Does timing jump cause engine replacement?

Question

Does timing jump cause engine replacement? ===========================================

My TOYOTA Camry 1999 was driving OK. I do check under the hood on and off, I did not do that check for awhile. Last week my car started OK. Within two(2) minute driving RPM started decreasing and lost power. The car engine cut-off. It crank the engine as I turned ignition, but it did not start. I towed the car home. I towed the car to auto service shop. My mechanic is telling that my timing belt was jumped and hit water pump. He did leak test and find leakage in middle 2 cylinders. He wanted to replace the motor.

I did not drive on high speed and drove 2 minutes from starting. My car has non-interference engine, so it had timing belt instead of timing chain.

Does this situation cause such engine damage?

Is there a way to fix leakage in middle 2 cylinders as alternate to motor replacement?

If yes, what is it called?

Does any mechanic able to do that?

I have auto transmission. Did switching to neutral in this situation help?

Thanks for your insights.

Additional Info.

Thanks for your replies/suggestions (insights).

My car has less than 100K miles on odometer. Timing belt did not break in my car. It jumped off the pulley & hit water pump. Did such event impact/damage cylinders?

He removed upper timing cover, front passenger wheel and rotated the camshaft manually to do leak down test .

He performed the leak down test using Cylinder Leak-Down Tester as shown in http://www.harborfreight.com/cylinde...ter-94190.html.

It showed the following reading.

Outer two Cylinders 0 - 10 % (Close to Green)

Inner two Cylinders 100 - 80 % (Red)

Did anyone one work on such situation?

I shared your thoughts. He was upset that I did not trust his judgement. He is not liking to challenge his experience. My mechanic is saying. The reason for leak in two cylinders is , piston hit the valve while my belt jumped. It caused this damage.

Does it make sense?

Answer 1

(NOTE: This answer is predicated upon your engine being a 5S-FE I4 found in many Camrys.)

Does this situation cause such engine damage?

No. Since your engine is a non-interference motor, it should not suffer damage due to this type of an issue. There may be other things going on, though, which may be the root of what your mechanic is saying is going on.

Is there a way to fix leakage in middle 2 cylinders as alternate to motor replacement? If yes, what is it called?

Yes. Your mechanic could possibly have the head fixed or replaced. The leak down test checks to see if the valves are seating/sealing properly. Obviously they aren't, unless the mechanic is lying to you. There may be other things going on causing the leak down issue, though.

Does any mechanic able to do that?

Yes. Most any mechanic should be able to fix (or get it fixed) or replace the head.

I have auto transmission. Did switching to neutral in this situation help?

No. It would not have have made a difference. Once the belt slips, timing is off. Since your motor is non-interference, it really doesn't make any difference anyway.

All-in-all, I think I'd get a second opinion. Your mechanic should be able to diagnose this, though. If there truly is a leak down problem, I'd say something is worn out and needs replaced, such as the head. The mechanic may just be looking for the easy score, because he can make more money replacing the engine than by reworking or replacing the head. Engine replacement takes less time and is much less demanding work than doing the head. Before you go off on your mechanic, though, I'd ask him why he believes the engine needs replacement versus getting the head work done ... there may be a good reason why he is suggesting to replace the motor. Ask for an itemized list of what would have to be done to get the head fixed.

Answer 2

You surely want a second opinion, but he might be thinking if you have a lot of miles on your motor you may be causing more problems just by doing a head job. I would go to a reputable garage and not some little mom and pop garage, because a reputable garage has certified techs working there. They have been through school and taken tests to get those certifications. They know their stuff.