Chrysler Repair: 1996 3.5L engine: loss of oil pressure, loud knock, differential diagnosis, postal stamps

Question
I was driving and took my foot off the gas and hit the brakes and as i slowed the rpms dipped way down almost to zero and the oil light cam on know i have a loud knocking from the engine but im not sure if its the oil pump or just debris clogging oil flow

Answer
Hi Neal,
That is a differential diagnosis that I can't suggest an easy approach to answer. I wonder though if a problem with the pump or the oil distribution alone would cause a knock. It seems that a knock implies some mechanical failure which I would not expect to happen so quickly if you stopped the engine after the oil light came on and the rpm dropped. Could the knocking have started first, followed by the engine light and low rpm? Someone who is more familiar with the engine than I and who can listen to the sound might be a person to give you the best advice. I have the '94 Chrysler shop manual and it has 34 pages about that engine. I could xerox those and postal mail them to you if that would be of help. It costs me 10 cents per side and about a dollar for postage to get those to you. I will send them and you can reimburse me with postal stamps or a check after you receive them. Let me know your postal mailing address by using the "thank and rate" tab where you will find a space for a comment. Otherwise, see if you can find someone maybe at a machine shop who might be able to give you some idea by listening to it.
Roland