Just finished my rebuild on an EJ22 engine with a Topline Master Rebuild Kit.

 

Aligned all timing marks as per Factory Manual, and spun engine on bench by hand several times to make sure nothing binds and all goes smooth.

 

Drop engine in car, hook up electrical, and one last time spin engine by hand to make sure everything is OK.

 

Since I was missing an exhaust gasket at the Y pipe, I momentarily cranked engine to see if it would start. Engine started on one turn, and idled perfectly. I closed the hood and called it a day.

 

Next day, I picked up gasket, finished installing exhaust system, and proceeded to start engine again, This time engine started with a bad miss, and then suddenly seized. I was amazed. Car ran fine yesterday, and seized today after 20 sec. of running

 

Confirmed engine siezed by trying to spin by hand.

 

What I found.

 

Engine Oil was completely dilluted by gasoline.

Both heads were fine and unnaffected.

#1 Piston smashed, connecting rod bent,

No damage to bearings, crank, or valves, cylinder #1 slightly scored.

 

Who can quess what happend?

Tim guesses you aligned the piston oil rings instead of offsetting them?

Crap in fuel line jammed injector open and then it leaked gas into #1 cylinder . When you started it again that cylinder hydrauliced and bent the rod ,which caused the piston to come into contact with the crank and smashed the piston

The fuel in the oil is what made it past the rings

Just a guess

 

SEA#3

Well...you A frame has fallen out....will cost you a million dollars...and thats just the labor =0)

 

Sorry man that sucks...better luck with a new one

 

Cory

Sea#3 is the winner:

 

Although all injectors were soaked in cleaner for a couple of hours, and all o-rings replaced with new, the #1 injector failed and allowed raw fuel to collect in the cylinder. Since this is a Horizontal config cylinder, the fuel did not drain down the side of cylinder walls, instead it sat there waiting for the unsuspecting piston to be smashed to bits. The compressability of a liquid (gasoline in this case) is practically non exisitent, and therefore, as Sea#3 said, the engine "hydraulic locked" itself into oblivion. Now at least I have an excuse to bore the engine .020 in order to get rid of the damage to the #1 cylinder walls.

 

 

 

Thanks for the responses,

 

Skytow

Did you ever see someone pull an aircraft radial though by hand? This problem has been around for a long time. Modern high pressure fuel injectors can make it almost instant.