I was driving my moms Isuzu rodeo and she had no oil In it i found out.

Question

I drove it from Houston to Dallas and i was headed to work the next day and it killed then it was making a clanging sound like it may have been out of oil I checked it and it was it wouldnt start back either so then I bought oil and put it in and it sounds better like it wants to start but it doesnt one guy said it may have jumped timing but i wanna know if there is clearance on the pistons inside the engine so i would know if they had bent because of it not having oil and me hearing the clacking sounds.

Answer 1

You would have had to had oil in there before leaving otherwise 1/4 mile it is toast.    You probably were burning oil(blue smoke out the tail pipe on the way down or leaking like a "stuck pig") .    As soon as it started making the clanging noise - you bent something inside the motor.   The fact you put in "5 quarts of oil" ...it only holds 5 - "better late than never" does NOT  apply here.   It is a paperweight.  You need the short block replaced.   Everything except the starter, alternator, fuel system(maybe can salvage the heads), water pump and other accessories.

Answer 2

Running an engine with no oil can't end happily.  If you were truly out of oil the sounds you heard were probably the sounds of bearings spinning, cylinder walls being scored, and hundreds of other friction based destructions.  Based on what you have described I'm afaid you are in for a complete engine rebuild or replacement.  Sorry.  

Answer 3

Tow the truck to a competent mechanic. 99% probable that you have fried the engine and there is insufficient compression to run. That is why it sounds a little better with oil in it.

Oil is the life blood of an engine. You don't recover from running out of oil. The damage has been done.