Ford TD problem

KP · Unread post by KP » 06 Aug 2010, 16:46

Simple then, some fairy liquid round the glow plug holes and crank the engine over. if you get bubbles you know its that

jgra1 · Unread post by **jgra1** » 06 Aug 2010, 16:52

that's the plan

monday or tue eve.. will also look into Diaphragm issues as Jim mentioned

jgra1 · Unread post by **jgra1** » 10 Aug 2010, 22:02

well back I went to the Mondeo..

first off I refitted the injectors and pipes..primed her then she ran after a fair few turns..

smoke was a bit worse than last time..the car was definitely missing every few revs, and that coincided with smoke.. it was missing all the time really.. I let the engine warm up ..

I found that moving what I think was a timing lever on the Lucas (it was connected by a cable to a black box) made the car slow down and run properly.. but when I applied revs the lever tried moving to a new position and rough running and some smoke was there.. I think this was a red herring..

I removed the only sense pipe I could find, a small bore pipe running from turbo to pump and this made no difference..

I cracked each injector feed in turm and all dropped the revs, suggesting it is running on 4, and maybe that #1 is the problem every few revs..

I removed the intercooler piping (and turbo effect) and had the engine breathing straight from the manifold, no difference except.. the manifold blew smoke back out, every time there was a misfire ...

I think therefore that oil is getting into comb chamber, prob #1, and the compression is lazy... rings (or a ring) are all that can be left? ... I guess a HG is a possibility though....

Head off and carry on the diagnosis .. big commitment for me, as I am fairly busy and the car is 1 hour away..

John

KP · Unread post by KP » 11 Aug 2010, 08:57

I would honestly just do an engine swap on it as its meant to be quite easy on the mondeos of that era and will save you a lot of time and give the owner spares in the future and you can wiegh the engine in as well

jgra1 · Unread post by **jgra1** » 11 Aug 2010, 09:11

hmm..

maybe it's the easiest thing.. looks about as hard as a xantia from what I can see....

he will want a recon.. a few £ i would think

jgra1 · Unread post by **jgra1** » 11 Aug 2010, 09:48

just wondering if I am missing something obvious... certainly if it was my car, sitting at home, i wouldn;t hesitate to strip it down till I found the cause.. but time and money are big factors here...

what could cause smoke to come back up the inlet manifold, almost like a backfire? cant quite work that out...

KP · Unread post by KP » 11 Aug 2010, 10:26

The timing must be out for that to happen or the inlet valve on that cylinder is sticking open/bent and causing the issue. Has the belt ever snapped at all or had a problem after it was fitted??

there must be plenty of the engines about and i'd say it would be easier than a xantia due to lack of hydraulic pipes to remove and the fact there will be plenty of experience out there for removing them. another option may be to flog the car and buy another as it could easily be sold as spares/repairs on ebay for a fair few quid.

jgra1 · Unread post by **jgra1** » 11 Aug 2010, 10:54

hmm... the valve would explain the lower compression.. and i suppose a valve guide seal could have ruptured.. the oil leaks in and every few revs the cylinder misfires...

I think the head has to come off.. it wont hurt if I end up changing the engine anyway.. just means a day spent in sidcup, ....

MikeT · Unread post by **MikeT** » 11 Aug 2010, 12:08

jgra1 wrote:what could cause smoke to come back up the inlet manifold, almost like a backfire? cant quite work that out...

EGR?

jgra1 · Unread post by **jgra1** » 11 Aug 2010, 16:39

Thanks Mike, I think the egr ports into the intercooler pipes, so I should have eliminated that yesterday..

but there is something called an
' timing advance solonoid' on the Lucas, which can cause blue smoke when malfunctioning..

maybe this blue smoke is a complete herring, me thinking it's engine oil.. The oil level hasn't moved at all although the car has not been very far since I started to look at it...

MikeT · Unread post by **MikeT** » 11 Aug 2010, 17:59

Blue smoke is engine oil AFAIC.

Interesting that you saw it emitted out the intake and that it corresponded with the misfire(s). Couple this with the low compression reading and I think you've found the fault.

If you want a more accurate compression diagnosis, I'd suggest you get a leak-down test. It'll save pulling the head off and should pinpoint what's leaking. Alternatively, check the valve gaps are still in spec.

jgra1 · Unread post by **jgra1** » 11 Aug 2010, 19:17

hmm thanks Mike.. time is the problem.. car is an hour away and the owner wants action.. think he would rather spend £800 on me fitting a recon than another few days./weeks of testing. crazy as it sounds.. if you have a sec give this a quick read.

http://www.ilexa.co.uk/forum/index.php/ ... 293.0.html

'.Blue smoke can also indicate retarded injection timing' interested me...

MikeT · Unread post by **MikeT** » 12 Aug 2010, 09:33

Best get another lump thrown in then.

jgra1 · Unread post by **jgra1** » 12 Aug 2010, 09:38

I need to have one last stab at getting it running before I do that

I could do with finding out more about this timing unit on the lucas

.. have a pic of the pump, will upload it later..

MikeT · Unread post by **MikeT** » 12 Aug 2010, 10:09

That thread shows several people with similar symptoms had success swapping out the boost compensator diaphragm or something? Is that what Jim meant in his earlier post? Can it not be inspected visually or does the boost pipe removal test eliminate it for sure?