I still have a 'stutter' issue on my Focus, it happens when accelerating, or going 'rapidly' on a roundabout. To my mind, it has the symptoms of momentarily suffering some kind of fuel starvation. The only thing I can think of is the fuel filter needs attention, but I remember reading ages ago that the filter on the Mk2 is a sealed for life thing which can't be changed.  Surely this can't be true? If it is, can it be cleaned at all, or maybe something else in the fuel delivery system is causing the fault? (There are no faults registering as I had them tested some weeks ago and all clear...)

Hi Stephen. I'd put an injection system cleaner additive like Millers in the fuel tank. After a time it should clean, so to speak, the filter and the injection system. 

8 hours ago, tazzman600 said:

Hi Stephen. I'd put an injection system cleaner additive like Millers in the fuel tank. After a time it should clean, so to speak, the filter and the injection system. 

For 6 months, I have used BP ultimate, Redex, Dipetane, all did very little!

On a positive note, the car now runs so clean at it's recent MOT, it hardly has any emissions at all! 🤣

Looks like it wouldn't rev high enough for a fast idle test...

There isn't a filter as such on petrol Mk2's.  Just a mesh within the fuel sender unit that stops any large pieces of debris going through the pump.  Petrol will generally eat through any 'dirt' anyway.

You could replace the pump with integral mesh, but it'll cost more than your cars worth, and there's no access from above so the whole tank has to dropped. Genuine Ford Focus MK2 C-Max In Tank Fuel Pump & Sender 1602781 | eBay

6 minutes ago, TomsFocus said:

You could replace the pump with integral mesh, but it'll cost more than your cars worth, and there's no access from above so the whole tank has to dropped. Genuine Ford Focus MK2 C-Max In Tank Fuel Pump & Sender 1602781 | eBay

Geeze!! £720 for a sender? I have no idea why something that basic would be so expensive. My 'guy' is a bit stumped as to the cause of the stutter. He suggested running BP Ultimate, and also giving it a regular 'Italian Tune Up' - revving the nuts out of it once or twice/week. Scared the bejesus out of me as it revved so high a warning light momentarily flashed on the dash, I am not a boy racer LOL

I was just clutching at straws with the filter, as when it does stutter, it feels the same as when you are about to run out of petrol, something I have experienced but not in this car.

It doesn't feel like a plugs/HT lead issue...

Might be worth trying Forscan.  I doubt your guy has any Ford specific diags?

28 minutes ago, TomsFocus said:

Might be worth trying Forscan.  I doubt your guy has any Ford specific diags?

Nope, but he did spend £1000s on an amazing looking SnapOn system, which does recognise my VIN No. as I've seen him program it in,  full colour too! LOL

1 hour ago, StephenFord said:

Nope, but he did spend £1000s on an amazing looking SnapOn system, which does recognise my VIN No. as I've seen him program it in,  full colour too! LOL

I wasted a lot of money on generic scanners too.  

None of them are ever as good as the specific diags.  It's basically the difference between going to your GP and going to a hospital consultant.

7 minutes ago, TomsFocus said:

I wasted a lot of money on generic scanners too.  

None of them are ever as good as the specific diags.  It's basically the difference between going to your GP and going to a hospital consultant.

Yes, but I can get an appointment with the car, 'GP', (who didn't charge me) I don't even know a car 'consultant' who I'm sure even if it was an actual Ford dealer, I couldn't afford 😂

Just now, StephenFord said:

Yes, but I can get an appointment with the car, 'GP', (who didn't charge me) I don't even know a car 'consultant' who I'm sure even if it was an actual Ford dealer, I couldn't afford 😂

Forscan cables cost £20 and you already have a laptop.  Surely you've been on here long enough to know that by now.  

You can't do any harm with a module scan.  You could even setup live data to check the fuel pressure when the 'blip' occurs.  If you're right about a fuel blockage, that'll show up on there.

5 minutes ago, TomsFocus said:

Forscan cables cost £20 and you already have a laptop.  Surely you've been on here long enough to know that by now.  

