Mondeo 2.3 with hole in piston

[Daniel-52tex]

My Mk4 2.3 petrol auto mondeo now has a hole in no4 piston. As I like this car and want to repair it I was looking at having the engine reconned, but I worry about the caveats in the advertisers script. We think the bore is heavily scored so the rebuild would have to include new liners so that will be more money. You have to send them the engine first to examine it, then they decide if they can do it for £1095.00 plus the vodka and tonic.

We tried Ford for a new short engine, but they said "These are very rare so no discounts, full retail price and need the old engine in exchange" I recon they want me to buy a new Mondeo, so are putting me off with high prices.

I have an idea that the Mazda 6 L3 2.3 petrol engine is a very similar lump, and as there seems to be a good supply of these I would not mind fitting it. There are a few used ones listed for £400.00-£800.00 and just need to know whether they will mate up ok.

Can anyone help or do I scrap a £4k mondy??

[stevieturbo]

Daniel-52tex said:

My Mk4 2.3 petrol auto mondeo now has a hole in no4 piston. As I like this car and want to repair it I was looking at having the engine reconned, but I worry about the caveats in the advertisers script. We think the bore is heavily scored so the rebuild would have to include new liners so that will be more money. You have to send them the engine first to examine it, then they decide if they can do it for £1095.00 plus the vodka and tonic.

We tried Ford for a new short engine, but they said "These are very rare so no discounts, full retail price and need the old engine in exchange" I recon they want me to buy a new Mondeo, so are putting me off with high prices.

I have an idea that the Mazda 6 L3 2.3 petrol engine is a very similar lump, and as there seems to be a good supply of these I would not mind fitting it. There are a few used ones listed for £400.00-£800.00 and just need to know whether they will mate up ok.

Can anyone help or do I scrap a £4k mondy??

You not only have to fix the engine, but fix the problem that caused the failed engine.

Is it really worth £4k ??

As for any repair, until the engine is stripped, impossible to say on costs or what it needs, I'd be shocked if it needs new liners.

But surely a replacement used engine can only be a few hundred quid at most ? Bound to be thousands of them about ?

[Daniel-52tex]

Well it certainly surprised me that there are not any 2.3 duratec petrol engines around. Plenty of the old type for the Mk3 mondeo and earlier, but not Mk4.

Now I know that the Ford duratec (world)engine is made in Mexico and is a Mazda, which Mazda have ceased production of (see Wikipedia). As there lots of Mazda engines about 2.3's at that, my question was can I swap out my dead engine block with one of these and then rebuild.

I am told the the no4 pot on my duratec is badly scored and would not rebore, if anyone could do it and get oversized pistons and rings. They just don't do it. Best is reline then put standard piston and rings in.

Maybe in a few years there may be engines or maybe they will all be dead like mine

[CarsOrBikes]

You could strip the engine yourself and perhaps the engine shed will be able to do the work on the block for a lot less, especially smaller engineers rather than certain others. Some marks could just be alloy which may clean up if you're lucky. Definitely ignore the value of the car if you like it, too many people treat cars as disposable, and waste money on a replacement which may still have its problems, only my2p though.

[Daniel-52tex]

Well I spoke to a guy on Friday who had attempted putting a similar engine in a car to save same and he said although it did work, there were always other issues, as it never worked like the original. His advice was sell as salvage with a blown engine, so that is what I plan to do.

I am taking my personal reg off it, draining the 3/4 fuel tank into my 306 and cutting my losses. Sad but practical, as I do still have a ecoboost Focus for my everyday ride but that's a manual 6 speed and I have to stir the pot.

So I'll put on here and Ebay asking for offers 2007 Mk4 2.3 Mondeo Zetec, rare saloon car (not hatchback) 116k miles, 2 owners good condition MOT Sept 15

[packman10_4]

I had the same with a Zetec escort a few years back ... it lost its fuel table and run very lean ... got the piston in front of me on my desk here at work it didn't hole the piston it burnt down the side ...

[packman10_4]

I had the same with a Zetec escort a few years back ... it lost its fuel table and run very lean ... got the piston in front of me on my desk here at work it didn't hole the piston it burnt down the side ...

[Daniel-52tex]

Well I have decided to fix it! Been a long journey

Went to scrap it using Charles Trent, they offered me £500.00 for the car. I accepted it then I had a call saying is it complete? I replied that we had dismantled the engine to see what was wrong with it. The girl then said, "Well as it is not complete we can only give you £200.00". I told her to ps off.

Ordered a new short engine and other bits from Ford Parts UK and it should be rebuilt by the end of this week. They were very quick, took 3 days but I had to collect from Salisbury.

You can't get a Mondeo petrol auto now they're all diesels.

