What's wrong with my mondeo?

highrisklowreturn

Ok, was going to by a voltage meter in Halfords - near 60 quid - to test fuse box in engine, but wouldn't actually know what each fuse is for, so wouldn't know how to isolate fuel pump - how else could I test integrity of pump - if I am later getting fuel surely this would rule out pump as source of problem?

forgotmyname

You wont be isolating the fuel pump on a TDCI with a fuse its mechanical.

Eliminate the pump by checking the max fuel pressure it can provide and do a leakoff on the injectors at the same time to see if thats where any pressure loss maybe occurring.

highrisklowreturn

Ok, but how can I check pump pressure, and leak off of injectors - is a leak off test what I already did by opening them up slightly and cranking the engine?

pogg000

Order a f super off eBay

This will tell you the fuel rail pressure.

Tdci engine will not fire injector until fuel pressure is present.

Tancred

highrisklowreturn wrote: »

Hi

Got a 2001 mondeo ghia tdci a few months ago with 151k on the clock. I got suckered in and thought it looked great and drove well but I've had no end to problems with it.

First about a month ago the door wouldn't reopen when locked. The car can only be opened via the driver's door, and manually. I ended up having to go in through the boot, which caused the alarm to go off, and the hazards to go nuts. I took the car to a mechanic who as a temporary solution just 'disabled' a wire or connection at the back left of the vehicle in boot, stopping alarm system.

After this however my real problems started. Went to get in car one morning and wouldn't start. Tried to jump her and rolled but couldn't get any life into it. Eventually jumped engine and got it running, to vast plumes of smoke and wheezing of engine. Prior to this car only smoked when accelerating heavy, during which it spewed out like some james bond trick.

Next day I had to jump again, and spoke to another mechanic, who said I'd been bitten on the car, and the injectors were probably well gone, tho I could start it with easy start, or the 'dope' as he called it.

Went and spent £65 for a new battery and got that fitted, but same problems since. Car turns over in morning, splutters, and fades out. Then after a few attempts at turning over, 4-5, like uncle buck, it rumbles into life. Initially the accelerator won't pump fuel, and takes a while to rev, maybe 10 secs. Once car goes, it spews white smoke like a Victorian train for a minute, then runs like a dream, no faults at all, except glow plug light.

I put 2 new glow plugs in - I bought 4, but 2 of the old ones were stuck. The old ones didn't look too bad, but tried this as the cheapo way of trying to fix.

I don't have wads of cash atm and can't afford to be throwing it in for all remedial work, and expect I could easily be stroked by a mechanic, one of whom has said I'm looking at 1200 to replace injectors (money which I don't have).

What I don't get is the car has now 9 months mot - how were these problems not noticeable before, and is the weather affecting it? Could it just be maybe the other 2 glow plugs I didn't get changed, or a wiring issue, or is it defo turbo / injectors?

You bought an ancient car with 151k on the odometer - what do you expect? It's a bucket. When you buy such a car you need to expect to spend loads to get the car in decent shape. Get real.

forgotmyname

As mentioned the F-Super code reader off ebay. Under £15 these days. They were about £80 when i bought mine. It needs a laptop.

Cheap handheld readers wont work. Your car is not OBDII compliant.

That will give you fuel pressure and some other stuff.

Buy a leakoff kit or a 2nd hand set of leakoff pipes and butcher them. You need to block the leakoff back to the filter and have one tube per injector into a bottle and measure/compare the amount of fuel in each bottle.

Not the same as cracking open the fuel pipes to bleed them.

SteveyBuns

Are you waiting for the plugs to heat? ie are you just jumping in and turning the key or are you turning the key to position 2 and waiting for the plugs to heat before trying to start it?

My car did that from cold start when I didn't heat the plugs and just started it from cold, I then left it to heat the plugs and it starts first time now, all be it, with a bit of smoke out the back, although I need to clean the Inlet Manifold to reduce that.

May help.

highrisklowreturn

Tancred wrote: »

You bought an ancient car with 151k on the odometer - what do you expect? It's a bucket. When you buy such a car you need to expect to spend loads to get the car in decent shape. Get real.

Thank you for pointing out the obvious - at what point did you notice I was oblivious to any of the above? I didn't ask for commentary or what I should have expected only pointers in diagnosis and repair.

wrightk

check the fuel cut off switch which is notorious on mondeos. used to be located under the passenger side carpet near the door seal. they can get dislodged, loose connections that sort of thing. i had a year of trouble with my old mondeo until someone came out and rewired it into the fuse box, ran perfect ever since.

the starting, stopping no response from accelerator and running for a few seconds when using easy start indicates a fuel problem and the engine is purely firing on the fumes of the easy start.

forgotmyname

They are only fitted to cars with an electric fuel pump are they not?

Cuts the fuel off after an accident. Just in case a fuelline splits, Stops it pumping it out all over the road.