Engine Siezed Up?

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foggyhelmet
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Engine Siezed Up?

Post by foggyhelmet »

o_O So, did I check and change the oil? Check. Did I notice any leakage? None. Check. Did I wait too long? 6 months, minimal riding, no reason to suspect bone dry engine.

Idk what happened, but somewhere in there the engine got bone dry. I increased my commute from 25 miles a week to over 500 miles a week. Then, one day on the ride home the engine siezed up from lack of oil. 20k miles, RIP.

:ugeek: So, I am currently without PCX.

I don't have a ton of financial options to just hop on the next pcx in the lot. So, I'm thinking used is the way to go.

What would be the best site to find a used PCX that has been serviced regularly?
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Re: Engine Siezed Up?

Post by you you »

foggyhelmet wrote:o_O So, did I check and change the oil? Check. Did I notice any leakage? None. Check. Did I wait too long? 6 months, minimal riding, no reason to suspect bone dry engine.

Idk what happened, but somewhere in there the engine got bone dry. I increased my commute from 25 miles a week to over 500 miles a week. Then, one day on the ride home the engine siezed up from lack of oil. 20k miles, RIP.

:ugeek: So, I am currently without PCX.

I don't have a ton of financial options to just hop on the next pcx in the lot. So, I'm thinking used is the way to go.

What would be the best site to find a used PCX that has been serviced regularly?

I don't understand. Did you or didn't you check the oil regularly during your 500 mile weekly commute?
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Re: Engine Siezed Up?

Post by foggyhelmet »

you you wrote:
foggyhelmet wrote:o_O So, did I check and change the oil? Check. Did I notice any leakage? None. Check. Did I wait too long? 6 months, minimal riding, no reason to suspect bone dry engine.

Idk what happened, but somewhere in there the engine got bone dry. I increased my commute from 25 miles a week to over 500 miles a week. Then, one day on the ride home the engine siezed up from lack of oil. 20k miles, RIP.

:ugeek: So, I am currently without PCX.

I don't have a ton of financial options to just hop on the next pcx in the lot. So, I'm thinking used is the way to go.

What would be the best site to find a used PCX that has been serviced regularly?

I don't understand. Did you or didn't you check the oil regularly during your 500 mile weekly commute?
Checked it the same week, using the dipstick that comes with. Doesn't mean I did a 100% accurate job or that something else din't happen. Actual oil change was 6 months ago. That part is going to remain a mystery, other than knowing the frequency of use increased.

What I need help with at this point is where the best place to get a used pcx is.
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Re: Engine Siezed Up?

Post by you you »

foggyhelmet wrote:
you you wrote:
foggyhelmet wrote:o_O So, did I check and change the oil? Check. Did I notice any leakage? None. Check. Did I wait too long? 6 months, minimal riding, no reason to suspect bone dry engine.

Idk what happened, but somewhere in there the engine got bone dry. I increased my commute from 25 miles a week to over 500 miles a week. Then, one day on the ride home the engine siezed up from lack of oil. 20k miles, RIP.

:ugeek: So, I am currently without PCX.

I don't have a ton of financial options to just hop on the next pcx in the lot. So, I'm thinking used is the way to go.

What would be the best site to find a used PCX that has been serviced regularly?

I don't understand. Did you or didn't you check the oil regularly during your 500 mile weekly commute?
Checked it the same week, using the dipstick that comes with. Doesn't mean I did a 100% accurate job or that something else din't happen. Actual oil change was 6 months ago. That part is going to remain a mystery, other than knowing the frequency of use increased.

What I need help with at this point is where the best place to get a used pcx is.
Same as most other s/h items. eBay, Craigslist, gumtree, local ads, local traders etc etc.

Put your location down. You never know someone might be local with one for sale.
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Re: Engine Siezed Up?

Post by TheMaverick »

Sorry to hear.

It's also really disturbing that Honda don't appear to have any kind of warning about this on the dash.

I change my oil every 4000km (2500miles) and I track the usage - on average about 70ml. I would have thought people would get 15,000km or more without an out-of-oil issue.

Is a rebuild or a 2nd hand engine from a crashed scoot an option?
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Re: Engine Siezed Up?

Post by iceman »

Running with a dry dipstick (que the puns) with oil just under the minimum will usually do no damage at all - once I found my level was below the minimum and need a 100ml's or so to reach it but 1 year on the bike starts and rides like a dream (albeit with noisy clutch bearing - seperate and only real issue with the new versions).
Seems like your drain plug was not fitted well or you have a crack somewhere that lost all the oil - usually you have chance to see oil leaks before you ride off.
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Re: Engine Siezed Up?

Post by pcx man »

Check your drive belt. I remember someone on here had one break and stopped the crank from turning. They thought the motor locked up.
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Re: Engine Siezed Up?

Post by Gil »

Could it be that the engine was overfilled with oil? Timing chain tensioner, might of gone bad.

You could always just replace the engine on your PCX. There are a couple on ebay. It shouldn't be too hard.

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Re: Engine Siezed Up?

