1997 Transport stalled, restarts with very rough idle

My 1997 Transport has been running fine until yesterday when it stalled. Attempts at restarting were unsuccessful. It started turning over several times, but it sounded very rough and just wouldn't get going. It was towed to the dealership and they said that it seems to have coolant in the oil, possibly caused by a cracked head. Another opinion was that it could be a bad intake manifold gasket that is slowly allowing coolant into the engine. Which option seems like the most likely cause of this dilemma?

THe causes that are suggested do not make a "no go" in a sudden.....BLown gaskets cause a lot of parasitic troubles, but will let the engine run . First, in all circumstances, pulling the codes is "interesting", and can give a real direction to the investigation. Alas you need the scan tool to do it, but if the car can run, it was said very often that Autozone will do it for free....
A jammed open EGR valve - a "normal" problem, will do that kind of trick (HARD START, ROUGH IDLE) , but at this point, it is speculation. What is the mileage on the engine?
and....yes, this engine is prone to head gasket failure and it is very possible you have that problem in addition to the present one.

The '97 Transport has 113,000 miles on it and based on the info that you have provided, it sounds like it would be worthwhile to repair it rather than upgrading to a newer model, which of course is what the dealership was pushing for. They were saying that a repair would cost roughtly $2500. without even doing any diagnostic testing on it to determine the problem area. The timing chain and spark plugs are overdue for replacement (100,000 mi), so whether or not they turn out to be factors in the situation, now will be an opportune time to replace them. Thanks for the input!

The '97 Transport has 113,000 miles on it and based on the info that you have provided, it sounds like it would be worthwhile to repair it rather than upgrading to a newer model, which of course is what the dealership was pushing for. They were saying that a repair would cost roughtly $2500. without even doing any diagnostic testing on it to determine the problem area. The timing chain and spark plugs are overdue for replacement (100,000 mi), so whether or not they turn out to be factors in the situation, now will be an opportune time to replace them. Thanks for the input!

Well, it seems as though the camshaft broke. With the oil filler cap removed and the engine running, the rocker that is visible isn't moving, so at least one cylinder isn't firing, possibly as many as three aren't. Rather that do an overhaul, I've decided to replace engine with another used one with much fewer miles. Is it true that if and when you replace the camshaft, you should also do a complete overhaul? That's what was recommended to me. I had the idea that I would just find somebody with a lift and hoist and put in a new $200. camshaft. It makes sense though, as I will reluctantly believe, that all the crucial parts should also be replaced or machined. In either case, whatever I do, there goes the dough that woulda coulda shoulda gone to something fun!

As experienced by another forum member, a broken camshaft can cause valve interference with pistons hence possible broken valves. SO it figures that lifting the heads for a complete check for that eventuality - that might turn into a larger catastrophy if left unchecked - would be almost mandatory, although it could prove afterwards that all was OK..but reluctantly, I might want not to take the risk in that case. May be just a positive compression check once the cam is replaced could clear the way ...but I'd feel uncomfortable for a little while.....anyway, once the engine is out of the car, lifting the heads is an easy step.

Agreed with what LMP said. If you are going to have the engine out, it's a heck of a lot easier to get at everything.

I wouldn't say you have to do a complete overhaul, but while the engine is out...

If you were going to replace the camshaft, it would be advisable to replace the lifters as well as they are a wear item and had previously wore on the old camshaft. Rockers and pushrods aren't as vital, but they should definitely be checked. You are going to have to take them out anyways.

And at that point, you'd just be 16 bolts away from taking the heads off as well to get those gaskets. Trust me. It seriously sucks having to take the intake manifold off and then put back on, only to find out that you should have done the heads as well. Been there, done that, got the T-shirt. The valves also can be checked, seals/guides/etc could be replaced if needed, and everything pressure checked.

While it sounds easy, I think you might be underestimating what it would take to replace the engine by yourself. It's not impossible, but it's not trivial either. The engine has to get lowered out though the bottom of the vehicle.

Coolant in the oil? Did the oil look like oil or the brownish sludge?
I have read many post about this type of failure and asked questions about coolant in the oil. Which mine has also had an intake leak.
I rebuilt it completely. I had one rod bearing turned about a quarter turn and most were scarred. That sludge doesn't pump thru and lubricate the system. I have also read people just replacing intake gasket and running fuel oil in the oil to loosen up the sludge and then changing the oil. How thorough of job you want should be determined by if you are keeping it or trading it.
I thought for around that same price you could get an installed remanufactured engine.

Oh, yes you can pull the engine (and transmission) out the top. Easier with heads off, if not the exhaust manifolds need to be off.

Hi new to web site
but i have a transport with a broken cam and i did some research on this and people who rebuild these motors say when it breaks the cam the can seizes on the can bearings causes them to spin .
They can't be repaired becase they tell me spun cam bearings on these can't be line bored.
i had to buy a complete engine at $750.00