View Full Version : Death of a JK
Video of a guy hydrolocking a new JK.. still had temp license in window. There is lots of fail here, but I'm not sure a TJ would have this issue if in same situation... did they change the airbox design/location on the JK's?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WNhpOxVg4r4&feature=player_embedded
Paul E
11-17-2010, 07:44 AM
You sure that's a hydrolock and not just a wet engine component?
Either way, that shouldn't have happened...
You sure that's a hydrolock and not just a wet engine component?
Either way, that shouldn't have happened...
Yep, Hydrolocked... there is a tread on JF that I stole video from. Warranty won't cover engine because it is not a defect in parts or workmanship. Guy has contacted his auto insurance company.
YJason
11-17-2010, 08:16 AM
Doesn't sound like hydro lock to me, you can hear the starter turning the engine over. He could have gotten enough water in to bend the valves or something to that effect.
Doesn't sound like hydro lock to me, you can hear the starter turning the engine over. He could have gotten enough water in to bend the valves or something to that effect.
Like I said, I'm just following a thread on JF. It doesn't take much water to bend a rod or to do other serious internal damage. Sometimes, all it takes is piston to get slightly ****eyed in cylinder to scar the wall. Once this happens, the death of the engine is just waiting for the final death blow.
I agree that it doesn't appear to be that much water. That is why I was asking if airbox had been changed or not on the JK's.
BTW, the JK owner's user name is "JKtester" and his profile says that he pushes his JK to its limits each time he takes it wheel-n.... I guess he found its limit :eek:
Bob XJ
11-17-2010, 09:49 AM
I don't think a TJ would have swallowed any water there, maybe he should have gone slower like all of us would have. But I have been in the lake washing off my tires in my TJ in deeper water than that! I don't know where the air box is in a JK.
I don't think a TJ would have swallowed any water there, maybe he should have gone slower like all of us would have. But I have been in the lake washing off my tires in my TJ in deeper water than that! I don't know where the air box is in a JK.
The discussion in the other thread is that the water indigestion may have actually taken place on one of the prior runs, or on the initial dip into the water and it just took a minute or more for the water to move from airbox into the engine.. Of course, all this is just theory as details are few and far between.
roadkilgrill
11-17-2010, 10:24 AM
Just glad you didn't kill one like I'd thought when I read the post title!!
jgarner74
11-17-2010, 10:43 AM
Another reason to go through water slowly.
The airbox on the JK is kinda behind the passenger head light at the top of the motor. I would be willing to bet that was not the Jeeps first trip through a deep water hole and prior damage occurred.
Another reason to go through water slowly.
The airbox on the JK is kinda behind the passenger head light at the top of the motor. I would be willing to bet that was not the Jeeps first trip through a deep water hole and prior damage occurred.
Sounds like it is in same place it is on a TJ.....
Turfzilla
11-17-2010, 11:48 AM
that did not look like much of a splash to Kill a JK.....
but then it is a JK.:p
jgarner74
11-17-2010, 12:35 PM
that did not look like much of a splash to Kill a JK.....
but then it is a JK.:p
Hey now, that hits close to home!
TGR 96
11-17-2010, 12:42 PM
Man, regardless of how or why it happened...that is hard for me to watch!
The people who trail guide may want to watch this discussion closely as a lot of times, our thinking about what is or is not safe is based upon a TJ or YJ. **IF** the JK is a little more sensitive to water or whatever, this is something that needs to be widely known.
jgarner74
11-17-2010, 01:18 PM
Granted it does not look like much, but maybe it was just one of those things were it was the perfect splash, but something we should all probably watch a little more closely.
ih8pepl73
11-17-2010, 05:04 PM
Here's a pic of a JK engine compartment. Looks a little more forward than a TJ airbox. Not sure where the opening is...
http://i53.tinypic.com/2ikz8n7.jpg
Here's a pic of a JK engine compartment. Looks a little more forward than a TJ airbox. Not sure where the opening is...
http://i53.tinypic.com/2ikz8n7.jpg
Yeah, depending upon where the opening is located, that is several inches forward.. Maybe enough to be an issue?