Post by homie »

pcx man wrote:Check your drive belt. I remember someone on here had one break and stopped the crank from turning. They thought the motor locked up.
:lol: :lol: :lol: Ok you people are all over the place now. The OP reports zero oil in the crankcase, not too much or some oil... but none!

We must take that as the truth until he says different.
Last edited by homie on Tue Sep 19, 2017 6:52 pm, edited 3 times in total.
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Re: Engine Siezed Up?

Post by Mel46 »

If we knew where you lived we could better help you. Do we assume the United States because you mention miles instead of Km?
As far a looking for a replacement scooter, Craigslist is one place to look. Another is cycletrader.com.
Here is a listing for around my area. Use "Motorcycle" and "PCX" to be more specific.
https://www.cycletrader.com/search-resu ... 150%7C4134&
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Re: Engine Siezed Up?

Post by Gil »

homie wrote:
pcx man wrote:Check your drive belt. I remember someone on here had one break and stopped the crank from turning. They thought the motor locked up.
:lol: :lol: :lol: Ok you people are all over the place now. The OP reports zero oil in the crankcase, not too much or some oil... but none!

We must take that as the truth until he says different.
Good observation, I overlooked the statement that the crankcase was empty. That is extremely odd, maybe he didn't use a new drain bolt washer. But then again, oil should be present on the ground somewhere.

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Re: Engine Siezed Up?

Post by Gil »

Here is a thought, with high RPM riding there will be some blowby of oil into the intake. With time oil gets burned by the engine, leading to an empty crankcase. I check my oil more often when I ride at top speed for long durations. I have also topped up the oil in my scoot. the first time oil barely registered on the dipstick. When High speed riding check your oil.

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Re: Engine Siezed Up?

Post by homie »

Somethings up Gil
I wish he would come back and give us the year and odometer. Highly unusual one loses a lot of oil without a trace. Not noticing excessive smoke, leak or puddle is embarrassing but not unheard of in here. We need to learn and not ridicule as it could happen to us.
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Re: Engine Siezed Up?

Post by TheMaverick »

homie wrote:Somethings up Gil
I wish he would come back and give us the year and odometer. Highly unusual one loses a lot of oil without a trace. Not noticing excessive smoke, leak or puddle is embarrassing but not unheard of in here. We need to learn and not ridicule as it could happen to us.
I too would like more info. I would think that an engine would seize long before getting "bone dry".

Almost starting to wonder if it's vandalism - would be a piece of cake for someone to unscrew the cap & suck out 800ml for a "joke".
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Re: Engine Siezed Up?

Post by easyrider »

I have never seen an engine blow from lack of oil that did not kick an overheat light/alarm.. You wouldn't have lost the oil in one week so quickly without a catastrophic event of some kind .. The temp sensor could have been bad however a super hot engine will show erratic signs prior to its end.
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Re: Engine Siezed Up?

Post by springer1 »

Here is a thought, with high RPM riding there will be some blowby of oil into the intake.
I'm not sure how that could happen ... the only intake is thru the carb unless the breather/ PVC fell off. Maybe a blowby the rings or valve guides, but that would result in oil smoke out the exhaust. I dunno.

But, this is a good reason to check the engine oil every 500 miles or so just as a preventative measure.
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Re: Engine Siezed Up?

Post by homie »

I failed to mix oil in a two stroke snow blower once and this promptly happened. No peculiar noise, smoke or vibrations prior to death. Just sputt, sputt... thud. END! And then my father-in-law gets to mention it every holiday :lol:
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Re: Engine Siezed Up?

Post by springer1 »

LoL .... awful way to wreck a piston & bore but ..... hey ..... at least the bronze in that big end bearing survived !!!
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Re: Engine Siezed Up?

Post by TheMaverick »

homie wrote:I failed to mix oil in a two stroke snow blower once and this promptly happened. No peculiar noise, smoke or vibrations prior to death. Just sputt, sputt... thud. END! And then my father-in-law gets to mention it every holiday :lol:
If this happened in a PCX, wouldn't it be a "relatively" easy job just to re-bore the solitary cylinder - new piston & rings - throw in a few bearings - and be away again?

Like "not a pleasant job to pay for" but not a job that should run into the thousands either? I've had a 4 cylinder car engine reconditioned for NZD $1500 (probs about USD $1000).
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Re: Engine Siezed Up?

Post by homie »

TheMaverick wrote:
homie wrote:I failed to mix oil in a two stroke snow blower once and this promptly happened. No peculiar noise, smoke or vibrations prior to death. Just sputt, sputt... thud. END! And then my father-in-law gets to mention it every holiday :lol:
If this happened in a PCX, wouldn't it be a "relatively" easy job just to re-bore the solitary cylinder - new piston & rings - throw in a few bearings - and be away again?
YES! A person can make repairs for catastrophic engine seizure IMO. Here's me getting on with pistons, bearings and cylinders quite easily with little or no prior experience. Bike runs perfect to this day so YES you can do anything :D

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zIoJivs ... HR&index=4
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