HELP! it just stopped - Solved

Post by **Harlequin** » 26 Aug 2006, 13:13

1996 xantia activa:

drove 50yards from my house it spluttered then died - the engine turns over but nothing at all - the dip stick had popped out and the water tank was fully pressurised.

any idea`s? if its head gasket then it`ll probably get scrapped or sold for spares.

engine has 69k on it and FSH.

citronut · Post by **citronut** » 26 Aug 2006, 14:43

what car is it,and may be its the cam belt sliped or snaped
regards malcolm

Post by **Harlequin** » 26 Aug 2006, 14:58

xantia activa (top of the post)

it turns over normally , starts to fire then stops

citronut · Post by **citronut** » 26 Aug 2006, 15:01

firstly check the cam timing anyway,until you have i wouldent crack it over any more,because if the belt has just sliped or stipped some toofy pegs it could carry on turning the cam shaft and then it will bend more valves
regards malcolm

andmcit · Post by **andmcit** » 26 Aug 2006, 15:57

I'd agree with Malcolm, don't make unnecessary churning over of the engine if there's a belt issue.

My instinctive feeling with the pressurising of the crankcase [manifest through the dipstick and water-jacket] is the head gasket isn't 100% - this could be a result of parts of the engine coming together due to a belt snapping...

Don't be too rash with talk of scrapping the car UNTIL the extent of why and how the problem has befallen your car, the parts are available (as has been discussed elsewhere

)

The 'bonus', if there is one, is the petrol engine is far more forgiving to work with and not so highly stressed as a diesel. I'd not expect skimming etc.

Hope you manage to get it sorted Harlequin

Andrew

Post by **Harlequin** » 26 Aug 2006, 16:16

i`ve had a cam belt snap before - this to me doesn`t sound like it - with my golf , it was far more of a whine than normal when it was only turning half the engine

andmcit · Post by **andmcit** » 26 Aug 2006, 16:45

OK, the only other explanation I can offer for a pressurised crank case is out of whack ignition timing/poor running engine management - when the engine tries to kick in is there any backfiring popping etc of the fuel/ignition - does it actually catch and run properly albeit briefly. The water expansion top will always have some pressure - the pressure you describe is higher?

Has any work been carried out before the car was driven, or is it an out of the blue occurrance?

Andrew

Post by **Harlequin** » 26 Aug 2006, 16:49

i haven`t been using it for about a month - went to put some air in the tyre (one was soft) and some fuel in it.

it was running then spluttered and stopped. now it catches briefly thyen stops

KevMayer · Post by **KevMayer** » 26 Aug 2006, 18:16

Is there a fuel shut off switch that could have operated ?

I was once on holiday in a caravan in France. I could hear this guy trying to start a Ford Granada. Turning over and over. He came to me to ask for a jump start.

I told him to check fuel flow and ignition spark (I'm no expert..that's all I could think of ).

He suddenly realised he had caught the fuel cut off switch in the boot area whilst loading his suit cases.

He pressed the switch and it fired first time.

I have an Activa so am interested to know what the problem is.

Good Luck.

Kev.

EDIT.. just realised..it can't be that simple..... with dip stick jumping out and Water system pressurised...... So crank case is pressurised..mmmm.... sounds like a head gasket... pressurising into a cooling gallery and Oil gallery.

andmcit · Post by **andmcit** » 26 Aug 2006, 19:30

Don't bite my head off when I suggest this, but when you say you were on the way to put fuel in it, is there enough in to get you there!!? The symptoms are classic out-of-fuel.

If you want to be a real hypochondriac about faults in an engine bay you can 'discover' all sorts of problems that may have been there ages before but not noticed until you look for problems; are you 100% sure the dipstick has been forced out of it seat by pressure and not just left out without pressing it firmly home in the past; are you 100% sure the pressure in the water jacket is any higher than it normally is.

For the sake of 10quidsworth of unleaded you can set this particular issue to rest! My 24v V6 Xm can be a right git with the fuel running out [very embarasingly I might add] when the fuel level gauge shows somewhere between 1/3 and 1/2 a tank left, and I wonder whether it sticks as the car is not used all the time [like yours being laid resting for several weeks at a time with the tyres going down etc].

Over the years I've pitched off into massive wastes of time with great leaps of supposition [making things worse as a result] when in fact the bleeding obvious was correctly pointed out by those around me with their hard earned experiences if I'd slowed down a bit and listened!

Rule out the obvious first!

Andrew

jeremy · Post by **jeremy** » 26 Aug 2006, 19:38

Dipstick popping out and pressurised cooling systems don't just happen - they are caused by gas getting into the wrong place - in considerable quantities at high pressure.

So where do you find high pressure gas in your engine? - in the cylinders when it fires - and as you have found it in the crankcase and cooling system it must have come through the head gasket.

Now someone explain why I am wrong please.

andmcit · Post by **andmcit** » 26 Aug 2006, 19:52

No, I think you're right Jeremy. It's the HG.

I'm just being devil's advocate asking the bleeding obvious question that dare not be asked!

Only other thing I can think that matches the symptoms: I had a Prestige Cx 2.4i years ago that struggled to start AFTER I'd driven it home. It took months of running for mere seconds and it popped and banged and made exciting fireworks backfiring parked at the end of the quiet cul-de-sac where I lived whilst in Uni. Turned out to be the air flow meter...

Andrew

citronut · Post by **citronut** » 26 Aug 2006, 21:37

did you get to put the fuel in and if so you didnt go and diesel in by mistake
regards malcolm

citronut · Post by **citronut** » 26 Aug 2006, 21:38

did you get to put the fuel in and if so you didnt go and diesel in by mistake
regards malcolm

ACTIVE8 · Post by **ACTIVE8** » 27 Aug 2006, 10:03

jeremy wrote:Dipstick popping out and pressurised cooling systems don't just happen - they are caused by gas getting into the wrong place - in considerable quantities at high pressure.

So where do you find high pressure gas in your engine? - in the cylinders when it fires - and as you have found it in the crankcase and cooling system it must have come through the head gasket.

Now someone explain why I am wrong please.

I agree with jeremy, and the cooling system can be tested to prove this.

The equipment needed is a block tester, and on the link below there are some details about it.

This is the same equipment that a garage uses to positively prove that there is a problem with a head gasket, and when a car is under warranty, or a lease vehicle etc, they require positive proof that backs up the technicians diagnosis.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Block-Tester-Kit- ... dZViewItem

Harlequin I am sorry to hear about your problem, and I hope you manage to sort it out.