not sure what to do about engine

I could use some suggestions on my situation. I drive a 1989 fleetwood 4.5 FWD. I was driving about 60 mph and accelerating. My throttle got stuck wide open so the car was driving by itself. i put it in neutral and turned it off to pull over. I pushed the throttle down and thought my problems were over. Then my car starts knocking really bad about 5 seconds later. I drove about 10 feet and had to stop, it felt like my car wouldnt make it anymore. So i towed it to a cadillac shop where its at right now. They first thought a flywheel had busted but now they say its something enternal and only 4 or 5 cylinders are hitting. So im trying to consider my options, i absoultly am in love with my caddy so i could either attempt to rebuild the engine or get it rebuilt. But i always wanted something bigger and thought this might be my chance. It has a stock 268 or 270 cubic engine in it right now but i always wanted to put like a 350 in it but id rather put a caddillac engine instead of a chevy. So my question is what cubic inch does cadillac make thats from 300 to i guess about 380 or 400? And would it be allright to put a chevy 350 in it? i know i would have to switch the transsmission to, but this cars got 280,000 miles on original tranny and motor. Im a full time student with not much money so i need the best for my money. Would it maybe be better to just get like a crate engine of the same engine i had? What do yall think?

Hey there 1989:  You have the 273 DFI engine in your ride now with the 307 4bbl Olds engine as a good fit. Now as to shoe horning the 350 chev. engine into your car that is something you will have to take up with your engine rebuilder. He will do the measurements for you and let you know what is possible. What a sweet application if it would work because there is so many after market items for the 350 chev. but almost none for the caddy engines. All I can say dude is start saving your pennies. You will indeed need all you can muster. You will however have a nice power plant you can be proud of when you are finished.Good luck.

next time, shut it down IN GEAR.
i dont understand why it "knocked" after a accelerationg issue.

whatever you do, know the EMISSIONS laws in your area before you touch  it.

in many areas, if you drop an engine into a '75 or later car, and is not in the list for that
car model, you are out of luck !

the Olds or Chevy  engines mentioned above are a great way to go, if the law allows it
and you got the cash.

But you mentioned being cash challenged?   the best deal for the buck is to find another
engine like yours at a salvage yard.  4500 engines are a dime a dozen.  Often, even the
salvage yard will swap the engine for you at a reasonable price or will point you to the
moonlighting "mechanic".   if you got the tools and lifts, the job is simple, disconnect
harnesses and mounts, R&R.

you want more pep?  find a 4500 Allante engine, more hp and looks identical and
can probably get one under $500.  if your are lucky, even less.   '89 to '92.

here is one, IMO a bit overpriced, and the seller thinks it is a 4100 - it is really a 4500
ebay Item number: 220132204431
too far for you, but you get the idea?









.

If you do the salvage yard thing, make sure you get in writing that the engine is guaranteed not to SMOKE.

also, salvage yards are pretty good about doing and providing cylinder pressure tests.
a good indication of the engine's health.

a 100,000 mile Allante 4500, IMO, is  a low mileage and perfectly viable engine
with another 150k to 200k miles left ont it.

Thanks for all the suggestions, Its been a while but since the incident happened but i let the mechanic hold on to the car for about two weeks. I finally went down there to tow it to my house becuase he couldnt give me a finall answer on what was wrong {like he didnt really look at the car}. He first said the flywheel was busted then the something with the cylinders not firing but hes finall solution was the lifters came loose but he "tinkered" with it and got the noise to go away. He said i could drive it home just not to go over 50 mph and only drive about 5-10 miles in distance. I drove it home and it drove fine. so ive been driving it since and its been about 2 or 3 months. ive drivin about 500 miles and over 50mph. So is it possible the lifters just fell back into place? And should i have some problems in the near future? Maybe my car just fixes itself.

quote:

ORIGINAL: 1989 fleetwood

Thanks for all the suggestions, Its been a while but since the incident happened but i let the mechanic hold on to the car for about two weeks. I finally went down there to tow it to my house becuase he couldnt give me a finall answer on what was wrong {like he didnt really look at the car}. He first said the flywheel was busted then the something with the cylinders not firing but hes finall solution was the lifters came loose but he "tinkered" with it and got the noise to go away. He said i could drive it home just not to go over 50 mph and only drive about 5-10 miles in distance. I drove it home and it drove fine. so ive been driving it since and its been about 2 or 3 months. ive drivin about 500 miles and over 50mph. So is it possible the lifters just fell back into place? And should i have some problems in the near future? Maybe my car just fixes itself.

"lifters came lose" is a new one with me ... i have seen hydraulic lifters compressed
and jam a little, but came lose?
those is it a matter of idling the engine for a few minutes to let them pump
up again .. .    came lose?  i wonder what he really meant.

if it drives fine now, i dont see why it wont drive fine 12 months from now.

lets see what the other TECHs have to say.

BUT, whatever it was, i hope you fixed the THROTTLE ISSUE ...






.

Is there anything bigger than a 307 that can fit? How much power can a 307 put out?

Only v8 that will bolt up to trans is 4.1-4.9 cadillac engine. Lifters don't pop out, with out broken push rods or rocker arms. Engine has roller lifters with plates that hold lifters in place. Its possible that chunk of carbon came off valve and imbeded itself on piston. Knocking noise was carbon smacking head until it eventually burned away