YJason
11-17-2010, 06:53 PM
Mini van engines wasn't designed for playing in the water. :)
Mini van engines wasn't designed for playing in the water. :)
Seriously, there maybe more truth to this than we realize.
thechief86
11-17-2010, 07:56 PM
bwahahahaha! that's why i buy jeeps for $1k or less for wheelin. good job there, genius.
well, he's got a good excuse to do a hemi swap now, i guess.
skisad
11-17-2010, 08:08 PM
I hit water puddles on the side the road harder than that when its raining. More to it than just that one video.
gotta love the XJ! ive sucked up more water than that!!!! STEAM CLEAN THE VALVES!!!!!!!!!!!!! she'l ping and pang a min or 2 but clears out and runs like a top!!! id say that vid is jus drowned out... it prob started afer a min or 2...
the air box opening on a xj is bout the same height as the bottom of the headlight.... and ive been thru water over the hood! THROTTLE OUT!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Turfzilla
11-18-2010, 07:39 AM
This spot went over my hood as I went on in it. Air box is on driver side about headlight high like Wes said. Ole Xj ever missed a beat.
Mini-van motor............. ROFLMAO :D
http://i261.photobucket.com/albums/ii61/Turfzilla/WITC%203-15-09/DSC01443.jpg
All the discussion about what an XJ, TJ, YJ, etc... did really isn't helping this discussion about the JK. Could it be that the differences in design & location of the airbox on the JK make it more prone to hydro-lock? Is there more JK's being hydro-locked than the other Jeeps (TJ, YJ, etc.?) or is a driver (inexperience) error issue? Is there really a hydro-lock issue with the JK's, or is this just a situation where it seems like a larger number because it's a new vehicle and we are hearing more about them in general? Maybe there is something to the mini van engine in a Jeep theory? **IF** this appears to be an airbox design/location issue, is there a cheap / easy modification (short of snorkel) that can be done to make JK less hydro-lock prone?
YJason
11-18-2010, 08:03 AM
This spot went over my hood as I went on in it. Air box is on driver side about headlight high like Wes said. Ole Xj ever missed a beat.
ROFLMAO :D
http://i261.photobucket.com/albums/ii61/Turfzilla/WITC%203-15-09/DSC01443.jpg
yep, it was deep
http://i298.photobucket.com/albums/mm252/YJason_album/WITC%203_09/DSC01445.jpg
jgarner74
11-18-2010, 08:07 AM
Here's a pic of a JK engine compartment. Looks a little more forward than a TJ airbox. Not sure where the opening is...
http://i53.tinypic.com/2ikz8n7.jpg
See the air box he picture here? The little scoop thing on the left side is the air opening. IT is about 4-5 inches long and ab out 2-3 inches in height. That is where the air enters. Now he would have to take on a quite a bit of water to get past the air filter and through the tubing to do some damage.
See the air box he picture here? The little scoop thing on the left side is the air opening. IT is about 4-5 inches long and ab out 2-3 inches in height. That is where the air enters. Now he would have to take on a quite a bit of water to get past the air filter and through the tubing to do some damage.
One idea discussed is using something like this to cover the opening of a stock JK airbox.
http://www.northridge4x4.com/proddetail.php?prod=AEM-1-4001
http://www.northridge4x4.com/prodimages/AEM-1-4001.md.jpg
jgarner74
11-18-2010, 08:46 AM
Just from my experience with my JK, it would be very hard for a splash of water to get into that intake hole. It is on accessible from the upper side. Not saying it can't or would not never happen, but it could. I have seen many JK's go through water and some even cover the hood and no damage was done.
I would definately take it for a second opinion if it were me.
Just from my experience with my JK, it would be very hard for a splash of water to get into that intake hole. It is on accessible from the upper side. Not saying it can't or would not never happen, but it could. I have seen many JK's go through water and some even cover the hood and no damage was done.
I would definately take it for a second opinion if it were me.
Part of what makes this discussion so hard is I don't think the owner of the JK knows how to open the hood, so we don't know if there was signs of water in the airbox or not. However, he has his insurance company involved so they aren't going to pay until they confirm the damage.
jgarner74
11-18-2010, 09:13 AM
Yup. Not opening the hood and driving through water = $$$$
UnlimitedGurl
11-18-2010, 11:23 AM
I wonder if he had made several runs through it and that was just the straw that broke the camels back???? If all the runs were that fast it would for sure hurt it.
I wonder if he had made several runs through it and that was just the straw that broke the camels back???? If all the runs were that fast it would for sure hurt it.
Here is what another JK owner said... I have no idea if he is correct or not, as I have never taken a look see under the hood of a JK..
