How do you unlock a seized engine on this Volkswagen passat
That sort of depends on how bad it is. You can pull the plugs and put oil in the cylinders and wait a few days, then see if you can get it to turn over. Other than this, pulling the engine out and taking it apart is the only sure way. You will likely end up doing a LOT of work to repair it. Bearings, rings, pistons, etc.
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The car just shut off while driving. No noise, no smoke, absolutely no indication or warning. The car would crank but not start. The car was towed and taken to a mechanic, who said the car needed a camshaft and crankshaft sensor. Later the mechanic that he put the camshaft sensor on and when he tried to start the car the engine seized. Oil and gas was in the car. Previous work on the car about a week prior was the replacement of a temperature switch sensor. the never overheated neither.
Hm. I can't imagine how replacing a sensor would cause a cold engine to seize. That simply doesn't make sense. There is something your mechanic isn't telling you, most likely because he doesn't want to have to pay for it.
I don't know the details about your engine, it's been a lot of years since I had an engine open on my workbench, but there are very few things that can cause a cold engine to go from "turns over" to "seized" in seconds. Broken timing chain/shaft won't do it, though that would cause very bad noises (been there). It's possible that the starter has seized, though. If the mechanic ran the starter long enough, it could burn out or seize...
Thank you for your response. Should I have the mechanic check the starter to see if the starter is seized? How can I get the mechanic to be responsible for the damage he may have caused? I feel like this mechanic wants me to junk the car because he just said that the engine is seized and acts like he don't want to diagnose what the problem is and how it was caused. In this situation what can I do? I am hesitant to just junk the car. I just brought it a month drove a few times and now it total, no way.
How would you remove a seized starter from the car?
Pulling a starter is pretty easy, on most cars, it's just 2 bolts/nuts.
You may want to call your local (shudder) dealer, and get their take on what your mechanic said, or at least another mechanic.
Unfortunately, most "mechanics" these days are what I call, "parts replacers". The car's computer spits out a trouble code, and they replace the part indicated. There's no diagnosis and no understanding of cause. Engines are basically pretty simple devices, but when they don't act normally, you really need to find the cause before you randomly replace parts...
If I had your car here, I'd pull the plugs, put it in gear, and try to roll it a foot or so. If it rolls fairly easily, the engine isn't seized. If it doesn't roll at all, then it may be seized.
It's really rather difficult to seize an engine, actually, and I've never heard of a way to do that in your situation. If you want to contact me through my personal website, jayplesset.info, please do.
I agree with your response and advice.it seems to me that you are definitely correct. I will take action in that regards and the pointers you provided. Another mechanic did say that the engine not have seized in the manner of which I explained to him. This guy is trying to take me for a ride. I will visit your website and keep you informed how this situation turns out. At the worst, I will need to know how I can make this guy responsible.
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