1998 Ford Escort 1.4 CVH Engine - dead - suggestions?

Hi everybody

This evening the car of SWMBO gave up the ghost - suddenly. One minute bowling along nicely, the next - pffffft!

The car is a 1998 Ford Escort with the 1.4i CVH engine. It will not start - plenty of battery power and the engine turns freely. There is spark at the plugs. When the ignition is turned on I can hear the in tank pump running for a few seconds. (Fuel cut off switch is fine)

All relays and fuses checked - fine.

When turning the engine over there is no smell of petrol. My assumption is that no petrol is reaching the cylinders - any suggestions where I should look next?

Thanks

Graeme

Reply to
Graeme
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Firstly with any CVH....Cambelt!?!!

Tim..

Reply to
Tim..

not that this may make the slighest, but arent post 92 escrotes fitted with the pte engine in 1400 capacities? an efi derivative of the cvh?

Reply to
Sandy Nuts

it sounds like it, how freely is the engine turning over , very fast ?

ive had a few where the customer has been lucky with just a cambelt replacement, no bent valves, luck of the draw really.

Reply to
reg

Hi Tim

No horrible noises or smells - even spark at all four plugs so I figure the cam belt is OK for the moment.

Thanks

Graeme

Reply to
Graeme

not really. this engine will have dis (distributorless ignition system i.e electronic) so spark will be provided by an external coil pack. as long as the crank spins, the coil will fire. u could be lucky and the valves were at the point where they arent making contact with the pistons (or they're already bent out the way) so there wouldnt be any noises

Reply to
Sandy Nuts

The message from "Sandy Nuts" contains these words:

Really? I'd have expected it to need a camshaft sensor of some sort, otherwise it'd not know if it's on a compression or exhaust.

Or does it use the lost-spark system?

Reply to
Guy King

yup, most ford engines use wasted spark ignition.

Reply to
Sandy Nuts

Yup - it's the cambelt - I have a nice QH one now that is no longer in a loop :-((

So what now? I have the top cover off and the cam sprocket will not turn under hand pressure but can be rotated with a spanner on the locking nut (if that helps).

Graeme

Reply to
Graeme

you wont turn it by hand pressure, does it lock up when you turn it ? your best bet is to re-align the timing marks and try a new cambelt before you go stripping the head off, you might be lucky.

Reply to
reg

it probably wouldnt turn with hand pressure because a valve was resting against a piston head. by forcing the sprocket you have probably increased the chances of bent valve(s). you may just be lucky enough to have just pushed the piston back down.

the car itself is worth no more than 6-700 quid, not worth buying a new replacement engine. whip the head off, check for piston damage and source a head from a scrap yard. either that or take the car with you to a scrap yard...

Reply to
Sandy Nuts

Entirely so yes, but that doesnt stop them lunching the timing belts with the regularity that I have a curry- i.e. pretty often.

Tim..

Reply to
Tim..

You wont turn the cam by hand pressure anyhow, valve spring strength is too high- especially high on a CVH anyhow due to the design. Part of the reason the belts have a hard time.

Anyhow, you could time it up, fit a new belt then do a compression test and hope you are lucky, but if the engine was spinning above idle speed and you tried to restart it after it stopped, then you more than likely have bent valves.

Time for a headset and a mornings work...!

Tim..

Reply to
Tim..

And errr how do you make this assumption?

There is no dissy on a PTE (or any late CVH for that matter, essentially a pte in drag)

Whip off the timing belt cover and look.

Tim..

Reply to
Tim..

If the rest of the car is in decent nick, and you know a decent garage which will do an engine swap for not much (or you fancy having a go yourself...), it might be worth sourcing a replacement engine. There are a few 'partfinder' type websites about, which I've used in the past with varying degrees of success.

Reply to
carlbowman

You have got to be kidding, Try a cam belt first, then a head job.

Reply to
Jimmy

Spending a few quid on a cambelt first on the off chance, fair enough, but if a reasonable second hand engine can be got hold of then why muck about with the head? The difference between removing and refitting a cylinder head (properly, including fixing all the bent bits) and doing an engine swap on something like a CVH Scrote probably isn't going to be all that great in terms of cost, and either option is going to be a PITA in some way or other.

Reply to
carlbowman

And the last time YOU did an engine swop on an Escort was????

Head job EVERY time.

Reply to
Jimmy

Because swapping a head is a one man roadside job while swapping an engine isn't?

You get a secondhand one. No reason why it shouldn't be as good as a complete secondhand engine

Maybe. But I'd far prefer either repairing the existing head (my choice) or using a secondhand one if the original engine was ok otherwise. Complete secondhand engines could be in any condition.

Reply to
Dave Plowman (News)

Think it must be about the same time you graduated from charm school.

Reply to
Carl Bowman

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