my friend has an 88 chevy. and the engine make a weird sort of rattling sound. VERY loud. it sounds somewhat like a diseal, really. Do any of you know what the problem might be? should he take it to a machanic? or could he easaly fix a rattle himself?

 

Even if it was a Honda, it could be a hundred different things. Water pump? Camshaft bearings? Alternator? All we can do it guess...

One of you has to listen under the hood to narrow down the location of the noise. Put a short piece of garden hose up to your ear & listen. Then use a screwdriver held against the engine & pin-point it even better. You can't even decide whether to mess with it yourselves, until you figure this out. Even if you go to a mechanic, you'll have something to start from.

Check it out & come back with more information. Oh yeah, what kind of chevy? Somebody's bound to flame you because it's not a Honda...

 

thanks, I'l go over to his house and try. It's a grandma car - 88 Chevy Celebrity.

 

Hmmmmm.... smells like a 2.8 V6 with a bad rod bearing(s) or a 2.5 I4 with some really bad timing gears and/or oil pump - although it could be a water pump or power steering pump. I would one by one pull the accy belts off to see if the noise goes away, if not it's engine r+r time.

 

Not while I'm on watch

Initial impression of what you're describing is a rod bearing to me.