Water in plug well saga...

if they are careful, they shouldn't need to remove the head. Mike.

That would be the ideal solution - and if they're getting a guy in to do it, I expect he's experienced at this sort of thing. Of course, they may strip the head before he gets there - so we'll have to see.

Can anyone answer my other questions?

If I haven't been given the cost for the work (as I believe it's being done under warranty - it was certainly booked in as such) - nor have they asked my permission to pay for the work (merely informed me that they need to keep it longer to get this done) - are they allowed to later give me a bill for it? I would have expected they would have checked the validity of the warranty proceeding.

And finally - are there any issues with removing and refitting the cylinder head, particularly with longevity of the engine and gasket seals. I would have expected an assembly line manufactured engine to be assembled correctly - some guy in a workshop fitting it back again may not be quite so accurate?

Thanks

David

That depends on whether or not you asked if it was a warramty repair when you checked it in?

It should line up on the same dowels as the factory & as I don't think there's any selective assembly on those that'll be fine (unless they don't do something up etc. But there's a limit to how paranoid it's worth being)

When I originally booked it in, they asked whether it was a warranty repair, and I said - "I think so" and/or "It should be", mentioning it was less than 3 years old, and I saw WAR entered as the job reference or something on the screen. When I dropped it off I said it was for some warranty work. When I phoned up (after they said about the snapped plug) to ask about a courtesy car, I said it was in for some warranty work, and they asked my name. So far, no one from Ford has suggested otherwise.

Thanks for that - sets my mind at ease a bit. My biggest immediate worry is them asking for money - but I do feel that as there has not been any mention of money yet, nor any request for authorisation (merely statements of what they're doing), I suspect (hope?) I'm just worrying about nothing.

Thanks

David

David,

if you are that worried about money ask the dealership for a definate answer on wether or not it is warranty work now before the bill gets too big. P.S. Get it in writing too; preferably on headed paper. Then if anything goes wrong or they try to charge you you can shove the letter under their noses as proof.

You should have had that clarified first before leaving the car with them.

-- Chris

Well, I managed to get a courtesy car for the weekend (got to do the weekly shop and visit family) and whilst I was there I asked to confirm whether all the work was being done under warranty. The girl on the desk said (paraphrased): "I don't know exactly what's being done with your car, but one thing I do know is that it's being done under warranty!" So I guess it's probably quite 'famous' within the team - certainly enough for the fact it's a warranty repair to be the memorable bit! Whilst she was getting the keys I also got to see on the screen that it was booked under "WAR".

So I'm reassured on that point.

Just have to see when the "Thread Doctor" actually turns up. He's not turned up for 3 days (despite me being told each day he'd promised to turn up that day). So far it's been in the garage for 5 days.

Well, got it back yesterday (Tuesday). Plug was removed on Monday and then the head was reassembled. Haven't had to pay a penny (apart from a couple of bus fares and in wear to my trainers!). :) Seems to be fine now. I think I'm getting better mpg now (41-42mpg) after a short 25-30 minute run at 70-75mph. I'm pretty sure it was in the mid/late 30's before - but could just be different conditions.

What I found surprising though, is that they only replaced one washer jet (obvious by the rubber seal underneath it). I expected both - but they only did the one above the plugs (drivers side). The passenger side one is still the original. I guess the point is, that they don't mind water leaking onto the battery cover etc - just not into plug wells. Considering the cost of the full repair (1x washer jet, 4x plugs, 4x HT leads, 1x Thread Doctor visit to remove snapped plug, 1x cylinder head removal + refitting kit, + (I hope) 1x timing belt, and a weekend courtesy car - the cost of the 2nd washer jet seems insignificant... it's that kind of scrimping which probably caused the original fault - no seal under the washer jet probably sounded like a good idea at the time!

Anyway, car's back, repaired for free and running fine. All my worries were unfounded. :)