You can't do any harm with a module scan.  You could even setup live data to check the fuel pressure when the 'blip' occurs.  If you're right about a fuel blockage, that'll show up on there.

TBH, I was very tempted recently, even to the extent on watching a few YouTubes 'for beginners' on using it, but they were American, and even the basic stuff looked as if I could easily f**k it up! If I could actually watch someone do it, I'm pretty sure I could follow them, but I just don't have any confidence, and if something did go wrong, I wouldn't have a clue how to get back to base zero..

If you ever find yourself in NI, there's a pint of Guinness waiting for you, and a hearty meal if you fancy teaching me 👍

1 minute ago, StephenFord said:

TBH, I was very tempted recently, even to the extent on watching a few YouTubes 'for beginners' on using it, but they were American, and even the basic stuff looked as if I could easily f**k it up! If I could actually watch someone do it, I'm pretty sure I could follow them, but I just don't have any confidence, and if something did go wrong, I wouldn't have a clue how to get back to base zero..

If you ever find yourself in NI, there's a pint of Guinness waiting for you, and a hearty meal if you fancy teaching me 👍

Honestly, you can't mess up a module scan, it's just reading information.  We wouldn't recommend it to everyone if it was likely to break their cars.  If you really get really unsure of anything, you can always post a screenshot on here asking what to click next.

It's only when you start programming and deleting/writing information that there's a risk of bricking modules.  But there's no need for that with this fault diagnosis.

It is admirable that your guy has read the generic codes for free.  But basically what's happened is you've phoned the surgery and said 'my stomach hurts'...and the GP has said 'ah, you just need a sh*t, try curry & prunes!'.   As that hasn't worked, his options are now to start throwing money at a problem without really knowing where the fault lies. 

If you do just want to try changing a fairly cheap & easy part, you could replace the fuel rail, regulator & injectors with a used part like this.  Ford 1.6 Petrol Fuel rail and injectors 5M5G-9H487-BB | eBay   It's unlikely that two used parts would have exactly the same fault.  So if the fault is still there, we can assume the fault lies elsewhere - perhaps the fuel pump or the evap valve.  Though it could also be the throttle body, MAP or coil pack...  Specific diags really do help with faults like this.

Right, I'm going to put my big boy pants on and buy a cable for ForScan! I though I had bookmarked a post that @unofix posted a while back on which cable was best. Obviously I can't now find it, and doing a 'search' returns over 9000 hits!

I know you'll be sick of recommending one, but would you be able to post me a link? (Ebay is my favourite marketplace, but in an emergency, am prepared to consider Amazon LOL) Thanks too for the injector rail suggestion - maybe ForScan will point to that very item!

Excellent!  

Unofix posted his recommendation in this thread earlier - 

 

For a Mk2, you can also use the cheaper ELM cable from Tunnelrat, though I'm not sure if they'll ship to NI.  Modified ELM327 USB (fwscart.com)

Ebay copy cables are often rubbish unfortunately, no way to tell visually, so you're better off avoiding that for these cables specifically.

11 minutes ago, TomsFocus said:

Excellent!  

For a Mk2, you can also use the cheaper ELM cable from Tunnelrat, though I'm not sure if they'll ship to NI.  Modified ELM327 USB (fwscart.com)

 

Now, you may regret this when you get a flurry of posts asking, 'what does this button do? LOL Cable now ordered! Shipped via Royal Mail so no NI issues. I'm actually looking forward to getting it!

as a slightly added expense you may need to unlock the extended licence depending on what your doing with it.

My go to vid is the James Simpson one on installing and setting up forscan, UK english and easy to follow.

Once you have the cable you can also use ELMconfig which is also free.

16 minutes ago, Jimpster said:

as a slightly added expense you may need to unlock the extended licence depending on what your doing with it.

My go to vid is the James Simpson one on installing and setting up forscan, UK english and easy to follow.

Once you have the cable you can also use ELMconfig which is also free.

mmm... I just googled that James Simpson guy, and the first thing he does with the cable is dismantle it, and then start to solder wires LOL I sure hope the cable I just bought works straight out of the box otherwise I'm snookered!

