Whoever Blew Up This VW GTI Engine Did a Good Job Because It’s Toast

There are lots of ways to blow up an engine: lack of maintenance, driving too hard, and cheap upgrades are just some of them. If you asked which of these caused this 2.0-liter turbo VW motor to go boom, I could only respond with “yes.” In this upload from I Do Cars on YouTube, you get to see the teardown of a trashed EA888 four-cylinder, and it might be the most brutally blown engine I’ve ever seen.

Usually, it’s hard to see signs of engine death without tearing it apart and checking the internals. This one, though, tells you right away. That’s because this GTI power plant sent its connecting rods through the block like the Kool-Aid Man. As the engine is taken apart piece by piece, layer after layer of destruction and neglect are revealed like an onion of sadness. When the water pump was taken off, more of the block fell apart, revealing another connecting rod that was easily pulled out of the block by hand. That shouldn’t be possible.

Removing the rear timing cover showed that not only did the timing chain jump off a sprocket, but the sprocket teeth were also destroyed. As it turns out, the balance shaft itself was broken, which sent the rod through the side of the block. Oi vey.

Dropping the oil pan revealed countless pieces of the engine’s innards in the bottom, which is to be expected given the damage, but what no one expected to find was the foil from an oil jug cap in the pan. The oil pan was also held on with an unholy amount of RTV, indicating that it was dropped at some point and reinstalled unprofessionally (and that’s putting it kindly). Two of the engine’s connecting rods also made big holes in the top of the pan.

This engine was so broken, it’s almost impressive. After stripping it to the bare block and head, there wasn’t one specific failure that gave away how the engine finally met its end. It was likely a combination of factors, like oil cap foil and extra RTV sealant being inside the oil pan, blocking the pickup tube, and starving it of oil. Or maybe it was just tuned too far past its stock capabilities. It doesn’t matter which was the final nail in the coffin, though, because there were just so many nails. The owner of this 2010 GTI clearly didn’t care enough to maintain it properly, and the result is an engine that looks like dynamite went off inside it.

So when you’re working on your car this week, remember to take care of your engine and pour one out for the GTI the world lost.

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