That is exactly the case. Open the hood of the JK. Look just in front of the air box inlet. There is a gap between the fender and the grill. There is also a gap in the fender liner there. Anything going up into the front of the fender will end up being deflected by the hood directly into the airbox. In the OP's video, the hard splash entering the puddle could have easily given the airbox a good drink of muddy water. Snorkel has now moved up the upgrade list.
ih8pepl73
11-18-2010, 04:15 PM
How do you think this guy did? (Granted, he does have a snorkel)
http://i55.tinypic.com/2mcnrl.jpg
theugly88
11-18-2010, 05:14 PM
wth.... wheres he going.. its not a submarine!! LoL..
knobturner75
11-18-2010, 07:27 PM
If this guy's knowledge level is that he needs a manual to tell him how to open the hood, then my guess would be something electronic. We all know that computers and water just don't play nice together. I bet he got some water in the massive amount of electronics somewhere and it messed something up there.
ChristianJeeper86
11-21-2010, 09:55 AM
If this guy's knowledge level is that he needs a manual to tell him how to open the hood, then my guess would be something electronic. We all know that computers and water just don't play nice together. I bet he got some water in the massive amount of electronics somewhere and it messed something up there.
I agree, I have been through pleant yof water and splashed quite a bit and had no problem with water in my airbox. ( I check it everytime I play in water). The main complaint I have with my JK is the ridiculous amout of electronics. If something goes wrong, take it in, get it re-programed, and your ready to go.
Just wanted to update this forum on the JK with hydrolocked engine. Dealership has confirmed internal damage to the engine and the JK owner's insurance company is paying about $9K for the repair.
The JK owner stated that he spent a fair amount of time looking into a Hemi swap and that once place told him they did 5 such swaps in JK's last month because of hydrolock. There is no way to know if this statement is correct or not, but there seems to be a lot of JK's that ingest water and hydrolock. This could be a freak issue with the JK airbox, or it could be a design/location issue with the JK airbox. Personally, I think if I owned a JK, a snokel would be installed before I got within a 1,000 foot of water :)
Turfzilla
11-24-2010, 10:17 AM
....................... Personally, I think if I owned a JK, a snokel would be installed before I got within a 1,000 foot of water :)
Don you driving thru puddles at the mall again??:D
TR3YNGLER
11-26-2010, 10:10 PM
I've had my stock '07 JK through much deeper water than that. The water came rushing up over the hood and slammed into the windshield with so much volume that I couldn't see anything for several seconds. Went through that water hole at least a half-dozen times. I'll not be doing that much anymore. The gaps that were mentioned a few posts back and the idea of the water deflecting on the underside of the hood then down into the air box is now a concern. However, after playing in that water hole, I popped the hood to check out the airbox and it didn't look like it was touched by much water at all. I guess I was just lucky. In any case, I'll be approaching water hazards in a much more controlled way from now on. :)
I've had my stock '07 JK through much deeper water than that. The water came rushing up over the hood and slammed into the windshield with so much volume that I couldn't see anything for several seconds. Went through that water hole at least a half-dozen times. I'll not be doing that much anymore. The gaps that were mentioned a few posts back and the idea of the water deflecting on the underside of the hood then down into the air box is now a concern. However, after playing in that water hole, I popped the hood to check out the airbox and it didn't look like it was touched by much water at all. I guess I was just lucky. In any case, I'll be approaching water hazards in a much more controlled way from now on. :)
This is what is so strange. Some people do wild water crossing in a JK without issues, and others do next to nothing and have major problems. I suspect there is a water deflection issue and it is just a matter of luck, either good luck, or bad.
Marlon_JBT
11-28-2010, 03:29 AM
When you splash water above your roof, exactly what do you expect to happen?
Just out of curiosity. Can't blame this one on Chrysler/Jeep/Whoever. The only person to blame is the OWNER for being dumb. I've wheeled in deeper water than that without issues but I also wasn't going 25MPH either! (Not saying that's how fast he was going but it dang sure looked like it)
If you watch closely you can see the water falling inside the grille as well, right after that, is when the Jeep seemed to die. Someone really needs to learn how to wheel.
StoneyRedneck
11-28-2010, 10:51 AM
I have hit puddles just as large and faster in my wife's mini van on pavement. I think there is a design flaw, and not just driver error. People come to expect even stock jeeps to perform better than this. If this is what Jeep is turning into, then I am glad mine is still old enough to live up to the name.
Marlon_JBT
11-28-2010, 11:23 AM
Did you have water going over the roof?
Despite the Jeep's capabilities, he was STILL going too fast.
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