2005 Ford Focus 2.0 Running fault - Part deux

[kingarthur83rd]

Hi All. Sadly I'm back, again. 

 

following on from the various idling faults and running faults, I'm still looking at some guidance.

So... I have an '05 Mk2 focus. lovely car, SUPER RARE - 3 door, panther black, titanium spec. with the 2.0i duratec under the hood. has been well looked after under my ownership, and hasn't wanted for anything mechanically. its regularly washed/hoovered etc. nice, clean condition. sporty alloys. 91k miles

recent work:

throttlebody replaced (diagnosing a running fault)
radiator cap replaced.
re-soldered instrument cluster
iridium plugs put in at the last service.

with this all done. it should run great. and for the most part it does. the duratecs are good engines. power on tap, eats motorway miles. its great. recently. i have experienced from a cold start/warm up the car starts idling funny and losing power infrequently. (it seems like a vacuum leak or the system is drawing air)

whilst this is happening the temp gauge doesnt really move above 75c sort of limps there and cools off back to 60c. under power (ie motorway, sat at say 1800rpm-2300rpm i can occasionally feel it judder. this will continue until i either stop, or the car hunts or it loses power to the point that it dies. I then vocalise some vocabulary that isnt so family friendly, start it back up, and all is well. 

I mentioned on a previous post it normally takes around 20-25mins to get to fault condition (c.7? miles) I'm thinking maybe a fault sensor/thermostat stuck open? something heat related that is being either commanded on or off and the part/valve etc either stuck or electrical gremlins/corruption. as i can literally turn it off, back on again and it drives great.

My last post had my suspicions set on the dreaded instrument cluster fault. that has now been repaired, and whilst it does run better for longer, Its not what I would call "fixed" (although as a side win, the alarm doesnt trip randomly after a couple of days). last trip to the mechanics was "drives great, not a lot wrong wi'that, its gerrin owd" and yes whilst i agree a Mk2 focus is getting old at 18 years this time round. I'm an IT support tech. because i can replicate it, theres a fault condition. I've read rumblings about the BCM becoming water logged or damp/moisture? other people have said thermostat issues? 

I do have forscan and a laptop and whilst i can reset the cluster and it be "alright" for a fortnight or so, its not really a long term solution, as i dont really trust it to cover a longer drive than local (ie motorway work)

If theres anything you'd like me to do troubleshooting wise, let me know. at this moment in time, shes parked up whilst I go gallivanting round in my stepmums CC3 🤣🤣🤣

[kingarthur83rd]

10 hours ago, kingarthur83rd said:

this will continue until i either stop, or the car hunts or it loses power to the point that it dies. I then vocalise some vocabulary that isnt so family friendly, start it back up, and all is well. 

Just on the back of this, after the restart, this seems to clear the fault. which makes me believe that the fault is electrical rather than mechanical - something related to heat? ie temp sensor, pressure sensor etc maybe something that alters airflow / ignition timing? idk, i could be wildly overthinking this. my girl is, in my opinion, poorly and I dont like it

theres no CEL throughout any of this so the DTC system doesnt think theres  anything wrong, so im kinda stuck going old school. I'm dont really want to just load up the parts cannon and see what sticks. Whilst there is a good few years left in her, I'm not really keen to replace parts unless proven faulty.

"why dont you sell it and just use the CC3?" the Focus CC3 - whilst its a lovely example and drives great, its not a car I would buy. its an auto, convertible, In roman bronze. I'm simply looking after it whilst we're waiting for summer to sell it. It was my dads, who, sadly passed away in September last year.

[StephenFord]

This post will be of no help (!) but, I also own a 2005 vintage 1.6 petrol LX, and just this week have had my instrument cluster returned from being repaired. The old girl is running great now! Don't give up, I'm sure whatever is ailing your car can be fixed, and I'm a huge fan of repairing 'old' rather than tossing in the bin. I've been 'green' all my life, well before it was fashionable LOL Just wanted to add some moral support. Someone of more practical use should be along soon...

