ZX9RCAM

Once again, nobody has said it was the IMS....

p.vanderlinden

True enough but the symptom "rocks in a hub cap" indicates a high probability, though being able to drive the car after hearing that makes one wonder if it might be something else?

Ck986

If you can drive the car, its probably not the imsb. Maybe the chain for one bank went. I have heard of the motor running on 3 cylinders in a turbo due to a broken chain.

gricec

Surely you would notice some kind of power loss. How far did you drive it?

FRUNKenstein

Really - no loss of power? Second opinion maybe?

Howaboutthat

Ditto. California car so, presumably, no severe cold weather starting risk across its history. Bad install of IMSB; water pump fragmentation; timing chain breach? Even if the cylinders scored, is this is foreseeable outcome? Odd.

cringely

Possibly as far as 40 miles. Didn't stomp on the accelerator, but going up a 10% grade, didn't have to hit the gas, just tickle it.

I've attached a photo of the (taken apart) oil filter showing the metal filings caught by the filter—if that will help (especially if someone knows what a trashed IMS bearing does to the oil filter). sorry for the size of the image

tdrimer

Is JR. Still around to see this?

Cuda911

Hmmm.... looks more like ground up plastic than metal. Rail guide?

tdrimer

And isn't the LN bearing ceramic ball? What metal would come from the bearing?

Sneaky Pete

There no way this is IMS related. The motor would have seized up from loss of oil. Something else caused this. No doubt damage was done after 40 miles.

Schnell Gelb

I've had a similar engine issue.
The chain rails debris should be brown/dark brown
Magnetic debris -maybe IMS
Non metallic glitttering debris = crankshaft/rod bearings
White/grey granular - look at it under a microscope to see the shape of the particles. ceramic should be shards ,not spheres?

aftCG

That is a crap ton of debris. I found maybe half of one of those filter folds.

Next I found a glitter filled two row IMSB and then went on to find heavily worn out main and rod bearings.

I'm going to guess you drove that car 40 miles with five cylinders.

cringely

also, no loss of oil pressure during the drive to repair shop, normal water temp, no check engine light or any dashboard indicators. If it wasn't for the noise, I wouldn't have been aware of any problem.

Sneaky Pete

This is not making sense......at all. Maybe you ran over a squirrel and it somehow got lodged in your airbox.....and that squirrel is super pissed! I would be to after 40 miles.

So what exactly is your mechanic saying in order to charge $19K for a installed motor? That part isn't clear unless I mis-read something.