Hi all 

I have a petrol fiesta low mileage drives well apart from fuel problem. Fuel seems to be evaporating. Really bad. Cold start short misfire that no mechanic has diagnosed. I just had to tell them about it. Others overlooked it. No error codes on OBD. All previous mechanics said it’s heavy foot. Absolute rubbish! Latest mechanic want to change coil pack, HT leads and sparks. Play let’s guess the parts game. Any suggestions on cold misfire revs 1300 then goes normal to 8-900 rpm. Fuel smell through heater vents. Really poor fuel consumption on esso supreme. 
Mechanics not checked anything just test drive and scan machine.

I found secret menu with P codes etc but mechanic not interested. 
 

any idea on codes and fix problems? 
 

Thank you all in advance 

Hi there I’m not an expert but it may be the eec/ecu whole learning thing. There’s lots of YouTube tutorials about it and apparently disconnecting the battery and leave cabin lights on and electric devices to let the capacitors run out then re powering the car factory resets it. Apparently the computer learns how the driver uses the car and compensates by modulating the electric fuel pump. Don’t take this as gospel as only gleaned the information looking for another problem. https://www.servicetutorials.com/2019/09/30/tutorial-how-to-enter-acces-hidden-service-menu-on-ford-focus-mk2-in-4-simple-steps/
has a list of the secret menu errors if that helps 

The error codes usually start dtc. Diagnostic test code I believe the acronym stands for but I’ve a few others like e 01 lol

Fuel smell coming through your car. Vents definitely means your car is burning too much fuel I’m no expert as I’ve previously said but it’s probably the fuel pressure regulator on its way out but there are probably far more qualified people on here

A faulty mess airflow sensor could cause the same things, so could a blocked catalytic converter. If it wasn’t for the poor fuel consumption. I would’ve said it’s probably something as simple as an oil leak or gasket on your oil cap gone.  another thing that commonly causes the smell of fuel in a car is a poorly seated spark plug. Does it cut out at all 

3 hours ago, Lisafredford said:

Play let’s guess the parts game.

Looks like Jay has made an early start, 4 posts in under an hour 🤣

Lol. I’m no mechanic but after years with little money and living in spitting distance of the Ford plant in Dagenham I’ve had a few fords in need of….. a little love lol. I know there are many on here which better knowledge and fault finding skills. I’ve learned a lot from here and if I can do the same for someone else it balances the force. From experience with a lot of garages it seems like how many parts can we swap for a buck. I know that’s not true for all and everyone has to make a living but my partner just last week broke down in her cmax and the mobile mechanic convinced her it was cause she kept starting the car and driving it with the immobiliser working, and tried selling her a new key, until I came and pointed out the fuse to the eec had blown so instead of £200 for key and £150 to plug the car in his machine it cost 25 p for a 3 amp fuse lol

Ps. How could she believe the car would even start let alone drive around when immobiliser was on 🤔🤯 fair play the pats kicked in cause wasn’t communicating with the eec. But read the on board fault codes before trying to charge for unnecessary repairs, or perhaps he had….. 

Morning Jay

Yes I am not convinced it’s the HT leads. I admit I don’t drive many miles so think carbon build up could be an issue. Car drives well it’s not broken down. Turns over starts up. 2 years ago it went limp mode had throttle valve cleaned had codes but AA warranty refused to replace because Halfords approved garage was unsure what to replace and they didn’t process a claim to replace part. They screwed me over. Anyway it’s guzzling fuel I use the E5 better stuff. The idle RPM goes normal once warning. I think it feels like it wants to stall but the mechanic didn’t mention that. Left car with them to test drive. They had it overnight to duplicate the cold morning start. Typically it’s driven normal with the digital fuel gauge decreasing down per mile normal. It usually says I’ve used 21 miles when I’ve done 6.5 miles. Miles left is usually decreasing fast. The needle gauge decreases fast so I’m constantly filling up with petrol. 
Every mechanic I’ve tried relies on the OBD. None have looked for vacuum leaks. Or checked fuse box. None have looked for carbon with a camera into engine. 
I can’t see any oil leaks from looking underneath myself.

I have secret menu codes if you or anyone can have a read please 🙏 

P01-78

P02-C0

P03-11 and 12

P04-08

P05-83

P10-C4

P10-c5

P11-84

P13-61 and 64 and 65

P19-80

P20-01

P20-11

are these secret menu codes useful or relevant?

mechanics not interested in the secret menu 

I think engine pressure could be a possible cause for example carbon build up on air intake valve the MAF sensor? The intake manifold ? 

36 minutes ago, Lisafredford said:

are these secret menu codes useful or relevant?

No.  Needs something like Forscan to read the proper codes through OBD.  

Oh only every time I take it to different garages various scan machines they don’t pick up any codes. When it did go limp mode AA Breakdown found code P2125 throttle valve pedal sensor B

u0121 communication with ABS

but that was ages ago and since then just symptoms but no spanner light no breakdowns. 

 

Would a Carbon clean machine at garage be safe ?

Scotty Kilmer has a YouTube video about ATS c3 clean 

1 hour ago, Lisafredford said:

Oh only every time I take it to different garages various scan machines they don’t pick up any codes. When it did go limp mode AA Breakdown found code P2125 throttle valve pedal sensor B

u0121 communication with ABS

but that was ages ago and since then just symptoms but no spanner light no breakdowns. 

Have any used Ford specific machines?  Forscan can be used by anyone with a smartphone or laptop.  Costs about £20 for the adapter but pays for itself with the first use.

