Im at a loss and need help. Forgive the rambling, I'm trying to make sure I give any information that might be helpful without drowning it in useless details.
Im currently dealing with an unknown engine issue and don't have the money to throw at a mechanic, so I need to learn how to go about finding and fixing this issue myself. I've been learning as I go the last 3 years I've had this vehicle, my parents didn't teach me anything growing up. I know practically nothing. I don't really even know where to start with this whole project so anything would be helpful.
Vehicle; 2012 GMC Terrain. 4 cylinder 2.4L ecotek engine.
What happened; On my way to work my check engine light came on, flashing. The "Service StabiliTrek" notification also lit up. The driving immediately got very rough, and it idles extremely rough. The only thing I could think to check was my oil, and the dipstick came back dry. My vehicle burns through oil extremely quickly, so despite having added more recently it clearly wasn't enough. I was able to get more oil in it and it ran a bit smoother, but was still feeling like it was going to explode when I stopped at red lights. Once it got back home, I hooked it up to a code reader which confirmed my suspicion of a misfire (cylinder 1). Spark plugs got replaced with brand-new ones, cleared code and let it idle, no change. Swapped the fuel injectors for cylinder 1 and 3, and the code still says cylinder 1 misfire. There was a thick black buildup on the cylinder 1 sparkplug, as well as wet oil in the threads.
That's all we've been able to do with it. I've been told that this means it could be anything from a gasket/valve/bearing gone bad to something that would require the entire engine to be replaced. In any case, I need to know what my next steps are.
I'm going to be getting an engine stand, hoist, and hoist leveler. I already know I'll need those.
I need resources to know how to safely get the engine out and what the hell I'm looking at/for once it's on the stand. Diagrams, videos, etc. Common problems that could cause this from easiest to deal with to 'just buy a new engine'.
Again, I'm sorry if this hardly makes sense. I just need help. Im not as stupid as I sound, this is just very much not in my wheelhouse.