Marvel Mystery Oil to free seized engine??

I read in the Nov/Dec 99 issue of Antique Automobile how a guy found an old sprint car and after discovering the engine to be seized, he poured Marvel Mystery Oil in the cylinders and down the carb. 5 minutes later, he says, the engine was free and fired.<P>Is this an advisable way to free a seized engine?? My '40 Chrysler hasn't turned over since 1979 or 1980. I don't yet know whether it is seized but of course I suspect it probably is. If I find it seized can I try this without fear of causing more damage? I would love to hear this old engine run again.<P>Cheers, 3MP<P>------------------<BR>aka Bry in Virginia<BR>40 Chrysler Royal Coupe, 4.0L I6 M3 <I>(restoration project)</I><BR>70 Dodge Charger, 5.2L V8 A3 <I>(hot rod project)</I><BR>74 Dodge 100 Adventurer, 5.2L V8 A3 <I>(works for a living)</I><P><BR>

[Hal Davis (MODEL A HAL)]

I have heard something more along the lines of 5 days vs. 5 min., but other than that, sounds reasonable. It's not gonna cure all the damage that time has caused, but I don't think it will cause any additional problems.

[boettger]

3MP, I've also heard about Marvel Mystery oil being used to unstick a siezed engine. <BR> <BR>If I had a siezed engine I would not be tempted to just pour some magic elixer in the jugs and turn.<P>I would first pull the pan to be sure that there is not something broken, then pull some bearing caps down to have a look at the bearing surfaces. Oil up every bearing surface that you can get to at that point. <P>If all seems OK there, I would pull the head or heads to hava a look.<P>Once the head or heads are off I would liberally douse the areas between the pistons and cylinder walls with a good penetrating oil like PB Blaster. Let sit a while, maybe a few days then try to turn. Once it starts to turn, liberally soak the piston tops with a light oil. Now maybe the Marvel Mystery oil. And manually turn the engine through a few cycles. <BR>I would be suspect of any pistons and rings that have been stuck in a bore for any length of time. Iron oxide is a powerful thing.<BR>Of course your mileage and success may vary.<BR>There have been many reports of just pouring something in the sparkplug hole to disolve the rust then just starting the engine. <BR>Well not in my collector car engine!<P>------------------<BR>Steve Boettger<BR>'30 DeSoto 8<BR>'59 Nash Metropolitan<BR>'23 Chevrolet Touring<P>

I THINK IT WAS HAROLD SHARRON WHO STATED IN ONE OF HIS PHILA. SEMINARS THAT"MARVEL MYSTERY OIL WAS MORE OF A MYSTERY, THAN IT WAS AN OIL" I AGREE THAT I WOULD BE NOT BE PRUDENT TO"FIRE-UP"<BR>AN ENGINE THAT HAS SET FOR A LONG TIME,WITH OUT DOING AN "EXPLORITY". A BIT OF CAUTION COULD SAVE YOU A GREAT DEAL OF EXPENSIVE REPAIRS. PHIL

Here is a good source on starting an engine that has been sitting <A HREF="http://www.efn.org/~d_morgan/running.html" TARGET=_blank>http://www.efn.org/~d_morgan/running.html</A> <P>------------------<BR>Lmmax<BR><A HREF="http://1964cadillac.carsouth.com/" TARGET=_blank>Classic car web site[url]<P>[url=http://www.insidetheweb.com/mbs.cgi/mb438999]Post your Caddy parts & cars FREE!</A><P><BR>

Thanks! I bookmarked that one.<P>Cheers, 3MP

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by 3 Mad Ponchos:<BR><B>Thanks! I bookmarked that one.<P>Cheers, 3MP</B><HR></BLOCKQUOTE><BR>Yes a few people put there heads together to make that,dave had so many people asking the same question, so I just refer them to his page.<P><P>------------------<BR>Lmmax<BR>[URL=http://www.geocities.com/motorcity/lane/6408/cadillac/]!964 Cadillac & Classic car Photos

If you are going to pull the engine down at all, it would be advisable to pull the pistons ,as I usually find 1 or 2 stuck rings in a situation like that!The engine will run ,but it will never be right until you free up those rings.

My car had been sitting with a blown head gasket for a long time. After replacing it I had a compression of next to nothing (rings seized). Letting it sit with WD40 on the pistons for a few days it fired right up and compression was ok! (not a magic "motor-up" story)