Repairing the Engine
Posted by James Durrant on Friday, January 1, 2010
The engine was a very big challenge as she had not run in 16 years!!
We could see that the engine was not seized surprisingly but did have a few tight spots so we started by getting the power and ignition sorted out first.
A local Auto Factors in Crawley - Rose Auto Supplies have 20+ years of experience and are still able to source a wide range of engine servicing parts for the V4 and the rest I sourced from Ebay
The Transit Forum has been an extremely valuable source for problem solving and some harder to find parts if you have a Transit of any mk you should join as they are very helpful.
A new Battery, Ballast Resistor, Starter Solenoid, HT Leads, Dizzy Cap, Points, Rotor Arm and Spark Plugs were fitted as most parts were corroded and brittle or just dead, the oil was checked and was still fine so we decided to wait until we got her fired up before replacing the oil as there will be a lot of gunk in the engine that will ruin any new oil we put in now.
We turned her over and joy she turned over freely but we could tell the starter motor was struggling so a new one was bought from ebay and fitted.
She still would not fire so I checked the tank which was full of rust and had sucked it up the fuel line as well, the pump was also a goner, so as a temporary fix we have used an electric pump some new fuel line and a jerry can of fuel linked directly to the cleaned out carb whilst I source a new tank and fuel pump.
We turned her over again and she fired and after a few adjustments she now fires on the button but naturally white smoke is pouring out the back as she is burning off a lot of crap after 16 years standing, we also discovered the left exhaust manifold is cracked and unrepairable so I will be replacing this as well.
The clutch has also been freed off and she drives in and out of the workshop under her own steam.
We have taken off the radiator and heater matrix to gain access for welding and will also have to replace the cooling hoses as they have perished.
Next Step Welding!
We could see that the engine was not seized surprisingly but did have a few tight spots so we started by getting the power and ignition sorted out first.
A local Auto Factors in Crawley - Rose Auto Supplies have 20+ years of experience and are still able to source a wide range of engine servicing parts for the V4 and the rest I sourced from Ebay
The Transit Forum has been an extremely valuable source for problem solving and some harder to find parts if you have a Transit of any mk you should join as they are very helpful.
A new Battery, Ballast Resistor, Starter Solenoid, HT Leads, Dizzy Cap, Points, Rotor Arm and Spark Plugs were fitted as most parts were corroded and brittle or just dead, the oil was checked and was still fine so we decided to wait until we got her fired up before replacing the oil as there will be a lot of gunk in the engine that will ruin any new oil we put in now.
We turned her over and joy she turned over freely but we could tell the starter motor was struggling so a new one was bought from ebay and fitted.
She still would not fire so I checked the tank which was full of rust and had sucked it up the fuel line as well, the pump was also a goner, so as a temporary fix we have used an electric pump some new fuel line and a jerry can of fuel linked directly to the cleaned out carb whilst I source a new tank and fuel pump.
We turned her over again and she fired and after a few adjustments she now fires on the button but naturally white smoke is pouring out the back as she is burning off a lot of crap after 16 years standing, we also discovered the left exhaust manifold is cracked and unrepairable so I will be replacing this as well.
The clutch has also been freed off and she drives in and out of the workshop under her own steam.
We have taken off the radiator and heater matrix to gain access for welding and will also have to replace the cooling hoses as they have perished.
Next Step Welding!