Ford Zetec problems

I've recently been given a 94 Ford escort, 16v 1.8 petrol.

The vehicle has been fitted with a replacement Zetec engine which has apparently only done 55,000 from new but I'm having major problems with the engine missing, when I say missing I mean when you put your foot down to accelerate (in any gear) it hesitates to the point of it almost stalling and I have to change down a gear before it picks up again and then it goes like a rocket, pumping the accelerator pedal does nothing.

So far I've fitted a secondhand gearbox, new clutch, new front discs, pads, wheel cylinders and brake shoes, rear brake pipes, n/s wishbone, two tyres, rear exhaust, battery, oil and filter, air filter, new plugs and a Lambda sensor.

There appears to be no end of cost ;(

The last straw was when I took the vehicle to a garage who apparently had engine diagnostic equipment and they said it was the "air flow sensor", they charged me 47 quid labour for the diagnosis and for cleaning the air flow sensor element. After the element was cleaned the engine did run better but it still hesitated occasionally on acceleration and they advised me to replace the air flow sensor if the problem persists (which it did). So the following day being fed up with it still missing I bought a new air flow sensor which cost nearly 150 quid including vat.

But even with this new air flow sensor the engine is showing exactly the same symptoms by hesitating when putting demand on the accelerator.

The problem I have now is finding a reliable garage to correctly identify/diagnose the problem.

Is this a common problem on Zetec engines? Should I take the vehicle to a main Ford dealer in the hope that they might be able to correctly diagnose the fault? Has the fault been missdiagnosed? Is the new sensor likely to be faulty or could it be something else?

I don't mind paying for a decent service but feel as though yet another garage is out to fleece me.

Steve.

Reply to
Stephen Hull
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To be honest, it's a common fault with all engines. I think there's an airleak somewhere, upstream of the air flow meter. A split vacuum hose, cracked inlet pipe or leaking inlet manifold gasket will cause this. The fact the engine's been replaced may also contribute to the possibility of damage to pipework. Check pipework in the engine bay, listen for hissing etc. Inlet pipe, inlet manifold, brake servo pipe, breather pipes etc.

Also, common faults on these engines are HT lead breakdown due to incorrectly gapped plugs. Can't remember the exact gapping (confident Tim... can advise), but replace the plugs with those of the correct gap, and HT leads with good quality Ford items (cheaper pattern leads get eaten within miles due to high HT voltage). Change the oil for a quality semi synthetic

5w30 oil to prevent valves sticking (which may also be the root cause of your problem).
Reply to
Sandy Nuts

It's a 12 year old motor, definitely a high chance there's a leak somewhere, or one or more sensors are brown breed.

I think the OP would benefit from joining (a serious non 17-year-old boy-racer) forum and/or escort-enthuisast club. That may sort the problem out without much bother at all.

Reply to
David R

Other than the MAF, there's nothing really that would cause the engine to exhibit that sort of behaviour.

It's an 1800 Zetec engine, I'm sure we're capable of sorting it for him here ;-)

Reply to
Sandy Nuts

I know, it's just with the range of problems, it's not uncommon for a poster, I'm not suggesting yourself, to say "go get this done, then if that doesn't cure it, get this, then this, then come back and post here the results, if any" - all adds up the cash, and he's spent loads on it.

Of course, a mechanic who has dealt with Escorts all through their life would have a good shot at this, so let's hope one appears.

Reply to
David R

In message , Sandy Nuts writes

It's 1.0mm

I'd go with the HT leads and then the coil pack. You would think that a garage would be able to diagnose a misfire on one of these engines :-(

Reply to
Paul Giverin

Christ! Did you actually look at the car before you bought it?!!

HT Leads are a consumable item on this engine. What leads are fitted, how long have they been there, what condition are the plugs in, and is the coil pack surface clean??

I would put money on a set of plugs and Genuine HT leads will immediately solve your problem!

Tim..

Reply to
Tim (remove obvious)

Plug leads....

--=20 Conor

I'm really a nice guy. If I had friends, they would tell you.

