Will frozen water crack a block?

I would never buy anything without antifreeze other than for scrap.

Yes it will crack a block, and it will also crack the radiator, heater core(s) and a even crack the air compressor.

 

every engine that I saw or used with just water in the system always overheated weaken or destroyed the head gasket. the best way to get it thawed, is to put in a heated space for a couple days.

 

A lot depends on how cold it got and how long it stayed that cold. I have seen them go both ways, you may get lucky, but even in summer, running without antifreeze is bad for an engine.

 

Thats what you get buying it knowing it was all water- And instead of putting your overalls on, You decided to jump in the sack with the ol lady for a few days.............

 

Sad

 

My sister in law ruin a nice little car that way... she had a leaking water pump, and couldn't afford to have it fixed so she just kept filling it with water... then winter came and temps dropped well below freezing. Split that block wide open in several places.

 

Nobody can really give you a definitive answer. If it was below freezing for more than a few hours I'd say there's at least some split hoses and popped frost plugs.