If I'm looking at the wrong link, feel free to point me to a better one...

When you get the cable, first download & install the drivers (either on a disc or available online).  The install wizard will tell you when to plug the cable into the laptop. 

Once the drivers are sorted, then download & install Forscan, again only plug the cable in when it asks.  If it doesn't detect the cable, you may have to change the port to COM3. 

Then once it's all setup you can take it out to the car.  Plug into the OBD port, switch the ignition on, click 'connect' on Forscan.  You will be prompted to move the switch between HS & MS when necessary.

As a start, I'd recommend clicking the box that says DTC on the left hand side, just to perform a full scan of all modules and check which DTC's are present, if any.  Hopefully there will be some in the PCM.  Clicking on those will open up a full page of extra information and potential causes for that fault code.

7 minutes ago, StephenFord said:

mmm... I just googled that James Simpson guy, and the first thing he does with the cable is dismantle it, and then start to solder wires LOL I sure hope the cable I just bought works straight out of the box otherwise I'm snookered!

If I'm looking at the wrong link, feel free to point me to a better one...

In the olden days, you had to buy a cable and then modify it to add the HS/MS switch.  The cables from Tunnelrat have already been modified in that way.  

Don't think you'll need an extended licence just for a scan or live data.  Think that's just for programming.  It was all free when I was using it regularly lol! 

ELMConfig is free but it is a bit buggy, there is a chance of bricking modules with that programme.

9 minutes ago, TomsFocus said:

When you get the cable, first download & install the drivers (either on a disc or available online).  The install wizard will tell you when to plug the cable into the laptop. 

Once the drivers are sorted, then download & install Forscan, again only plug the cable in when it asks.  If it doesn't detect the cable, you may have to change the port to COM3. 

Then once it's all setup you can take it out to the car.  Plug into the OBD port, switch the ignition on, click 'connect' on Forscan.  You will be prompted to move the switch between HS & MS when necessary.

As a start, I'd recommend clicking the box that says DTC on the left hand side, just to perform a full scan of all modules and check which DTC's are present, if any.  Hopefully there will be some in the PCM.  Clicking on those will open up a full page of extra information and potential causes for that fault code.

Well, I could have screwed up already LOL Have now downloaded ForScan on laptop, v2.3.55, loaded fine and opens as expected. Was I suppose to wait till I got the cable? 🤣 I thought when I plugged cable into car, I'd just hit the 'connect' button on the program and magic would happen. (Told you you'd regret me getting one LOL)

1 minute ago, StephenFord said:

Well, I could have screwed up already LOL Have now downloaded ForScan on laptop, v2.3.55, loaded fine and opens as expected. Was I suppose to wait till I got the cable? 🤣 I thought when I plugged cable into car, I'd just hit the 'connect' button on the program and magic would happen. (Told you you'd regret me getting one LOL)

Lol, it doesn't matter too much.  It's mainly the cable drivers you need to install in the correct order.  The cable is technically separate from Forscan so that needs drivers to work, same as any other hardware you connect to a PC.

Absolute worst case scenario is that you just have to remove and reinstall the Forscan app if it won't connect after downloading the drivers.  Not a major issue!  

56 minutes ago, StephenFord said:

mmm... I just googled that James Simpson guy, and the first thing he does with the cable is dismantle it, and then start to solder wires LOL I sure hope the cable I just bought works straight out of the box otherwise I'm snookered!

If I'm looking at the wrong link, feel free to point me to a better one...

TBF i shudda said ignore the messing with the module bit and go straight to the install, apologies.

The software will run but cant do anything as no car connected. On first connection create a back up of your cars config

1 hour ago, Jimpster said:

...On first connection create a back up of your cars config

Yep, that's easy for you to say LOL Unless there is a big, 'BACKUP' button, I may not be able to do that 😂

it should ask you if you want to haha

4 minutes ago, Jimpster said:

it should ask you if you want to haha

It sounds awfully friendly LOL