1996 Ford Escort (Engine won't crank )

I have a 1996 Ford Escort 1.9L 5spd Trans. The problem is that one day it just stopped working. First I thought it was the starter, checked it and it was good. I tried turning the engine by hand and it's stuck won't turn, tried putting it into gear and rocking the car back and forth and that won't work. I'm thinking there is something stuck in the flywheel or the transfer case is bad. Does anyone have any suggestions? The car just has

105,000 miles and it was taken care of.
Reply to
RALPHMECH
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I'm thinking you have water in a cylinder at the least.. pull the plugs and try it. If it will turn and coolant comes out.. then a head gasket at the least. If engine still wont budge, pull the cam cover, look for valve spring problems.

Reply to
Backyard Mechanic

"RALPHMECH" wrote: 1996 Ford Escort 1.9L 5spd 105k Mi

One day it just stopped working. Checked the starter and it was good. Tied turning the engine by hand - it's stuck, won't turn. Putting it into gear and rocking the car back and forth won't work. I'm thinking there is something stuck in the flywheel or the transfer case is bad. Any suggestions? _______________________________________________

If it's locked up, how was the starter checked? Did it freeze up while it was running, or after sitting? Can it be turned by hand in one direction and not the other? If you will describe the symptoms, the observations, the sound, the vibration, the timeline; something more than "just stopped working," someone in the newsgroup will probably know just how to proceed.

Good luck.

Rodan. ________________________________________________

Reply to
Rodan

Aww, come on now.... we all KNOW he has a bad transfer case!

Reply to
Bob

Could be another case of the dreaded dropped valve seat, which is apparently not uncommon to 90's Escorts with the 1.9L. One of the valve seats overheats, cracks and drops out of the head into the combustion chamber where it chews things up. The metal pieces have been known to get into other cylinders too. Has the engine ever been overheated? Did it quit while it was running? On a ten year old car the engine repair cost is probably not worth it. Hope it's something else though.

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Reply to
Fordfan

This is a good really good possibility although I've never seen it on a 94, just

95-97 (in my personal experience). It also happens on engines that don't have a history of overheating. Just running hotter than normal due to a marginal radiator will do it. I've seen a few that run great, then you shut them off. On restart, the engine runs good for a few seconds then poof. No noise, just the loss of 1 then 2 cylinders. The metal gets pulled through the intake to the cylinders running mate. 1-4, 3-2 IIRC.
Reply to
Tom Adkins

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