so I'm out driving with my friends in the stingray tonight.  I get to a gas station, we're looking for glow sticks...suddenly I stop...

"wtf...that's not how my car sounds...."

I can't quite figure it out.  There's a metallic clicking noise coming from under the hood, and the sound from the pipes in back is...different.  I figure...maybe an exhaust leak...loose manifold, plug blew...because the clicking sounded the same as when my 1977 had a plug gone and exhaust was leaking.  I figure, no big deal, I'm gonna be ripping off the manifolds and putting headers and sidepipes on this month anyway.  I take it back to my friend's place, we pop the hood, check it out...nothing that we can see...no smoke or anythin.  On the interstate on the way home, the clicking develops into a loud clanking.  I get it to a gas station, and when I pull up, smoke is wafting into the interior.  I pop the hood, and smoke pours from what APPEARS to be underneath my valve covers, but goes away within 30 seconds.  I fill the gas tank, and cross myself, hoping to get her home, into the garage, where I can put in some oil, then go to bed and leave it for another day.  3 blocks from my home.

"clank, clank, clank, bang, bang, bang, BANG, BANG, BANG, BANG, BOOOOOM."

and she's dead.  completely dead.  there is a loud CLUNK as I turn the key and the engine fan moves about an inch, then stops, then goes back to where it was when I stop turning.  I figure...my internals are done, somehow.

I guess it's a good thing I planned on rebuilding the engine this month too, so long as my 77 sells. but still...

I was on the phone with my girlfriend at the time.  It was all I could do to not start crying on the phone.

...my poor baby.

Sorry for your loss but it can be fixed. 

 Might be time to start saving for a crate motor. You 've probably damaged the block. I did that on a BMW once...luckily I was taking it to the boneyard the next day anyway....

 

crate engine and my rebuild are about the same price...crate motor costs a little more, and my plans for the rebuild were going to produce more power.  I hate the idea of spending an extra thousand or two for less power/torque than I was planning for.

[QUOTE=CorvetteRacer1970]crate engine and my rebuild are about the same price...crate motor costs a little more, and my plans for the rebuild were going to produce more power.  I hate the idea of spending an extra thousand or two for less power/torque than I was planning for.[/QUOTE]

Check your block carefully...I blew out a cylinder wall...so your rebuild might not work without a new block...

 Good Luck no matter what you do.

Gotta be a sickening feeling I hope I never have to experience. Hopefully it will not have you down long. Are going to pull the engine soon and tear it down just to see what happened? Be sure to keep us posted on what you find. 

Man, that just sucks a big one It may be down, but not out!! Motors can be fixed, as long as they're not busted somewhere, but it still sucks that it happens while yer out cruizin. Too bad it was the '70 (I assume?) it happened to. I feel yer pain!!
Sounds like maybe it chucked a freezeplug, or lost some coolant, somehow? Let us know what it was, when ya figure it out!Adams' Apple38445.3574074074

I broke a rocker arm about 2 miles from home once.  I was looking for a reason to put on some roller rockers anyway.

Lucky it didn't drop a valve into the cylinder.

Pull the valve cover and see if thats what you did.

My guess is you have a connection rod or bearing damage.  Perhaps a broken rod.  That would allow some crank movement, and then stop it as you describe.   During the failure, it would make progressively worse noise, and generate a lot of heat in the crankcase that would not transfer to the coolant.  That would result in the smoke from the crankcase area.

It this is the case, you may have block damage as well.  It would need close inspection.

I know that's not what you want to hear, but from the description, that's my best guess.

 Had a V6 Buick in a Vega hatchback, on way home from Englishtown Raceway Park, one of the cast pistons went boom. Before it was all over, a new crank, new cam, new forged pistons and many dollars were spent, I know just how you feel. The next engine's gona be a hotter one. That's the rule.

Dave