Help ! Mondeo Mk3

[wobbli]

Recently I purchased a 2002 mk3 redo and I'm having a bit of self inflicted bother.

After chucking a load of bad fuel through it I've had to empty the tank (60 litres of heart break)

And clear the lines

After I cranked the motor to get to of the last of the crappy water\ oil from the fuel lines I connected the fuel filter and put everything back as I should (took about 10 mins)

Went to start the motor with fresh lovely derv and got nothing. Just and audio note to say the Immob wasn't having it

I've looked around and its suggests its not an Immob fault because the little red light isn't showing fault sequences

So, have any of the mondy boffins out there come a cross this problem before , and if so how do I get around it

I don't want to spend hundreds because I don't know if the car will even fire up once I get past this hurdle

Thank you all !

Robbie

[callumthemechanic]

Is the car turning over? If so you could just have a massive air block! All you would need to do is as your turning the engine over crack number 3 injector (fuel pipe) and keep doing it until she starts it may take quite a while :/ the problem is the people at ford thought it would be a great idea to not fit a fuel primer on the MK3 its genious :@if not take the fuel filter of fill it full of redex and try then

[wobbli]

Hi cal. I was going to use a sniff of break cleaner easy start type thing to get it going to get the fresh fuel through. But after I reconnected the filter and hoses it won't even crank. As if there is no power but there is power. I even had th jump leads on it today but still nothing.

I'm not a mechanic in any form especially if things start to get electrical !

Cheers

[FOCA]

As callum has said, there is no hand primer and you have to turn the engine over to prime it

By the time the engine is primed, the battery is normally flat, filling the fuel filter with diesel helps, jumping it off another car helps, but you have to be careful you don't burn out the starter motor, alas, this may be what you have done

,

i remember towing / "bumping" mine for ages to get it to start

ez - start is not good for the engine

The TDDI is the best of the mk3s IMO, (iv'e owned almost every other model Mondeo ) - and the only one you can run on veg oil - its worth saving/ sorting (Though its a long time since i had 113Hp/1500+kgs )

Is it a fixed or variable vane turbo and front or rear EGR? hatch/ estate?

[wobbli]

the veg is the reason im torn

im going to try the old hit it with a hammer then tow it to try and get it going

after that .......... im out of ideas

its just a hatch mondy i bought it when the head went on my lingo van at 240k :( :(

its was just a cheap runner really and its green

[FOCA]

I run clean, unused veg oil in the summer, (often £1 a litre) i can run upto 100% when the weather is warm, in cooler weather, i mix it with diesel (due to the veg oil getting too thick at lower temps) if i put in 55% diesel,(45% veg oil) i can run this at lower temps (probably as low as 4 degrees C ) it tends to be colder in the mornings -if it drops below 4 degrees or freezes i use straight diesel, if it freezes with veg oil your in trouble as the veg oil wil wax/ solidify - you must be careful of adding solvents (thinners, kerosine etc) it might damage the seals in the pump, a refurbed vp44 could cost £700+ )

If you run used veg oil it is often full of muck, the debris and water has to be removed, if it has been burnt (at too high a temp) it loses its calorific value (eg - its "cetane" level goes down) so its best to strain it through a very fine strainer first, then an even finer strainer (like a coffee filter) ideally you sould remove the water, mixing in some unused veg oil and some diesel, can help get the quality/ cetane level up, depending how bad the veg oil is

(there are websites specializing in these things)

Same goes for diesel that has been stored in dirty tanks, or from dubious suppliers, the coffee filters are exellent for removing even small particles of dirt etc

It is possible to fit an extra in-line filter, before the lift pump (the 115PS has a lift pump and a VP44, the 90PS (Europe and Ireland) has no lift pump) you could fit taps before/ after the inline filter so it can be changed easily, without having to change the main filter or bleed the whole system

Years ago (veg oil has been legal in the UK since 2007) my mates used to run used veg oil, they went through so many filters, pumps and injectors/ (cars?) that they might have been cheaper in the long run running diesel or unused/ new veg oil (thats what i do) you must also take into account time/ work/ money lost when you are off the road

So its a good idea that whatever you put in the tank is clean as possible BEFORE it goes in

Finally, you could get special cylinders that go in the fuel tank (long tubes that fit through the filler) and remove/ soak up water in the fuel (saw them on another site)

Let us know how you get on with your car (remember, the more specific/ more information you give, the more i can help)

[wobbli]

thanks again still not managed to get it going gotta have a play around today but I work nights so don't get much time to do so !

If I can't get it going by Monday it's going to the yard is there anything on them worth breaking first ?

It's a shame but I really don't have the time or space for a non runner

I just can't get I to crank

As for the veg the stuff I get is 30p a litre it was my fault for assuming the drum was clean (I did ask first) and pumping from the bottom of th drum

My brother runs his Astra dti on refined used veg oil that's been heated to remove water. Filtered and had something added to it

Which is about 90p a litre

Is there an easy way I can test is the starter is hitting a flat spot ?

[FOCA]

thanks again still not managed to get it going gotta have a play around today but I work nights so don't get much time to do so !

If I can't get it going by Monday it's going to the yard is there anything on them worth breaking first ?

It's a shame but I really don't have the time or space for a non runner

I just can't get I to crank

As for the veg the stuff I get is 30p a litre it was my fault for assuming the drum was clean (I did ask first) and pumping from the bottom of th drum

My brother runs his Astra dti on refined used veg oil that's been heated to remove water. Filtered and had something added to it

Which is about 90p a litre

Is there an easy way I can test is the starter is hitting a flat spot ?

Yes, you have to be careful where you get your fuel/ what is in it the stuff you used is probably just strained used veg oil, full of water, fat and solid "bits" from the food and needs a little further refinement before sticking in your tank - the stuff added to the stuff your brother uses is probably a little solvent (thinners etc) to manage the veg oils' viscocity at lower temps,

You could try putting a wire (it has to be heavy duty, like a jump lead wire or a domestic cooker wire) directly from the battery (+) to the starter, (try to keep it away from metal (-) earths) if it turns this will tell you if the starter itself is ok, and the problem is elsewhere - you can also bypass the solenoid - obviously you check there is power in the battery 1st or set up an alternative supply (jump leads to another car etc)

A new (pattern) starter motor can be had for about £60, a S/H a bit less than that,(prob. £20) they are not difficult to change

Did you fit a new fuel filter?

The car should run without a working lift pump, the 90PS does not use one, and on the 115, i think it is only "part time"/ under heavy load controlled by the ECU

If you get any water into the system it can be difficult to get rid of

It would be a shame to break it, especially as there may be very little wrong with it and someone with the right knowledge/ experience mak get it running easily/ cheaply. A running engine is worth something, but the main rotary fuel pump (vp44) is quite valuable, and the injectors, these are specific to the TDDI, which was only made from 2000-2002,and are getting harder to get (the TDDI was a favorite for taxi drivers for years, doing 300+k miles was not uncommon) many other parts,fit the entire range intercooler fits all 2.0/2.2 diesels, brakes are the same across the range,(2000-2007) even the ST220

Hitting stuff with hammers is be bad practice and it can cause further damage, sometimes a little tap works, i try to avoid doing this, a diesel engine without any diesel or pumps or working injectors will run on ez-start, i would never use it

[wobbli]

will try all of the above tomoro morning . it really would be a shame to scrap itsthe perfect car for my 200 miles a day travel !

but the little 306 seems to be winning at the moment !

[wobbli]

Breaking this now if anyone needs any bits for a bargain