Will it never end!! Nasty knocking, no revs??

[Owen]

Right, here we go again, will my ZJ problems ever end  Anyway here is the new one. She has developed a nasty rattle comming from the rocker cover, and she wont go much past 2K revs! (last time I heard this sound it was just before the engine ceased on my mondeo, YIKES)Going up to 2K revs is just as normal, then the power drops straight off as soon as you pass 2K revs and you can plainly hear the rattle from the engine. There is plenty of oil in her, and when she was running and I took off the oil filler cap she sprayed out oil and what looked like a little bit of smoke, or somthing like that. is that normal?? Dont know if my oil presure is ok as thats the only gauge that has never worked on the car. She sucked up a little water on Sunday but it seemed to be fine after 10 mins and has been fine since then up untill this afternoon. Could this be a cause??[/

[EvilEd]

Oh......

Just Empty Every pocket.....

Sorry, but it sounds bad... is there white scum in the filler cap (sign of water contamination)

You should not have oil spraying out of the filler cap, there is a chance of some splashing (heavy sometimes, it's on there for a reason) but if it is spraying out then you have pressure going past the pistons or through a crack in the head gasket (hopefully) or the head (ouch)

So, if you are lucky, it'll be head gasget. Less lucky, piston rings and or cracked head. (More likely if she overheated). Now, depending how much water went in there, it could be bent con rods, etc. Even worse it could have made the cam belt jump (This is not jeep specific knowlege, so don't have a go if it has a cam chain - unlikely it'll be a chain) and you could be looking at valves hitting the pistons and all sorts of nasties.... hope your credit card is well :(

Saying that, until you have had the top off and had a look, you could second guess all day. I'd be inclined to get it into your local garage or Jeep specialist (not jeep garage) and see.

[Owen]

RIght anouther development! I just bee out to listen to the nasty noise again and could make my mind up weather it was the rocker cover, or the alternator, as it was reved up a little there was a loud click and the nasty noise stopped! Maybe it was somtning caught up in that area! But the problem with her not going past 2K revs is stil there. Have checked for any gunk build up on the oil filler and there is nothing out of place there. But any idea about the loss of power?
Cheers.