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Fiesta Zetec 1.25 (2000)


Gonky
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Hello all and I hope this is the right place to put this. I recently purchaced a fiesta zetec 1.25 (2000 model) for cheap. I had a standard 1.3 ghia for my first car so I though I would invest in this little car to fix her up. It needed a lot of welding and other bits, managed to get her though the MoT with no advisories which was great but later that night I though I would drive to the petrol station to put some fuel in as there wasnt much in there. she was running fine to the mot center and back but now she seems to have no power and struggles going up hills.

I changed the fuel filter yesterday which made a tiny bit of differance but still under powered and struggles on hills. I have to drop down to 1st gear and scream it up any steepish hills.

The car came with no service history and it does need a good oil change.

I have replaced the spark plugs.

Cleaned the MaF with carb cleaner (had idle problems which came at the same time as the loss of power which the idling is now sorted since cleaning and no more stalling or hunting)

New fuel filter. (Didnt make much of a differance but exhaust note did sound better)

Went to fix a small leak in the rear silencer after changing fuel filter but that broke into 2 pieces so I will be getting a new one on wednesday(havent test drove her without the rear silencer on)

Tighten the throttle cable as it was very loose.

I will be doing a full oil and oil filter change on wednesday as it is as black as the ace of spades. Could the wrong or very dirty oil restrict the cars power this much?

This is my first zetec engine.

Im confused to how it can drive ok back from the mot center then later that night be absolutely gutless. Any ideas on other problems it could be?

I have a 1lt corsa c which drive much better and faster.

Also the throttle response in the fiesta isnt as quick or responsive as the corsa.

Thanks for any info or help youcan provide.

Dan.

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Firstly, I offer my condolences re: the c*rsa you own . . . :(

How new is the air filter ?

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I have not a clue on the age of the air filter in the fiesta, it is probably as old as the last service which could be very old going by the state of the engine oil. It doesnt look to dirty but then again I should and will replace that at the same time as the oil as they are cheap anyway and everyhing else has been changed service wise. I may try and take the cover off the air filter tomorrow and see if that helps with rev response. There is definatly a slight delay between acceleration pedal and revs and the revs are not pucking up very quick at all. I should have done that when I was cleaning the MaF with carb cleaner.

There is tipex on the air filter case saying it was last done many many many years ago. Cant remember the date drawn on it but will chack that tomorrow and let you know. I would do it now but without the rear silecer attached I cant imagine the people around me would be best pleased with me testing it out in the dark. (Just moved to this house)

I only got the car for nostalgia sake as my first fiesta was great fun to drive on bendy roads.

Thanks for the speedy reply :)

I miss my mondeo st24 I owned for a few weeks just before moving. That was a beast. I want to get this fiesta up and running smoothly and sell it on now, had it for over a month and a half and only done about 30 miles in it.

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Definitely start with changing the air filter

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A quick update.

I have changed the air filter and put the new rear silencer on but still no change. Just waiting for all the oil to drain out now to do a oil and oil filter change.

It does have last serviced in 25/05/06 in tipex on the filter case but not sure if it has been done since then. It shouldnt be slower or less power than my than my 1lt corsa.

It does smell a bit rich when I started it before it warmed up.

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oil change and filter made no difference in the feel of it. I live up a short very steep hill and still have to drop down to 1st gear. Being in cornwall there are many hills around me.

it has now had a proper full service. I have searched everywhere for this problem on the internet with no luck and have seen many others with the same problem with no fix on any fourms. I guess the next thing is to test the leads to the spark plugs to see if they are all working properly. Any more suggestions would be very welcome.

Thanks.

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when where the sparks, HT leads and coils changed?

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The spark plugs where changed about 2 weeks. I havent replaced any leads or coils and I have no idea when it was last done.

It drove fine back from the MoT center. It started to play up that same night when I went to get some fuel for it.

Was fine then started it and it wasnt. It sure is confusing.

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I would replace the leads. Normally after they sit for years in a particular position, they start to become brittle, by removing them to replace the spark plugs, its entirely possible you have damaged the wiring (you bent it against the way its comfortable).

For the price of them, its worth replacing them.

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Ok I will pop out and get some leads now and let you know within the hour to see if it has solved the prblem. Thanks.

I know puttin my hand close to the exhaust is sounds like a helicopter sort of soune if that makes sense.

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could be a blown exhaust gasket or manifold, but hopefully that wont be the case. the HT leads certainly wont harm it once they are replaced.

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Ok just got back from getting some more bits, changed the leads and still no difference. I still have to rev the crap out of it to get it up the hill which my corsa can do it in 3rd. Any other ideas please? Seems like it startin to become a money pit. Spent to much time and money on it now to scrap it :(

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Iff it realy is gutless, and doesnt feel like its missfiring then , next possiblity is cat collapsed in exhaust, partialy blocking exhaust gasses, when exhaust cold , give cat a thumb and listen for rattle

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Ah bugger I hope it isnt the cat. I will try and give it a clout. I notice at just over 2k revs there is loads of rattle but thats between about 100rpm so 2-2.1 but then again the heat sheald is very loose under the car so thats probably the rattle I can hear. I will try and give it a tap now if I can get under it.

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I just got the revs to 2kish and the major rattle is the loose heat shield. It is basically resting on the exhaust so I will cable tie that up nice and tight tomorrow as its flopping around on top of it. I will have to invest in some drive on ramps tomorrow. Was fine driving it to our new home but then buggered up when I went to get fuel that same night. Didnt happen gratually it went from working fine to seriously under powered the next time I started it. The rear seems to be firing out air although is does smell a bit rich and sounds like a hellicopter when I put my hand close to it. (Air firing off my hand)

Seen this type of thing a lot when trying to search online for possible causes with no cures.

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Whip the spark plugs out & see what colour the electrodes are & whether they are wet or not

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Ok will do. They should be ok as they are new but I will go and check them quickly now

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Ok just checked. Starting from the left so lets say thats 1.

1 wet, 2 and 3 are dry with a bit of carbon build up and 4 is wet.

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Ok just checked. Starting from the left so lets say thats 1.

1 wet, 2 and 3 are dry with a bit of carbon build up and 4 is wet.

There's potentially the problem then . . . plugs # 1 & # 4 are probably not firing properly, if at all & plugs # 2 & # 3 are suffering from a rich mixture by the sounds of it

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Yeah it does smell rich from the exhaust. How can I go about fixing this problem? I did notice the old plugs I had in before replacing them one was wet I think. They were black with carbon build up. Its quite annoying as it was fine the day I got it. All happened once we moved.

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Yeah it does smell rich from the exhaust. How can I go about fixing this problem? I did notice the old plugs I had in before replacing them one was wet I think. They were black with carbon build up. Its quite annoying as it was fine the day I got it. All happened once we moved.

What make spark plugs are the new ones ?

The cause(s) can be many & various - google '' wet spark plug causes '' for lot's of info

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NGK spark plugs I believe.

Aaaah - my neighbour who has a 1.25 Fiesta had major issues with NGK plugs & exibited the same issues ( wet & fouled ) - Ford / Fomoco ones - made by Bosch - were fine

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