DOH! I think I threw a ROD or something!

[VX_PA]

That was pretty much my thoughts and the reason I purchased a VX in the first place. It's sad because I kick myself now for trading in my Nissan 4X4 for it. It's still on the road and has 214,000 miles on it (one of my buddies bought it). Those weren't pampered miles either, because I really ran the guts out of it and it never gave me one hiccup. Just kept the oil changed and replaced belts, hoses, and tires. I think I might buy a Nissan Frontier or the new full size truck this summer. I'm just going to use the VX for bad advertisement for Isuzu by taking it to car shows with a sign listing how Isuzu didn't stand by their product. They let down the wrong customer here!!

[Andrey]

If Isuzu says that engine can consume up to a quart in 1K miles and its NORMAL it makes me think why not a single other car that I had ever did something like that ???

[psychos2]

I am beginning to wonder if there is a hidden problem causing this? just saying the #1 rod failed do to lack of oil is not a good enough answer.if this was a design flaw then they would all fail.there has to be something to cause the lack oil. weak oil pump?improper bearing clearance ? the problem is once it happens it is too late to find out the problem.they replace it with a short block with a new oil pump.i will be installing an oil pressure gauge soon. i will also be getting the oil tested to see if there is excess bearing material.if there is i will be speaking to isuzu before the failure. i have not looked yet but if you can get to the rod from the bottom you can change the bearing before if fails. that is a big if. shawn

[psychos2]

i was just looking at the vehicross cd , and noticed the oil pump is in the front of the oil pan. which should feed the front bearings first. i do not know this as fact, but when the oil pump is in the rear of the pan it supplies the rear bearings first. can anyone confirm this. ARE THE FRONT BEARINGS OILED FIRST?? shawn

[SGT.BATGUANO]

Originally posted by VX_PA
My dealer said that faulty bearings were the cause of mine.

Can you get that in writing? Maybe you could say you need it to submit a claim to your (fictitious) extended warranty company. Got maintenance records? Talk to a lawyer, it may be cheaper to have a lawyer threaten them with legal action, than to pay full price for a new engine. Many dealers have a "good faith" slush fund that they can use to help offset some of the expense for out of warranty repairs.

Just a suggestion

I've also read here that there was a known oiling problem, which was supposedly addressed. Not sure what model year the correction took place.

Engine rebuilders/ speed shops usually have some mods that address these kind of problems, like restrictors that keep more oil low in the engine or grooving bearings or adding additional oiling passages at the offending area.

Has anyone torn a VX engine down to see if our engine has any of these kind of supplemental mods from the factory?

[coachreed]

OK, first things... one of my MAIN problems with ANY question as to whether or not they will cover the repair... I NEVER have anyone maintain my vehicles... I ALWAYS do it myself! No receipts, not papertrail of maintanence... they think that is "neglect". Just a short list of vehicles of mine (and their mileage when I got rid of them)....

'89 Baretta GT... 145K miles
'90 Mustang LX... 389K miles
'93 Ford F-150... 135K miles

I have had LOTS of other cars that were up into the 80K mile range without ANY trouble... the ones above are just the higher ones I remember specifically... each of them was maintained the same as my VX is... Heck, the Mustang would only go through ONE quart of oil in a 5000 mile oil change... and i think it leaked most of that... that is as good as ANY new ford does! Geesh! If I am neglectful to my vehicles, I would like to know how!

So, now that I have cleared that up, about maintenence records... I will argue this to the death if they fight it! I have NEVER had a problem like this! And the fact that I paid for a warranty on my VX... and now they may not do anything about it, makes me sick.

Not that they (the warranty company) cares, but I typically on average get a different car every 18 months-two years... and I will NEVER buy another one of their warranties again... again, I doubt they care! They can kiss my @$$!

Anyway, I have questions about motors... rebuild or replace... I will start a new thread for those though. Thanks for the input guys!

TTYL!

[VX_PA]

Coach,

I've already tried the rebuilt motor route and it's a no go. There isn't a company that does it and you're not likely going to find an engine in a junkyard. If you've thought of rebuilding the engine yourself, as I did, you will find that all the internal components are aluminum and will require being machined to very exact specs. That alone would run you into costs more than what a new engine costs. A new motor can be had for between $4,000-$4,500 if you want to install it yourself. If you could find a block you may be able to buy it for around $3000. Before doing that make sure that your heads are in good shape and can be re-used. All parts and gaskets needed will have to be purchased direct from Isuzu. There isn't an aftermarket company that I could find that offers a gasket kit for the VX.

What kind of price did your dealer quote you to replace the engine?? If you can negotiate that price down with them it would be worth having them do the work. I was quoted $5,500 and ended up paying $4,675 as I got the dealer to give me a 15% discount on the engine and labor.

[Dallas4u]

Originally posted by coachreed
'89 Baretta GT... 145K miles

Yeah, I'd say you maintain your autos well if you could get a Baretta up to 145k miles!!!

By the way, as asked in your other thread, Tone has the VX with the "5L" on the side. It isn't a dropped in 5.0, but just taking the "3." decals off in front of it. It's up to you on where to go with it, but another engine from another manufacturer will end up costing a lot more than a new engine from Isuzu, or even rebuilding this one yourself, if you consider the custom pieces you'll need made.

[AlaskaVX]

Was reading on the 4x4wire and saw this, figured it is one of the best explanations so far.

"Several people with engine failures have reported that their dealer told them the replacement engines have a new oil ring design. Reportedly the new ones have more and/or bigger oil drain back holes.

As the story goes the original rings therefore tend to leave oil in the combustion chamber causing the oil consumption problem. This oil usage/oil ring plugging can go from bad to worse with little or no warning. Thus the reason to check the level frequently, keep the PCV and EGR clean, as well as not stretch oil change intervals."

[Andrey]

coach, you bought oil for vx in store right.. any chance you saved receipts ? thats what i do - i buy oil at sears and then go to a friend to have it changed. i write my milage and date on sears receipts.

[Jolly Roger VX'er]

Originally posted by Andrey
coach, you bought oil for vx in store right.. any chance you saved receipts ? thats what i do - i buy oil and then i write my milage and date on receipts.

This is what I do along with filling in the maintenance section of the VX warranty manual. If I have anything done at the dealer I have them fill this out as well as signing off on it.

I figure If I have any problems down the road I'll have all my dated receipts with mileage along with my corresponding warranty book describing the service performed by either me or the dealer.