Hydrolock!

[Westcoastex]

Had a little too much may long fun and hydrolocked my truck in a river way out of town. My buddy yarded me out, we pulled the plugs, got as much water out as we could, changed the oil and wouldn't you believe she started. Bit of a rattle though.. Rod? Valve? I don't think it's bad enough to be a rod. At least so I hope. Made it a couple hours out of the bush and another hour down the highway fine. Damage control begins today.
Do you guys have any suggestions for thing to look at? I guess I'll start with a tranny and diff flush, probably do my oil again, and run a dehumidifier for a while.
Any ideas of other crap to flush out would be appareciated. Might be looking for some manual seats too!

 

[jester1023]

There is only one moving part that can give during a hydrolock...that is the rod. They sometimes break, though rarely. Most of the time they bend. Sometimes its a slight bend, sometimes its a severe bend. Either way will produce a knock, but it won't sound like a spun bearing or a rod hammering. In very mild cases of hydrolock, I have seen where the piston pin bends. This causes stress and binding with the movement between piston and pin...causing the skirt to slap in the cylinder (mild knock).

 

[Westcoastex]

Thanks jester. My only other consolation is when I turn it over without the plugs there's no knock. Would blown rings cause piston slap? Anyway sounds like I may be on the hunt for one of them $500 "no reverse gear" specials. But in terms of saving the rest of the vehicle... Any suggestions other than the things I listed?

 

[jester1023]

Yes. Blown rings would cause excessive piston clearance that would cause a loud racket. However, it also wouldn't run worth a crap (if at all) because it would carry about 25 pounds of compression. It is possible that a lifted or two...or few collapsed, causing a rattle. Lifters sound about like an exhaust leak and piston, rod and main noises run double that speed. You may be on to something...hunting a replacement.

 

[96ex5.0]

Do a compression check that would tell you right quick.

 

[Westcoastex]

I'll add compression check to the list. Did my best to get some fresh fluid in the tranny last night. Old stuff came out looking like pepto bismol. Interrupted the return line to the cooler and flushed 15L of fresh atf through. Still seems to be shifting. Can't wait to see what the diffs and t case look like. Included a bad pic of my dip stick with the pepto, and one of my set up for the flush.

 

[Flash]

Oh dear, water in the tranny isn't good. It's not good anywhere but there's so many places for it to get to in the tranny and so hard to get it out again.

Eg: torque converter and valve body.

You can use kerosene to flush out the engine and trans then I'd do a fluid change then another fluid change not long after. Kero is also a good water dispeller.
Don't forget any coolers that might have pockets of water in them.

For next time you can extend all the breathers in your drive train with rubber hose and spray all the electrical connections with some water repellent stuff.

You could have had my '97 Limited with a good engine with new chains and a good tranny plus all the bits I salvaged off my '97 XLT for a bit more than the $500 you mentioned, but the freight would be a killer.