Contour Enthusiasts Group Archives Forums Modifications Duratec Maintenance Got a question for the experts

Last year even though I knew better, I went to the track with a slipping clutch. Well I hit 8000 rpm For a year its been knocking. I though maybe a bent rod. The other day during normal driving, something gave. Sounded like something blew in the exhaust. I got it home and checked everything. Exhaust was ok but when I started checking my plugs I found that #5 was smashed. First couple threads where smooth and the top of the plug was smashed. Valve dropped???? I don't suppose that anyone would have a guess on the price to fix. I don't know yet if there's any wall damage. I'm stationed in N.C. but this happened in Atl while visiting my parents. If I drive it 5 hours to my house to fix it, would I destroy it?

A slipping clutch had nothing to do with hitting 8000 rpm.

The stock rev limiter would stop the engine long before that (~6950rpm)


The only way you saw 8000rpm on the tach (which actually was much higher then 8000 as the stock tach is very slow!) is by mechanically over spinning the engine by downshifting at an already high engine rpm.

There is no other way to do it.


You definitely could have bent a valve or damaged a piston.

Any possible bearing damage at that time would have become fatal not long after it happened.


The real question is why did you knowingly drive it damaged for a year?

i just got done doing a ton of work on my motor which had 2 broken and 4 bent valves. there was metal bouncing around in that cylinder when i took it apart and the cylinder walls were pretty scuffed up. one trick to see whats in there is to try sticking a long slender magnet into the the cylinder, but i can't remember if the valves are magnetic.

it would definately be a terrible idea to drive it (but it was a bad idea to do that with a spun bearing for the last year) i'd say if u absolutely must drive it (because of lack of funds) remove the spark plug and disconnect the fuel injecter plug and u could possible drive it w/ a dead cylinder.
definately just pulled that out of my azz but that sounds cool lol.

for me doing that rebuild getting 6 new valves, a head gasket set, rings for 2cyl, cylinder honing, intake manifold cleaning, full engine gasket set, oh and a haynes manual from AZ i spent around $800 doing all the work myself besides getting the valves installed and the head checked out. it nickeled and dimed me to death which was terrible. especially since im a 21yr old college student w/ the only things going for me, some mechanical experience, nearly unlimited access to tools (thanx to dad being a former mac tool distributor) and a credit card.


good luck man let us know if u need any more

I have no experience in this personally, but from what I have read, your most cost effective option is to pick up a 3L Duratec block from a low mileage Taurus/Sable ($500 to $700) and just bolt on all your SVT stuff. If you're concerned about the heads, you could likely keep the 3L heads for your car, although you lose out on the SVT cams. Then again, you could sell the cams to help finance the project.

There might be a little additional work to do, but you start with a relatively fresh engine.

Please guys, correct me if my thinking is wrong here.

where in nc are you?
i can come check it out for you and tell you pretty much what all needs to be done

also guys if he bent a couple of valves would it not better to just go ahead and put in 3l valves since he has to replace some anyway

he could go ahead and put the 3L valves in but then he would have to remove the bank 1 cyl head along with the one damaged.(don't want one head performing better than the other) which is more work and definately more money because that'll involve even more machine work at the shop he takes it to. unless he's a very skilled engine builder who can match the valves to the head.

the whole job is doable w/out removing the motor from the car (cuz i've done it) as long as the damage is on the 2nd(front)cyl bank and u can build a support to hold the motor w/ the motor mount off and just suspend the motor from the eyehook in the rear cyl head.

Thanks for the input fellas. I had a mech look at it and he said that the piston is fine and that it was a compresson thing. Which I don't see how it could have damaged the plug like that. He said the ticking was gases escaping.

It hit 8000 because the superchip required jumpers on the computer. The car didn't start so I recleaned the comp and reinstalled the chip. Nothing happened. I called superchips and they said that it would need some jumpers. The car starts fine without the chip, but there's no rev limiter now.

I'm in Fayetteville N.C.

So because it hasn't happened to you that means I'm lying???? Some computers require jumpers. When that happened I had to tell them the computer number and that's what they told me. They said to send them the computer and they would put in the jumpers and get the chip working. The little comment about driving for a year, I said it happened a year ago, I've been gone for most of that. All I asked for was some advice from fellow contour owners, not snide comments from you.