2.0l Dohc Petrol Engine

[Guest bthebassman]

At the mooment I'm feeling down.

A mechanic has told me to offload my car quick.

 

Facts:

 

90k miles

1997

2.0L DOHC

Generally looked after

Bought 2 years ago at 82kmiles from large car dealer in Newport!(very unhelpful 3month warranty)

 

Symptoms:

 

On tickover, the engine is shaking more than normal - steadily worsening.

at 30mph. tickling the acc. the cars feels like its missing.

Towing caravan from standstill, I can feel a knock through the clutch pedal, not massive, but noticeable, as if the clutch plates have a bump on them.

Fuel cons. has never been good, 20mpg round town (lots of slow traffic), 35 long run when towing.

 

What the mechanic said:

 

Unlikely to be electrical as tickover is OK and revving without load seems OK.

Under load, he has felt the knocking on the clutch.

Thinks its a valve which may be breaking down - cost

[johnb80]

I would be very tempted to get another opinion, even a Ford Main Dealer would be worth a shot. It sounds very unlikely to be a valve to me because they usually have an effect on tickover. I would be more inclined to ignition / injection problem which would be easier and should be cheaper to sort out.

 

Regards - John

[Guest bthebassman]

Thanx Johnb80 for your words of (minor) comfort, I'm already on the ball as far as second and third opinions. However, my local Ford dealer has already dissipated all confidence in thei purported expertise with a remote keyfob fiasco last January.

 

Interesting observations though, keep 'em coming - I'm open to all suggestions...

[charles]

ask for a compression test . this is a simple test to investigate for broken piston ring or broken valve.

 

it can be measured with removing spark plugs/pressure device but also with an electronic device that measures the difference between idle of each cylinder (spark plug stays in place).

 

If pressure in each cylinder is OK there is still hope for less expensive repair.

[seatkid]

100% agree with Charles. Either this mechanic is a clairvoyant or a complete chump.

 

Having come up with a "valve which is breaking down" by which I take it he means either a burnt valve seat or a sticking valve (which BTW is a top misdiagnosis amongst this breed), he should confirm it with the appropriate test which Charles rightly points out is a compression test - easily done.

 

Make sure that the results are interpreted correctly - small pressure differences do not mean there is a problem.

 

If that is OK then an electronic diagnostic should be carried out.

 

The conclusion that an electrical (electronic) fault is unlikely is incorrect. I would say that 95% of rough running problems are electrical problems (with maybe 90% of them being simple ignition problems - spark plugs, leads,coil packs, distributors and rotor arms)

 

His observations mean very little. Weak spark, insulation break down etc. often only manifest themselves under specific driving conditions.

 

Your symptoms certainly bear the hallmark of ignition problems.

[Ivor_E_Tower]

..and I will also agree that a compression test would be very wise at this stage of the proceedings. If possible use a local garage so you can stand by the mechanic performing the test and ask him what he thinks. I once had a mobile tuning company service one of my previous cars and they could knock one of the cylinders out in turn during testing and flag up all sorts of impending problems. May be worth getting this done too.

Good luck.

[Guest bthebassman]

Hey guys... thanx for the head-lifting info.

 

My next port of call is booking into a diagnostic centre for compression, then (if needed) electrical tests.

 

Keep posting any ideas, as I'm still open to suggestions.

 

BTW, does anyone have an idea of reasonable cost for diagnostics? :lol:

[charles]

approx. 1 hour labour

[charles]

BTW every garage can do the compression test, although the ford garage will have the special tool for your engine. The spark plug holes are very deep and narrow, a standard compression tester will probl. not fit.