[kingarthur83rd]

to be honest as much as people yell at me to sell it before it becomes a moneypit, I still love it. I'm probably one of the few that actually loves the styling of the OG Mk2 focus. after a bath and wax, its still my baby. Mine does EVERYTHING I want it to, its fast, its comfortable, its a roomy car for a single dude, leather interior, Air Conditioning, its kinda meh on fuel, but its a 2.0. (in bringing out of a slumber of the pandemic i spent around £1800 in parts, labour, servicing MoTs etc getting it running better, discs, pads, alternator, battery, throttlebody, a fair amount of AC work, oh and a valet! everything works a treat, less this new running fault. oh and maybe some noisy wheel bearings, but meh I class them as consumables)

with the condition its in and with barely 91k on the clock I cant justify scrapping/selling it as spares or repair or giving up. its too nice!!

though I do accept the time is coming closer to when it is no longer economically viable to repair...

[RL123]

With the mk2 and mk2.5 focus, 2 common issues that can arise are instrument cluster solder and connections at the Gem module/fuse box behind the glove box.

my son’s 2008 instrument cluster played up after running for a time and seemed ok when cold. Dtcs are recorded in a number of modules along with ‘u’ codes implying can bus connectivity.whacking the dash above the cluster can temporarily bring it back to life.

plugs into the gem/fuse box can corrode if they get wet (green crud) but can be cleaned.

a lot generic readers and cheap adapters fail to read all codes.

[StephenFord]

2 minutes ago, RL123 said:

With the mk2 and mk2.5 focus, 2 common issues that can arise are instrument cluster solder and connections at the Gem module/fuse box behind the glove box.

From reading the OP 1st post, he already has the instrument cluster repaired...

[RL123]

24 minutes ago, StephenFord said:

From reading the OP 1st post, he already has the instrument cluster repaired...

Shouldn’t completely exclude it, I had to take my son’s cluster back to the repairers as they didn’t get it right first time. They were extremely apologetic and fixed it there and then. 

[kingarthur83rd]

7 hours ago, RL123 said:

a lot generic readers and cheap adapters fail to read all codes.

I have the Vgate V-linker, combined with FORscan:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B0952P4MLP/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

https://forscan.org/home.html

I'm kinda leaning to an electrical fault, but the place I went to was kinda out of my way (it was worth going to them as they A we're local and B charged a 1 off fee of £85 where as the rest were £120+

I can chase up a local guy I was hoping that someone had had something similar, and could offer guidance or what to look for. 

[RL123]

Have you got any dtcs (error codes from Forscan) they can help with diagnosis.

if not, what elm327 are you using. Obdlink and Vlinker seem to be the most reliable at reading both can busses.

[kingarthur83rd]

not to revive an old post but little update time.

the past few times I've driven it, the hunting on idle and lack of power low down seemed to be getting worse, then, it happened. *BOOP* CEL illuminates, I'm over excited, I'm like a dog wi' 2 knobs. getting the CEL meant that even the engine thinks its poorly. error "P1132 - Lack of Upstream Heated Oxygen Sensor Switch Sensor Indicates Rich Bank 1"

off to the mechanic. sensor now replaced. still runs funny from a cold start. I'm convinced a temp sensor has gone bad (why else would it hunt, lack power low down, idle rough, then restart, (ie key in, crank, crank, crank, crank, crank, crank, crank, crank, crank, fire, run better). I surmise there is a couple of temp sensors (ie coolant temp, engine temp, oil temp etc) as well as the O2 sensors monitoring air temp in and out of the engine.

[RL123]

I think the 2.0 petrol has swirl flaps in the inlet manifold. They have been known to break up on early versions and I know my brother had the vacuum switch controlling them fail on a 2008 cc2.

worth a check.

[kingarthur83rd]

4 hours ago, RL123 said:

I think the 2.0 petrol has swirl flaps in the inlet manifold. They have been known to break up on early versions and I know my brother had the vacuum switch controlling them fail on a 2008 cc2.

worth a check.

it does. i assume over time/heatcycling they go brittle. I can get a set of the flaps off eBay for about £60, but its the labour as its a 3-4hr (strip down/replace/button up) job. one for the future i think as I have other things i need to pay out for before i go paying for car repairs. looks like I'm back in the CC3... again 😔

[RL123]

I wasn’t saying this is the fault, just worth checking. According to posts on the web,debris can cause engine damage so worth checking. Also reports of a rattling noise accompanies it.

the 2 little vacuum valves should be easy to check.

[kingarthur83rd]

yeah, its only one of a multitude of what "could" be. I know the swirl flaps are a common fault on this generation of focus (and, so far i have fixed 2 of the 3 common issues (leaky boot, dodgy cluster, the 3rd being swirl flaps)