Ok so it has cost a few bob but I got my mobile armchair back

[BigTom85]

Make sure you find out what caused the piston to burn through in the first place!!

[Daniel-52tex]

When I first bought this car there were issues with the engine, which is why it was cheap. I did think we could resolve these issues, crank sensor, lambda etc and I would get away with it. But I now think the damage had already been done. A little bit of extra stress finally made its mark. When I get the old short engine back I will take photos to show the damage. Apparrently there are many pin holes in No4 and some smaller ones in No1.

When the rebuilt engine is complete I will have full diags run on it to make sure all is ok. I do not intend to scrap a virtually new engine.

[Daniel-52tex]

Well it's all sorted now, purrs like a cat and drives like it should.

The dealer's mechanic used a bolt instead of the correct timing pins (cheap skate). My first mechanic fitted a new crank sensor, but never checked the timing duh!! The rebuild mechanic set it all up properly and now I have the car I wanted.

In future if I buy a car like this (cheap from a dodgy dealer)I will take it to Dennis and get it checked over properly, to save all the agro

[BigTom85]

Excellent stuff. Glad you are happy with you're now sorted motor.

[Bannock]

Hi chaps, bit of a thread revival, but I'm considering buying one of these 2.3 autos, a 57 reg in Titanium X spec with under 60k miles on the clock. Looks like a smashing motor for my needs (occasional and mostly long distance use only, ULEZ compliant required, I want something big and wafty and comfy with lots of room for lanky teenagers in the back and a small dog cage in the boot).

OP - are you still about and do you still have yours? Has it given any other problems since this thread?

Anyone else got any experience of this engine and gearbox combo, and the longevity/reliabilty thereof and of the Mondeo of this vintage in general? I don't want a diesel as I will be doing very low mileage in it (don't care about MPGs), and I need an auto to keep the trouble and strife happy.

They're very thin on the ground in this spec, so might need to decide and act quickly to snag a good one.

My alternative to these Mondeos is an Avensis, Accord estate or Mazda 6, budget up to £5k max.

[Evoluzione]

Bannock said:

Hi chaps, bit of a thread revival, but I'm considering buying one of these 2.3 autos, a 57 reg in Titanium X spec with under 60k miles on the clock. Looks like a smashing motor for my needs (occasional and mostly long distance use only, ULEZ compliant required, I want something big and wafty and comfy with lots of room for lanky teenagers in the back and a small dog cage in the boot).

OP - are you still about and do you still have yours? Has it given any other problems since this thread?

Anyone else got any experience of this engine and gearbox combo, and the longevity/reliabilty thereof and of the Mondeo of this vintage in general? I don't want a diesel as I will be doing very low mileage in it (don't care about MPGs), and I need an auto to keep the trouble and strife happy.

They're very thin on the ground in this spec, so might need to decide and act quickly to snag a good one.

My alternative to these Mondeos is an Avensis, Accord estate or Mazda 6, budget up to £5k max.

They are a known problem engine so tread carefully. Check the oil level initially and quiz the owner on servicing and oil consumption is all you can do really before taking a risk.
The problem is detailed here: http://www.duratecnc.co.uk/?p=146

[Bannock]

Thanks for that. What do you think the writer means by early and late cars? Would a 57 reg 2007 car be considered a late car?

[Evoluzione]

I have no idea, but it's irrelevant. If it's an MZR or a Duratec of any size the issue could be there in varying forms of severity.
Most cars (certainly Mazdas!) only last about 8yrs, after that they need lots of money spending on them.

[Daniel-52tex]

I part exchanged mine 2 years ago as it developed an electrical fault(s). We couln't stop the cooling fan coming on and the gearbox developed a mind of its own.

I partexed for a Nissan Leaf 40KW and have never looked back. Only do petrol now for old british motorbikes

[Bannock]

Daniel-52tex said:

I part exchanged mine 2 years ago as it developed an electrical fault(s). We couln't stop the cooling fan coming on and the gearbox developed a mind of its own.

I partexed for a Nissan Leaf 40KW and have never looked back. Only do petrol now for old british motorbikes

Thanks for replying, OP. Funnily enough I've been driving Leafs for over 4 years now, I started with a 24kwh and I'm on a 30kwh now. I expect I'll upgrade to a 40 or 62 in a couple of years. We (family of 4) use it for 95% of all our motoring needs, if I buy this Mondeo I've got my eye on it'll be very much a second car for occasional large loads and occasional long distances only. Probably cover about 5k miles a year in it. Think I said it's a 57 plate, with 56k miles on the clock and full MDSH, so it's had a service every 6k miles or so on average. Which gives me a bit of confidence. But I'm still prevaricating over it...

I'll never go back to ICE as a main car now either.