2003 Ford Fiesta 1.4 TDCi - Flood Damage

2003 Ford Fiesta 1.4 TDCi - Flood Damage

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Discussion

pits

6,423 posts

189 months

Tuesday 4th December 2012
quotequote all
kambites said:
rossonza said:
possibly replace plugs
Could be tricky in a diesel. hehe
How so? I assume you're trying to be clever because diesels don't have sparkplugs, but they do have glowplugs wink


Probably something bent or broken internally

kambites

67,462 posts

220 months

Tuesday 4th December 2012
quotequote all
pits said:
kambites said:
rossonza said:
possibly replace plugs
Could be tricky in a diesel. hehe
How so? I assume you're trying to be clever because diesels don't have sparkplugs, but they do have glowplugs wink

Probably something bent or broken internally
They do indeed have glow plugs, but they aren't likely to affect the running of the engine once it's started up very much. smile

Marky Mark88

Original Poster:

694 posts

200 months

Tuesday 4th December 2012
quotequote all
Thanks for all your replies guys, ill try and provide a bit more information below.

The air intake on the Fiesta is at the same level as the grill. As i said she was going through in second gear so whether her speed was enough to create waves and bring the water up to that level im not too sure. The smoke smells of fuel/oil in my opinion, im pretty sure it's more than just steam.

We were hoping the chap we took it to yesterday was going to compression test it but it turns out he didn't. We have gone to another local mechanic for a second opinion so maybe he will compression test the cylinders to get a better idea.

It has been on a few longish half hour runs since this happened and the same thing happens every time, it runs fine after warming up, then the next day when you start the car from cold its an absolute bag of nails again.

No dash lights are on whatsoever. Also i know the chap we took it to yesterday has diagnostic equipment but not sure whether he used it or not, ill have to double check that.

What's a leakdown test? Also what sort of things would you be looking out for once you removed the head?

I've kept an eye on the oil level since the incident happened. The oil looks as black as ever, no milky residue in the filler cap or any sign of water getting into the oil from checking the dipstick. The level did drop after the incident but has since stayed stable at about halfway up the dipstick. Not too sure what to make of that.

Coincidentally, her old man took it for a blast, think my girlfriend said he got it up to about 4000 in 2nd. His thinking was that if it was gonna go bang then it would have done it then. It didn't so i guess that must mean something.

All i know is they told her that her excess is £550, therefore if we can sort it out for less than that then it would make sense to avoid going through the insurance company.

redtwin

7,518 posts

181 months

Tuesday 4th December 2012
quotequote all
Runs fine when warm, not so when cold.

Sounds like an electrical or sensor problem. Lambda sensor has been mentioned, but surely this would be subject to routine soakings when on wet roads etc. Water inside the exhaust, flooding the sensor is a different matter though. Get it on a code scanner to see if anything pops up. Crankshaft or Camshaft sensors are integral to proper operation and these could have been damaged or worse, caused damage to the ECU.

Try the free stuff first. Disconnect the MAF sensor and see if that makes any difference. Usually a car runs worse with a damaged MAF than with no MAF at all.

Superhoop

4,676 posts

192 months

Tuesday 4th December 2012
quotequote all
Lambda sensor would have the opposite affect, of running badly when warm, but fine when cold, as a cold engine runs in open loop, completely ignoring the O2 sensor

pits

6,423 posts

189 months

Tuesday 4th December 2012
quotequote all
kambites said:
pits said:
kambites said:
rossonza said:
possibly replace plugs
Could be tricky in a diesel. hehe
How so? I assume you're trying to be clever because diesels don't have sparkplugs, but they do have glowplugs wink

Probably something bent or broken internally
They do indeed have glow plugs, but they aren't likely to affect the running of the engine once it's started up very much. smile
Right, with you now lol

Welshwonder

303 posts

187 months

Tuesday 4th December 2012
quotequote all
Intake is fairly high up on that engine, but all depends on how fast in 2nd gear she was going. The turning over and stopping bit suggests too much water has gone in. Question is - has it bent a conrod. When the car turns over to start, does it sound like an 'even' turnover? Or does it sound like it skips over one cylinder quickly?

Best case scenario is that it's jumped a tooth on the cambelt (you can get away with one tooth with these - as long as you don't run it for too long). Checking the belt is easy on these engines as the cam, pump and crank pulleys all line up to locking pins (use drill bits).

If that's OK, get hold of a diesel compression tester which will tell you if you need major surgery. You 'could' save some money and leave the head on and just take the sump off to replace the conrod(s) although it's not ideal. If you're on a budget, this would be the way to go.

If the compression test is OK, I'd check the egr, map sensor and MAF. After that, get the injectors tested.

Save a fortune if you're good with the tools!

P.S. I'll check in the garage if I still have a set of spare conrods. I know I've still got a head and pump, but can't remember what else.

Welshwonder

303 posts

187 months

Tuesday 4th December 2012
quotequote all
Oops, didn't see second page!

Just thought - the crank sensor on these is very low down (drivers side wheel, to the rear of the crank pulley) Disconnect the plug, drown both sides in WD40 and reconnect. It may be running on it's cam sensor.