Hydro lock need help
 

I got an oil leak from my oil cooler due to wrong fitting usage. So I rinsed the car's engine bay to wash off all the engine oil that splattered but I forgot to cover the intake so now trying to start the car it would sputter for a few seconds then die. Any advise?

You're not hydro locked, so don't worry about that.

You'll need to pull the air filters and the coils/plugs, get them all dried out and try again.

It's probably more like you got some moisture on your MAF sensors. Just take them out and let them dry along with your filters and you should be good to go. :tup:

:werd:

Thank you so much guys I will give that a try because i did hose the whole engine bay pretty harsh. I'll keep you guys informed

Use some contact cleaner inside the leads, if you haven't got any compressed air. Also spray some silicone on the wires and leads after you reinstall. You could also use some Dielectric Grease if you prefer. Just blow out the filter and let it dry.

i took out the MAF sensor and the air filter to dry for over 2 hours, it's doing a little better but still die after a couple of seconds.

Do you guys think I need to do also take out the ignition coils and the spark plug to let it dry? Also how about the electronic throttle body? In order to get to all the spark plug, it seems that i have take a lot of stuff apart before I can get to it (i.e. struct tower brace, intake hose, engine cover, etc)

You've got two MAF sensors (and air filters). Take them (MAFs) out and spray with carb cleaner. Let them sit out for quite awhile to dry.

After losing my 350 to full-blown hydro-lock. Don't be in any hurry to start the car. Let it dry.

Yup, two of each, but be wary of using carb cleaner on the MAF's, it's usually too strong for the electronics, you can get a can of MAF cleaner from autozone (CNC)

It's easier (for testing purposes) to unplug your maf sensors, you don't need them until the engine is warmed up anyway.

If you really doused the engine properly, chances are your coil packs are socked, and/or the spark plug holes and therefore plugs, are swimming with water.

I tried starting the car without the 2 MAF sensors (Left & Right) - I even tried unplugged and plug, and without air filter but the car still sputter and dies....I dunno what else I need to do. It makes me think maybe the MAF (Left & Right) are dried now, similar to the air filters. Perhaps water actually got into the engine block and need to air out either the spark plug & ignition coils?

The night before it worked, however it started sputtering at >2500 RPM, so I was able to cruise back the car home. The next morning it won't even stay running for more than a few seconds.

the VDC and Service Soon indicator stays on. I am able to start the car now, however it sputters at >3000 RPM.

If you were hydrolocked, it wouldn't turn over. Water fills the cylinder and the water will not compress like air will, so the rod bends or/and breaks and exits through the side of the block. If it fired over, it would send a rod through the block and your oil would be all over your floor. Had it happen. It was memorable and expensive. Sounds like you have water in your electronics and you need to get it dried out.

:iagree:



I would suggest to let it idle till it reaches max temp? or 15min? the heat from this will eventually dry out the water residue in the electronic connections that might have been soaked by accident.

It sounds *very* like you've got wet coil packs/water in the plug sockets, if it will run, let it idle for a long time, it will force evaporate the water. Best is to pull them and dry manually, but the above will work.

i was finally able to get the car to start and run without dying guys. However, VDC & Traction control, Service Engine Soon indicator light is on as well as my car is put into Limp Mode is on and Synchro Rev Matching Mode is disabled.

I drove it for a good 30 mins for the oil temp to get unto 200 degrees. Turned it off a couple of times until I was finally able to clear the VDC & Traction Control. My Limp mode was lifted and I can do Synchro Rev Matching and go past 3000 RPM. However, the "Service Engine Soon" light was still on. I turned it off...read the my owners manual, tried un-capping the gas tank cap and re-capped it. Tried starting it again, had a hard time. Then the VDC & Traction Control is back on again.

Any idea what I could do?

You guys mentioned Wet Coil Packs water in plug socket, does that mean I should take out the spark plug to dry out? But I was able to drive the car for more than 30 mins, the engine bay is pretty warm already but I have a feeling something is still wet or something, the car isn't running well, I believe the Emission Control system might be screwy.

Try reseting the ecu

Be Warned! that you'll have to do a window reset.

Gotcha, how do i do that? disconnect the battery?

My sentra does that everytime I drive it through the carwash. Limp mode....

Yes, Disconnect the negative cable on the battery

For the Window reset?

Hold window button down for 10 seconds then up for 10 seconds. Repeat for other window, that should reset the auto up/down feature.

cheers!

Disconnecting the Battery to reset the ECU only worked temporarily and then the "Service Engine Soon" check light went back on again. I'm going to try disconnecting the battery for longer to see if it works tomorrow.

I did notice although the engine runs relatively smooth, there was an instant where I heard a sputter and that was probably when the "Service Engine Soon" light came on again. hmm....

It does take a while for the ecu to adjust.

I would just drive it for awhile, and turn it on and off for a couple cycles to see if that clears it

thanks again. I'll try that again in a bit. But it sounds like all the electronics should be dry by now and don't need to be air-ed out anymore?

I was able to drive it smoothly at any RPM, the only problem I have is the Engine Service Soon light on - which hopefully it's something the ECU can reset.

Like I said it may just take some time of driving and engine on and off cyles to go away.

If after 3 days of driving it it doesn't go away? You may have to have the dealer check and clear it

Um, yeah, i'd go get that code pulled to see what it thinks is wrong.

