Why, Ford, Why?

That's "progress". Which is why I have recently bought a Ledbury Maestro. "A" Series, no cat, no fuel injection. A car I can fix and don't need to plug it in to a laptop. Nice.

Sadly, the design of the Mk 1 Focus pollen filter housing was not OK.

Unless great care was taken to refit the cover, with everything clean and a new sealing strip in place, it leaked. It was redesigned once, with a TSB that involved cutting bits of the housing away. Unless done carefully, it still leaked.

During the first three years or so on alt.autos.ford.focus, it was probably the most frequently made post.

Chris

I had heard about that, but not come across it personally.

Mrcheerful

my '79 saab c900 was dead simple, just a push fit - pull out pollen filter in the engine bay. THE first car to have one I recall....

big dom ("big dom" ) gurgled happily, sounding much like they were saying:

I was thinking exactly the same... "Saab made it a piece of piss damn near 30yrs ago, why's it so damn difficult now?"

In message , Adrian writes

Same story with Vauxhall's 20 minute clutch change on the Cav and Astra of 25 years ago.

They're easy to change on my 528i E39.

2 plastic covers to unclip under the bonnet, and the 2 filters lift straight out. A 5 minute job. Only problem is that filters cost about £15 each. Mike.

And no performance.

And you'll certainly need to.

There's nothing about fuel injection that actually *requires* a laptop for fault diagnostics. It just makes things easier for non skilled fitters. Who probably couldn't fix an older car either.

That's the cheap ones. ;-) OEM cost more.

I give them a quick hoover out every now and again. It's so easy and definitely extends their life. Also clean out all the detritus that collects round the housing at the same time - worst at this time of year with the leaves falling.

T'aint a 3.5L v8, sure. It's not supposed to be fast. But it's not excruciatingly slow either.

The A+ in the Maestro was actually quite robust - never saw engine issues on mine. The thing which most annoyed me was bodywork.

cheers, clive

Just bill for it without actually doing the work. How often does a pollen filter need changing anyway?

Al.

p.s. ;-)

p.p.s. How come pollen filters for cars are so cheap compared to 'professional' ones. Answer: They're a con :-)

Dave Plowman (News) ("Dave Plowman (News)" ) gurgled happily, sounding much like they were saying:

Mmm. Depends.

I don't think you'd get very far with modern injection, but the Lucas injection in my 900's rather lovely for it. Diagnostic cable is a wire with a spade at one end, a croc at the other and a switch in the middle. With that, the check light and the ability to count flashes, you can do anything. Add a multimeter, and you're laughing.

they should be changed yearly, this one was three years old and well blocked up, so every two years is probably ok for the average owner.

Mrcheerful

Almost all injection problems are caused by failed sensors. These can mostly be checked with fairly simple equipment that many will already have like a DVM. Of course you have to understand how injection works to guess at which sensor is at fault. But then you also need knowledge to diagnose carb and ignition faults on an older car. The difference is you'll have more practice at it.

Oh I know. Perhaps the worse thing is the lack of a 5th gear.

Yes. I wonder if these 'new' ones are any better. My guess is the body design is the main problem - too many water traps.

and that is the difference, the possibilities are fewer and can be guessed at more easily. If I needed to cross a desert, I would rather have something with a carb. and a points distributor than an FI /electronic ignition, since I could more likely get the simple system going (with simple equipment/spares) IF it gave trouble.

I am certain there is a niche for a repairable simple new car. It is only fashion/advertising that is driving the fast, complex, car movement.

Mrcheerful

Ah - yes, this is something that quite a few mention. The older ones had AFAIR 1234 or 123E (aka a very long 4th). However the later ones had normal

5 speed boxes.

Dunno - they could well be worse, muck being the enemy of a decent paint job. Pity they hadn't discovered galvanising.

Still, there was one other benefit from the tiny engine - so much space to work in!

cheers, clive

You forget emissions rules.

cheers, clive

& emissions, fuel economy & reliability. I've scrapped modern motors with 200K on them that have had four sets of plugs & leads & a new ignition cap when the service schedule said. Points & carbs didn't seem to manage that :-)