Earn commission on online purchases, =A32.50 just for signing up:

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Reply to
Conor

^^^^^

Christ! Did you actually look at the first line of the post before you replied?!!

(Sorry Tim - couldn't resist!)

Chris

Reply to
Chris Whelan

[snip]

I'd not thought to inspect the hoses/pipework etc, I'll check this out on my day off, as always its a process of elimination, unfortunately for me the enging is complicated compared to a normal petrol engine when it come to fault diagnosis.

There doesn't seem to be a very good fit from the "Throttle Housing" to the plastic air filter assembly that is bolted across the rocker cover, I would have though some sort of a gasket should be fitted at this point to fix the gap.

I've got the engine oil but not put it in yet (weekend job). I've fitted new plugs and they're gaped at 1.5mm IIRC.

I'll replace the HT leads (with Ford ones) and see if that makes a difference.

Thanks ;)

Steve.

Reply to
Stephen Hull
[snip]

I expected the garage to pick-up on a faulty sensor, they admitted to disconnecting and reconnecting the air flow sensor to diagnose the fault, not exactly plugging it in to a diagnostic machine which is what I thought I was paying for, but I get the impression they've done the diagnosis by trial and error ;(

I've been in and out of this group for years and always though it to be a none 17 year old newsgroup with very knowledgeable people, I am confident the answer to my engine problem can be solved in here ;)

Steve.

Reply to
Stephen Hull

I am pretty confident that it can be sorted here!

Steve.

Reply to
Stephen Hull
[snip]

The Zetec engine has been around for a few years now and although it is new to me it is not new to others who have had more experience than me identifying engine problems, I hope to draw on peoples experiences of this particular engine which should help me to eventually elliminate the fault.

There has been very sensible suggestions so far ;)

Steve.

Reply to
Stephen Hull

Think mine is set to 1.5mm, I'll adjust them on Monday.

That's what I thought too, I'll fit new Ford HT leads on Monday, which is one of the first steps I'll take in trying to eliminate the fault.

Steve.

Reply to
Stephen Hull

Well I did say at the start of my post, the car was given to me, which is why I don't mind spending a certain amount of cash on it, but I am disappointed to find I still have a major fault after spending close on

600 quid on it so far. The car is not worth the ammount I've spent on it and I have only continued to splash out because it is a GHIA which has all the extras fitted as standard. [snip]

I'll deal with plugs & HT leads on Monday and see how it performs then.

Steve.

Reply to
Stephen Hull
[snip]

Yep, on the to do list ;)

Steve.

Reply to
Stephen Hull

Did you replace the plugs & leads with Ford ones, and set the gap to

1.0mm? The 2.0 engine has a well known mis-fire problem at high load.

Your problem sounds far worse than that one though!

Pete.

Reply to
Pete Smith

Not yet, I've only replaced the plugs so far, my days off are Monday and Tuesday so I'll have a go at most obvious then and report back here.

I'll carry out the suggestion so far and se what happens, hopefullt the engine will work properly.

Steve.

Reply to
Stephen Hull

Update:

I've fitted brand new Ford HT leads, changed the engine oil with the correct semi-synthetic stuff and although the spark plugs were new I've replaced them with new Ford ones and gapped them to 1.0mm.

The engine definitely runs better than it did, but very occasionally it still has the tendancy to hesitate slightly when accelerating, though more like you would expect from a very cold engine.

However last night the hesitancy reappeared again quite severe, only this time from start with a cold engine, although it did improve as the engine warmed up but I had to wait at the side of the road for a minute.

I have tried to check the hoses for leaks but to the best of my ability I can't see or hear any leaking air etc.

I think my next job will be to perhaps change the fuel filter, seeing as the old oil filter was beginning to go rusty as the rim would suggest it was really old so I expect the fuel filter to be just as old if not older and I believe this could cause the intermittent hesitation.

Any further thoughts gratefully received.

Steve.

Reply to
Stephen Hull

In message , Stephen Hull writes

I would be looking at the coil pack.

Reply to
Paul Giverin

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