So, I'm driving down the highway, all is well. Suddenly, the car looses power. Tach begins to drop, guages (oil/volt) drop to zero, and I begin to loose speed. I engage the clutch, while still coasting at 70 MPH, and try to restart the car. No luck. I coast for a mile down hill and come to a stop on the shoulder of the interstate just before my exit. I again, try to restart the car. The hear the starter engaging as if it has no strain at all. In other words, the starter rotates, but does not seem to be rotating the engine. The Tach bounces, too. What the hell is this things problem now?! And ideas?

 

I am guessing you just popped your timing belt. Pull the front belt covers and take a look.

 

Doesn't that mean that I have to have the engine rebuilt? When whatever happened, happened, I didn't hear any loud noises or anything, just lost power and coasted to a stop.

 

It means you will have to have the head rebuilt as the valves bent. You will not hear anything with the timing belt breaking, it will die just as you say. When you turn the starter over, it will act like there is no resistance on the engine.

There is a small round inspection port at about the 1 oclock position when looking at the the distributor cap (on the metal distributor housing itself). Smaller than a dime. You can shine a light in there and see the cam gear and the timing belt. Take a paint pen, marker, nail polish, etc and make a mark on the cam gear. Turn the starter over for a few seconds, then go back and look. If your mark is still there, then your belt and head are toast.

 

Thanks for the help! So, I'm thinking about just completely swapping the engine out all together. Will a 1984 2.5L 8 Valve fit in my 1988?

 

The early 2.5L does not have all the sensors thatyour 88 will need. But it can be done.