97sebring 2.5 litre(is it interference or non interference engine

I assume it's your timing belt, not a chain, which rarely, if ever snap. Depending on the make of the car and the engine you may, or may not, have serious engine damage.. DO NOT ATTEMPT to start the car, have it towed to your shop of choice. If there is no engine damage a timing belt replacement generally will run you 2 or 3 hundred bucks...if you did serious engine damage you may have to decide if the car if worth the money to have it repaired. What you need to know is whether your car has an "interference" or "non-interference" type engine.. In an interference type engine if the timing belt breaks the valves will "interfere" with the pistons as they travel up if the timing belt breaks, which results in generally catastrophic engine failure.. non-interference engines generally suffer little or no engine damage with a broken timing belt.. I broke a timing belt on my 1990 Toyota Supra going 70mph, but it was a non-interference engine and after having the belt replaced it was fine.. here is a good list someone put together on what type of engine is in your car.. you should find the engine type either marked on the engine or on a label under the hood, or the owners manual.. good luck. http://yourcarangel.com/2014/07/interference-engines-complete-list/

No it is not an interference engine.....However .Most European engines are..Some are and some are not in most small engine cars/trucks of all makes...All it really means is the timing of the engine is different than others to improve performance....However if your timing belt snaps with an interference engine it can cause more damage because of the odd timing they have...So ...No ...Your engine is Non interference..

Hello,
To answer your question, Almost all cars (not all of them) with an interference type engine where made up to 1992. Since that time all other engines are of the NON-Interference type including yours. The difference between the 2 is that when the timing belt broke, the interference type engine would totally self-destruct and destroy itself as there wasn't always enough room between the valves and the pistons. I hope this helps.
Good Luck!
Rich Lilja

Yes it is not an interference engine.

Did you get it timed correctly? You don't just replace them like a fan belt, there is a procedure and marks that you line up. Your engine may be a non-interference or interference which means that if your timing belt breaks your pistons may hit your valves and cause major engine damage. Non-interference means that when the belt breaks it won't interfere and cause damage. Interference means that it will. I don't know what engine you have in your car but if you call a dealer and tell them what engine you have in your car they should be able to tell you if it is a non-interference or interference engine.

This is a non-interference engine. Anyone saying anything different is using an old book. Some Ford dealers might even tell you it is interference. There are reliefs cut into the top of the pistons to clear the valves if the belt breaks. There is a how-to posted here and on Team ZX2 .com

Most Ford vehicles from 1985 and up have enough valve clearence so the valves do not get hit when the timing belt snaps. Since I worked for ford for many years I have only seen one with valve damage and the youg man said he was driving his car really hard at high RPM's. I believe you will be okay on your engine as long as when the belt broke the engine was not at high rpm's. If know one has told you those engine recommend a timing belt replacement every 60k. I hpe this helped and I hope this fixes your problem. Good luck, Roger

Hello mawbea: My name is Roger I will answer your question. You did not say which engine is in your car. So if you have a 2.0 SOHC engine. If the belt broke you should be Ok. If you have the 2.0 DOHC engine. The likely hood of bending the valves are just about a guarantee. How ever with any engine using a timing belt it is possible to bend a valve.Should you need more help please just ask.
Please rate the quality of your answer as this way we know you received helpful information.Thank You for using Fix Ya, Roger

Well, broken timing belt causes valves to break, valves can be changed but if your mechanic wants to change whole engine then you have to change a mechanic. I had broken timing belts on few cars and never needed to change whole engine. Unless second hand engine is cheaper then new valves for it.

yes this engine is a interference engine. Make sure you did not bend the valves when it boke.