The Blazer is Kaput

"Hamtractor" (johnny-bullet) 03/08/2019 at 07:24 • Filed to: None

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Sitting in traffic last night, no warning, no temp gauge indication, she dies. Get out, looks like all of the coolant is on the ground. Hoses intact, everything is wet so I can’t see where it came from. I’ll assess tomorrow as best I can, but I think shes a goner.

Sad, but this means I may have a chance to get a new ride.  I hate car payments, but a new car or a gently used one is likely in my future...  Because of my wide-ranging tastes and needs, this will be a difficult search.  I love standard cab, shortbed GM trucks.  I love our 2016 Sonata, it’s been a great family sedan.  We’ll see what happens with the Blazer, and I’ll keep you fine folks appraised as things progress...

someassemblyrequired > Hamtractor 03/08/2019 at 09:18

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Nooooooo...  LS Swap?

Milky > Hamtractor 03/08/2019 at 09:21

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You sure its not just a water pump? The engine dy ing is weird but I’ve had all kinds of dumb shit happen that wasn’t too expensive.

gogmorgo - rowing gears in a Grand Cherokee > Hamtractor 03/08/2019 at 10:14

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Bet you it’s not that big a deal. Either a heater hose popped and got coolant into the dizzy, or else the leak is near the rad fan and it blew it everywhere and it did the same.

Urambo Tauro > Hamtractor 03/08/2019 at 10:31

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By “no temp gauge indication”, do you mean that it wasn’t reading normal operating temp either? My friend’s truck was like that, it read cold all the time, even after the truck w as warmed up. T urned out to be the sending unit.

That doesn’t explain your coolant loss, or the engine shutting down though . Only the possibility of hiding the overheating until it was too late. I can only hope that you managed to stop  before it caused too much damage.

Hamtractor > Milky 03/08/2019 at 10:39

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It might be the water pump, but this motor is old and rough any way. Burns a crapload of oil, smokes like a champ... I really want to keep it, but the practicality of driving a 33 year old project truck as my only mode of transport is poor. I’d love to keep it and fix it up down the road, but my wife is none too pleased with it any way, so I might have to let this one go for now... which might be ok if I get a decent replacement. Probably looking at 2012 or newer GM trucks, or a brand new Hyundai/Kia (Sonata or maybe a Niro).  I do truck stuff, but I can always borrow a truck if need be, all depends on what the budget will bear when I head out to buy.

Hamtractor > gogmorgo - rowing gears in a Grand Cherokee 03/08/2019 at 10:42

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It’s the shut down that concerns me...  No weird running noises or anything though, it just literally turned off.  One minute it was just idling like normal and then it just stopped.  Might be ok, or maybe not.  Motor didn’t seize though, it turns over just fine, it just wouldn’t start.  Either way, the wife is likely going to push to replace the Blazer.

Hamtractor > someassemblyrequired 03/08/2019 at 10:45

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If I had a couple grand to spare, and the know-how, that’s where I’d go. But I’m a bolt-on, bolt-off basic maintenance mechanic. Hell, I built a couple of badass rock crawler Blazers, but it was easy swapping in one-tons and and the like. Motor innards are beyond me, and even though I’m an electrician by trade, auto electric fries my brain in three seconds...

Hamtractor > Urambo Tauro 03/08/2019 at 10:47

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It was operating normally as far as I can tell, reading about 210, which is normal for these older 350's, they run a little hot anyway.  Never read anything above, so I’m guessing it was a bad gauge reading, which hid the overheating issue until it blew something out...

Urambo Tauro > Hamtractor 03/08/2019 at 10:57

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Assuming that overheating is what actually happened... (to be fair, it is a good guess). I’m curious what you’ll find. Maybe if you’re lucky, it was just a heater core hose that blew and shorted the coil or something like that .

Milky > Hamtractor 03/08/2019 at 10:58

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Damn, well good luck for however it turns out.  

someassemblyrequired > Hamtractor 03/08/2019 at 13:41

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Ha yeah, hopefully it’s minor, but if not, I’m sure someone will want the shell for a project.

gogmorgo - rowing gears in a Grand Cherokee > Hamtractor 03/09/2019 at 00:03

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I mean I don’t blame her. I had a 2001 Jimmy as my daily, and even after I sorted all the inherited bugs out, I still didn’t much care for it. It was just way heavier than a vehicle that size has any need to be, and drove exactly like it was.

But if you want to hang onto it, usually it’s very noticeable when something catastrophic causes the engine to suddenly quit like that. We’re talking driving over engine parts levels of catastrophic. I'd be willing to bet you hose down the engine bay, let it dry a day or so, and it fires right back up. Then whatever leak will be obvious. Fix it and keep trucking. 

Hamtractor > Hamtractor 03/11/2019 at 09:20

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Soooooo.... Filled the radiator, made sure the oil wasn’t looking like chocolate milk, turned the key. Vroom vroom. Smokes like a champ, but not any worse than before I think.

My wife doesn’t want a car payment right now, so were gonna rent a little econobox car (I have a hook up at Hertz, it’ll cost about 75 bucks a week) for the next few weeks until we can save up enough to get a rebuild on the motor. Looks like we’re keeping the blazer.

I’m sad and glad.  I love my K5, but with zero climate control, it’s hot as hell in the summer and cold in the winter.  But I LOVE MY K5.  On the other hand, I was getting excited about a new ride.  My wife is basically thinking we get the motor rebuilt and we’re good to go.  I generally agree, I can work on the rest of the stuff, just don’t know motor guts...  Her idea is that we run it for another year and then either sell it or keep it, but either way buy a new ride for my daily driver.  I’m good with that.