I just plugged the battery back in and I was able to clear all indicators as if it's fine, but I got Limp mode at 3000 RPM...hmm any idea what's wrong with it? I unplugged the battery again, hopefully the Limp Mode gets removed like earlier when the Traction Control & VDC indicator cleared. I was able to drive the car fine earlier but the only problem I had was the "Engine Service Soon" indicator stayed on. Now I was able to reset the ECU and clear all the indicator but for some reason the Limp Mode is still there. I tried turning off the car and back on several of times, still no different.

As for the code, since the "Engine Service Soon" light is off, there probably isn't any code to read anymore.

I once again took out the MAF sensors to dry out some more and also the Air Filter, but I'm pretty sure it's now dried rather it's an ECU related issue, something is not clearing.

I would get the codes read and start there. Maybe a sensor is shorted out.

Use compressed air or a heat gun and blow out all the connectors. I had a shop install a sun strip on my windshield yesterday and my rearview mirror connector was full of water when they finished and it shorted out my back-up display and homelink. Fortunatly I was able to dry it out with a heat gun and it works properly again. Won't be using that shop again either. Water and electronics never play well together.

Take it to the Dealer and let them read the codes and determine the issue.:shakes head:

the dealer found the CAM or CAN Sensor (the service advisor just said something wasn't communicating properly, I think he meant the Camshaft sensor) to be at fault and is currently ordering one for me under warranty.

My car had a hard time starting up this morning, it would sputter for the first 15 minutes then it was at a limp mode, no check light.

Then i drove it for 30 mins and the car did not have the limp mode.

I then drove to dealership, stopped turned off the car, hard time starting, i told them i wanted checked out with a Diagnostic tool. He said something to do with a cam sensor needed replacement. Since they didn't have any in stock, i would have to go back for replacement when they have it.

The car didn't crank for minutes, then finally started up. VDC, Traction Control, & Service Engine Soon indicator came back on and Limp mode is on. I'm going back on monday to get my sensors replaced, but anybody have idea where this sensor is located? I would like to take it out and dry it so I can drive my car in the dealership when the new sensor arrives at my dealer. Cheers

Good to hear at least the dealer is going to fix it.

I don't want it sound like I'm coming down for causing it But this serves as a lesson too others NOT to be rinsing their engine bay!

Not that it can be done But has to be done very lightly and carefully you don't soak the electronics. :ugh2:

Keep us posted :)

I've done it many time without any issues. In fact it's done everytime the car is washed. I've used both high and low pressure. If you take precautions with silicone spray and dielectric grease you're not going to have a problem. Keeping the engine bay clean is paramount to good maintenance and being able to spot oil or fluid leaks.

My suggestion is not to get close with the wand but simply soap it down and rinse at a reasonable distance.

Good to know that they dealer is gonna take care of you. I usually just get my bay cleaned when I get the car detailed...........

Also, if you are going to rinse the engine bay, do it with the car running.

Thanks guys, I'm going to have the car dropped off at the dealer tomorrow but as an FYI the OBD II code I got was P0340 - Camshaft Position Sensor (Phase) Circuit (Bank 1). Hopefully I can get that replaced by tomorrow and things will be good again. I did read into this although it maybe the sensor there could be more damages I may not know yet. Perhaps wiring shortin other components within the system generating this error code, pcb, etc. But the symptoms are the power limiter is on. Running cold is very rough and almost impossible to start without trying it multiple times and play with the sweet spot of the clutch and throttle. Also, Synchro Rev match, VDC, Traction control is disabled.

Any updates on this? I had a similar issue, and am curious. I just needed to dry out my cones. No biggie.

Hey JJ-Nismo,

So here's the update as to what ended up happening. It's like a snowball of a series of unfortunate event.

It all started with the root cause of me installing the oil cooler. I took it out on a test drive and then the oil leaked so much that the check engine light came on.

Turns out the car's camshaft sprocket which is lubricated by oil is stuck on advance about 7 degrees. I don't know if it was on-and-off at the beginning.

So I took it in the dealership and they took the whole car apart. Initially they thought it was the Camshaft Position Sensor, they changed it out but it didn't change anything. So they had to tear the engine apart down to the camshaft and replaced the sprocket. Now it runs fine.

As for the water inside the engine. It didn't really affect the car much. Although initially it did, but after it dried...it wasn't really the problem anymore.

The car ran like crap for a long time, and had tough time starting.

I'll try to post a picture of the sprocket.

I know I am a little late to this party...but I had exact same problem to the tee. Except i did not spray my engine bay. After a huge rain storm in south florida my engine did exact same as yours. Turned out moisture shorted out MAS..on bank 2. Replaced sensor and all fixed....but sad part is .. no warranty for water. $600+ parts and labor. Maybe its time to invest in Reader.

Yea, I got a reader totally because of this, it's good to be able to reset codes.

I ended up with a Kiwi Plex - Wifi, for iPhone (I believe they also have a Bluetooth version for Droid phones). Totally the best way to go. It's like $140 but with the APPs you can do so much more than just those typical OBD II readers. You can dynamically get data as you're driving the car and you should also look into Harry's Lap Timer App if you track your car.

Wish you the best on this. And thanks to everyone else that helped...taking it to the dealer was definitely the way to go with my case...otherwise who knows what else would I have broken if I kept driving the car as is.

I strongly suggest a reader...mine was Camshaft sensor code. Which is unlikely due to watering down my car.

I'm sure at one point it probably affected the MAF sensor but after I dried it out, the fault was clearly from something else.

Sorry everyone for bringing up an old thread, but this does make the think: I'm looking to get a vented carbon fiber hood (like the seibon style with the "gills" on it) and was wondering if these vents allow water down into the engine bay which could cause sensor problems and other electronic issues. Anyone experience this?

Thanks!