to town, I don't trust it and need to find the real fault before I do.  Usually I do all my own repairs/ diagnosing  but there was no time/place/weather (snow storm both times) so I was at the mercy of the shop and every time that happens I am not pleased with the result, even when I have been right there looking over his shoulder I watched a mech pull apart a CV joint for no reason other than ignorance I then had to try to reassemble it on my own time.  
  All this to say sorry you are having these problems, I know how they tend to compound themselves and good money starts chasing bad.  Personally I would eventually go after the first shop for doing unnecessary BS work and replacement of what sounds like it may have been  a still good injector, since it is a big chain you might be surprised when you really start complaining.  If my bill had been bigger I would have done more to get the first service call reduced.  
   When it is all right again maybe it is time to get some overalls and plenty of hand cleaner and do the next repair yourself.   These things are really just big jigsaw puzzles, other than the legendary "running of the rack" which I have yet to de-mystify.

[thejumpsuitman]

Now there is one thing I think I have learned that would help to avoid a repeat of this expensive nightmare...  Get a spare engine!  If I could find a good core for somewhere around $1,000 and rebuild it over time, then put it up, that would be insurance against this happening again. 

Even if the engine failure happened on the road, I could go get my new engine and trailer it to where the bus was and have someone there do an R&R.  Or, as Art said, limp home, and even if you destroyed your current engine, it wouldn't matter if it got you back.

[Van]

Hi Marc! Remember this, "I have never owned a diesel anything.  But I am a quick study and engross myself into anything I get interested in.  I am no mechanic, but I am mechanically inclined, and do many of my own repairs in general" , Now's the time to get busy, having paid for my education already , I can honestly say, if you can twirl some 1"+ wrenches and have a few additional resources you'll get the best education for your money by swapping the engine out yourself (if that is your next step) once you have it home . On the other hand, shelling out a good chuck of dough to a reputable establishment is OK I guess too Good luck!

[luvrbus]

Van speaks from experience the first engine Don and I helped the second engine because he forgot to check the oil in hydraulic fan was all on him but I did help him roll the engine in lol and he did do it all on his own and made for a wiser young man in the process.
 I furnished him drinking water and food he would work to about 10 pm at night and he got her done I know it was cold on my part lol but a good education does not come cheap huh Van,Jim and Doyle have also been through my school


good luck

[chart1]

Is that the Lovrbus School of Diesel? And you grduate with a masters in Busnut Technology!! Where do I sign up?