Throttle valve sensor is a useful code though.  If the ECU can't tell exactly where the throttle is, it'll add extra fuel as a failsafe.

 

1 hour ago, Lisafredford said:

Would a Carbon clean machine at garage be safe ?

Scotty Kilmer has a YouTube video about ATS c3 clean 

Carbon cleans are generally safe.  Although I'm sceptical as to the benefits of it myself.  Think people get a placebo effect from just having paid for it.  There is also a small risk of making things worse when cleaning older engines.

I don’t know which OBD software has been used. Maybe best I take it to a Ford dealership garage. Even if I used forescan myself and found codes the local indie mechanics won’t work off the forescan. They only want to work off their own scan results. Every mechanic I try doesn’t do anything apart from put it on their OBD. 
Might have to just pay fords high prices and hopefully get one that finds codes who understands live date.

if only I was confident enough and had ramps and tools I would look for faults. But I dare not take sparks, sensor leads and hoses out myself because I could bust my car up. 

I think the fuel air ratio is wrong 

It’s like open choke wide open circuit 

could be numerous components 

throttle, sensor, pedal sensor, air intake valve, rubber hoses, wiring harness by manifold, fuel sensors, fuel rail, injector wire leads, injectors, coil packs, sparks, gaskets or anything else I left off list. Even worse scenario pistons, lifters all the parts inside the engine. Which is what I am worrying about if I can’t get down to finding the culprit or culprits then keep driving it will blow the engine up. 
it’s not kicking out black smoke. Everyone says the engine sounds normal. It’s flew through MOT last week. Emissions within range parameters. 
So would you guys agree to not take it to indie garage for coil pack, HT leads and sparks ? As they are guessing 

I really don't think it's a spark issue myself.  But if you did want to change plugs, leads and coil pack yourself, they're pretty simple and no need for ramps.  Only thing that could break is a spark plug if it's seized...but if it feels too tight then you can just stop and leave it to a garage.

I would still recommend Forscan before anything else.  That way you can provide us with the codes so we can offer better advise for the next step.

I’m not going to risk changing parts myself. The garage wants to do that for £140 which could be a waste of money. If I can get my laptop on as it’s old knackered I don’t mind paying for Forescan. If not then it’s a Ford dealership investigation. 

If you have a fuel smell through the heater, you need to be checking for fuel leaks in the first instance.

Can none of your friends recommend a good local garage that they use, rather than going to a dealer?

I have taken it to 3 garages last year and another one last week. I’ve told them all about the smell and high fuel usage. They haven’t noticed the smell. It’s usually only on cold day starts. I left it with garages and none of them found any leaks. 
I went out yesterday and bought some carburettor spray thinking I could possibly try looking for vacuum leaks but unsure which name parts are safe to spray. 
it’s a petrol 1.25 fiesta.

also could try spraying the maf sensor with a cleaner but unsure which is the best safe brand ?

 

The car runs fine.

It misses when cold for a short while  because it is running rich then runs well so there are no broken bits. Stick it in neutral and push it on level ground. Are the brakes binding? are the tyre pressures all good? Is the exhaust blocked? Is the air cleaner soaking wet or is the box home to a family of bluetits, squirrels or dragons? have a look. (Take a  fire extinguisher if you suspect dragons if it smells of fuel.)Can you smell fuel
with the bonnet open and the engine running? If so you will need to find the leak for yourself because it is beyond the garages to do so. If not, try running an injector cleaner through it and, having taken it for a fast ten mile run, have the plugs removed. .immediately and check their colour. Anything darker than light tan suggests the engine is over rich and at that point, you need to start finding out why. Parking the car over cardboard from end to end in dry conditions will identify the leak if it is s drip from a pipe under the car, for example.

Secret menu codes that you cannot understand will not help when the car is clearly not only using excessive fuel but smelling like it as well. This one will be easy to work out from first principles. Work out what you need to test any hypothesis and rule things out logically.

 

Hahaha made me laugh 

it would probably run better if a dragon was powering it 

yes I have tried the cardboard technique ages ago but will try again. 
i have bought some car plan yellow colour injection cleaner stuff but really struggling to buy a filler fuel funnel as I never had one when I bought car. Bought a cat clean nozzle funnel yesterday to try for fit. 
bought nitrox cat clean too 

and ordered a Ford service kit includes Castrol oil filter pollen and Ford plugs.

it’s due for a service anyway. 
sparks were changed 2-3 years ago which to what I think the fuel problems started. 
 

I have asked paid mechanics last year to check leads and plugs and told not faulty seated correctly. 
 

so the day I take it for service probably Thursday or Friday put the cleaner via the fuel petrol filler then take it for a long blast ?

In the meantime use cardboard 

check on start up if engine area smells like fuel 

ok got that

thanks 

Cheers thanks 🙏 everyone 

Make you all laugh 

one garage said the rattling was tyre grit pebbles and the other said it was cats 🐱 bells on collars 

weird though the rattling noises seemed to have stopped in December 

oh last week had new back tyres on MOT and front wheel alignment so tyres not the fuel problem or cats bells, box of birds or dragons 😂

Air cleaner box! Not unknown to be full of nut shells or a bird's nest. Check your air cleaner. Brim the tank, drive it for fifty miles and brim the tank again. What MPG do you really get?

How many miles do you drive it each day? how many times? Does the car have a temperature gauge? If so, does it read low or high? does the car take long to warm up?