valves/tappets lashed/adjusted
Discussion
Whatever you wanna call it...done! After following the book and a vid on how to know the drag amout of the feeler guage I went to it...took about 3 hrs from start to finish...I read the book about 5 times and checked them all twice. 5 of the valves were way out! But...she is all done now and tested!
I don't know the cost of a professional mechanic, but I would say I saved about 300 quid! Monday will do an oil change
I don't know the cost of a professional mechanic, but I would say I saved about 300 quid! Monday will do an oil change
Justin,
have you done a compression check to see if all cylinders are approximately equal? I had my mechanic do a full diagnostic when I bought the car, and the compression check highlighted one cylinder as holding half of the pressure of the others. Once the valve clearances were all done, nice even distribution of pressure on all 6. Gives you confidence that the adjustments have been done correctly. Incidentally, full diagnostic was only £100 quid or so, and that included injector cleaner. My mechanic is cheap though compaired to many others I know (which is why I use him).
Graham
have you done a compression check to see if all cylinders are approximately equal? I had my mechanic do a full diagnostic when I bought the car, and the compression check highlighted one cylinder as holding half of the pressure of the others. Once the valve clearances were all done, nice even distribution of pressure on all 6. Gives you confidence that the adjustments have been done correctly. Incidentally, full diagnostic was only £100 quid or so, and that included injector cleaner. My mechanic is cheap though compaired to many others I know (which is why I use him).
Graham
Sandgrounder said:
full diagnostic was only £100 quid or so, and that included injector cleaner.
He's all heart isn't he
...... injector cleaner (and that's not the cheapest)Valve clearances normally go "loose" with wear, not tight. Some right
must have set them last time?
I would assume you are correct Mike, the idle was awful when I bought the car, so I changed most things that could be, leads, cap, air filter, etc. but it was still not great, hence the diagnostic. Once the mechanic had done various things (including valve clearances) all was well, so well worth the money to me!!
Similar to mine when I got it, though your symptoms are much worse.
I found air leaks due to damaged air inlet pipes, clogged air filter, dirty Idle speed control valve, dirty air flowmeters, all of which I sorted, plus all of the other things I mentioned earlier, which made a big improvement, but I still wasn't happy.
Hence the trip to the mechanic, who did various things to get it to what I now regard as acceptable.
Have you checked the electrical connection to the ISCV?
I found air leaks due to damaged air inlet pipes, clogged air filter, dirty Idle speed control valve, dirty air flowmeters, all of which I sorted, plus all of the other things I mentioned earlier, which made a big improvement, but I still wasn't happy.
Hence the trip to the mechanic, who did various things to get it to what I now regard as acceptable.
Have you checked the electrical connection to the ISCV?
I'm assuming you have the 2.9 engine? If so, the ISCV is only held on by two screws, so I would remove it and have a look inside. Mine was very dirty inside, so I used a lot of carb cleaner on it. I think the mechanic also had a go at it by soaking it overnight in carb cleaner.
Best to put a new gasket on when you replace it. Easy to make from gasket paper if you can't get an original.
Good luck!
Best to put a new gasket on when you replace it. Easy to make from gasket paper if you can't get an original.
Good luck!
'Valve clearances normally go "loose" with wear, not tight. Some right must have set them last time?'
Usually true but not always! After you have run it for a few hundred miles, check again. If any have tightened up then valve seat recession may be happening. On engines of this age valve seats can burn quite quickly once recession starts, especially with modern fuels. Mine went 'off song' after a bit and we traced it to recession on the near side head.
I did not do a compression test at the time, but that advice above is correct. A badly burn seat (or valve) is likely to show up.
Julian, mine is also a 2.8 Jetronic. Not the easiest set up on which to find a fault of that type, although good when right. Do you know about the adjustment screw for the air control valve in the fuel injection management unit? (The 2.9 doesn't have this system). If not, mail me.
Usually true but not always! After you have run it for a few hundred miles, check again. If any have tightened up then valve seat recession may be happening. On engines of this age valve seats can burn quite quickly once recession starts, especially with modern fuels. Mine went 'off song' after a bit and we traced it to recession on the near side head.
I did not do a compression test at the time, but that advice above is correct. A badly burn seat (or valve) is likely to show up.
Julian, mine is also a 2.8 Jetronic. Not the easiest set up on which to find a fault of that type, although good when right. Do you know about the adjustment screw for the air control valve in the fuel injection management unit? (The 2.9 doesn't have this system). If not, mail me.
Justin (sorry I got your name wrong), you have mail. Yes there are a lot of wedges with the 2.8 and their posts have been helpful to me in the past, but remember it was a fairly common Ford set up (if only for a few years) so there are older Ford guys who know it well. Trying to find one is the problem!
e...or a trader, but went onto the Capri forums and the guys suggested to adjust the lower screw on the throttle body to bring the revs up...I have it at 750-800 now...will try this. Seems to hold steady now...Gassing Station | S Series | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff