October 2002
I have sometimes wondered what it is that causes an engine to rotate in the desired direction - is it just because the starter spins it that way? After all, as far as a descending piston is concerned, the crank below could equally be turning in either direction.
I think I have worked it out in my mind - is it the camshaft operating the valves in the right sequence that means the engine cannot run backwards?
So if say on a very simple engine the inlet and exhaust manifolds were reversed, and the fuel fed in the 'exhaust', would it run the other way round?
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I have a 2001 1.6 Ford Focus Zetec with A/C. Recently i have been getting a smell which is like stagnant water when I switch the blower on. It goes however when i put the Re-circulation on. Does anyone reckon this could be the pollen filter?
I would be grateful for any feedback
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The evaporater under the dash gets wet when the a/c is running, much like the element in your fridge. Excess water will run off it and down the drain, but it still remains damp. Therefore, when you turn it off, that moisture has to go somewhere, so it enters the car and settles on the cold windows. The damp is also where the mouldy smell comes from. Ford has a proper procedure for treating the smells that takes about an hour, but I suspect many just use an aerosol with poor results. There is some better stuff around, but I'm still not 100% sure of it's effectiveness. Quite often when I get this complaint either I can't smell anything, and they can, or vice-versa, and when treated they think it's better and I don't, or vice-versa, so it's all a bit subjective.
Ford cars aren't any worse than any others, and no one make or model seems to suffer worse than any others. You'll always get a bit of damp smell when first using it or first switching it off, just the nature of the beast. One solution to the steamed up windows is just to leave it on and forget about it. It makes no difference, just like your power steering pump runs even when going in a straight line, and the alternator runs when you don't have the lights on. Many new cars coming on the market now have an a/c compressor that can't be turned off, so that should kill the 'shall I, shan't I' debate once and for all.
Looking for the comfiest, supportive seats and as much legroom as possible up front, but still leaving legroom behind the drivers seat. Can`t get on with the driving position of my Skoda Octavia and the seat squabs are too short. Appreciate I`m probably looking at executive/luxury motors (which is not a problem) but I am interested in recommendations from fellow long legged b*****s! Read more
I am currently searching for a new car and have looked at the 5 Series, Volvo S60, Audi A4, Passat & the Omega and without a doubt the S60 has superb seats. Being honest the seat is not something I pay attention to (rightly or wrongly) however the first thing that struck me about the S60 was the seat!
I am 6ft1 and in comparison to the Volvo, I was unable to find a comfortable driving position in the Passat.
I have a MK2 golf and I can not get the heater working. I have flushed and back flushed the heater matrix, I have also drained and refilled the cooling system several times. Once the engine is at it normal temperature, if I then hold the hoses running into the heater matrix, the incoming hoses is red hot, there is a thin bypass hoses which is also red hot. Beyond the bypass hoses incoming is warm, the outgoing hoses is cold until the point were the small bypass hoses joins, were it becomes red hot again. So the hot water does not appear to be flowing around the heater matrix. When I first turn the heater on it will blow out warm air and after 5 minutes will go completely cold. I have checked the air flaps and these seem to be working correctly and I have checked the thermostat and this is working, apart from this the cooling system seems to be working correctly as the car does not overheat. Does anyone know what else I can try?
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In case anyone has similar problems.I purchased a new modification kit (£40 with VAT) and fitted it. The car heater now works fine. When the device is working properly the small bypass pipe should not get hot. Being curious I broke open the old inlet valve to have a look. When the car overheats a spring actuates a plug which restricts the flow to the car heater matrix and coolant flows through the bypass pipe. This operation is not reversible so every time the car overheats you have to install a new mod kit.
Have had some strange problems with my 99T Focus 1.8 starting from today:
1. Turning on the ignition this morning, the rev counter and speedometer shot straight up to 7000rpm and 140mph and stayed there for several seconds. Eventually they dropped straight down to zero. (During this time, the engine was at idle and I evidently wasn't going at 140mph). After a few more seconds they returned to correct readings.
2. Coming back from work this evening, I turned into my drive in 2nd gear as usual, and it became very jerky - almost kangarooing up the drive. I changed into first gear, with a resultant complete lack of power - the engine became almost silent, the oil light came on briefly, despite that I was applying a little pressure to the accelerator. It didn't feel or sound as though it had stalled, there was just no response to the accelerator.
Has anybody got any ideas as to the cause of the problems? I suspect they may be associated and to me they suggest a problem with the ECU. The car is always parked outside. Is it likely that damp has affected the ECU?
Thanks,
Tim Read more
I seem to have solved this one myself - having found the ECU, I re-secured all the connectors. Everything is now behaving itself!
I have just been told my Avensis (1.8) need a new pollen filter and quoted £65 by Toyota specialist. Does anyone know of an alternative supplier (this is one part I don't mind going non-Toyota for).
Also can they be cleaned or simply taken out - and to what effect?
Thanks
MB Read more
You can find an alternative at this site:
www.puravent.co.uk/filters/display_static_page.pl?...m
They are £20 each. I also need one and if you know of a cheaper supplier please let me know.
Regards,
MEZ
Yes that is right, just seen the service schedule for the current Citroen models as dad has just got a Picasso HDI. The C3 HDI (Same engine as 206, 307, Fiesta) has a scheduled cambelt change at 150,000 miles and does not specify a "or x years whichever.....". The other HDI engines are specified at 100,000 miles.
Gosh
Ben Read more
If you are asking the question or thinking about it, get it done tomorrow! Depending how long you keep the car ( ie if < 120k miles?) it costs no more to do at 55k than at 60k! Let some other por s*d pick up the bill for the secong replacement, or worse.
pmh (was peter)
More problems afoot for my 406, i don't know whether this is immediate or could wait a while, but i'm pretty sure its quite commen and easy enough to fix.
When going over bumps at lower speeds you can a hear a creak towards the rear of the, also when applying the handbrake on a hill, and finally when stopping, just as you finally aren't moving any more a creak towards the rear of the car.
The creak on staurday when i was stopping did sound like it was coming from the whole of the car but it was wet and i had just started my trip so i think that one wasa one off.
Most importantly does this need fixing immediately cos i've got no money! Read more
i'm not liking the sound of this, by the way mine is a 98(S) old shape so was that the new shape?
I don't intend to get it fixed because its not that bad, thought i'd wait a while to get it fixed, but i was sure it was just going to be the shocks and drums, i read that they are common for renewal at this point ie 4-5 years old
It's easy to understand why engine pre-warmers should be popular in areas of the world where winter temperatures regularly dip to -30C or less. However here in the UK our climate isn't so extreme.
The personal comfort side of things is easy to understand even in the UK, as is the ability to demist straight away. What I would like to know though is whether anyone out there in Backroomland has any personal experience of using these systems and can atest to the claims made for improved fuel economy and extended engine life. What evidence did you use to reach your conclusions? What were the actual improvements?
Did you install the system yourself - was it straight forward?
Also what about other car systems that are not pre-warmed (eg. gearboxes or wheel bearings).
Ta, Cyd Read more
Just to wrap this up finally:
I am happy to confirm that Kenlowe have now reimbursed me in full for the cost of refitting the heater and returning the faulty one to them. I have no hesitation in recommending them to others as a professional and responsible company.
OK, I know how an internal combustion engine works - just made an airfix-type working model with my six year old son- but what makes it accelerate? How does squirting more fuel into the cylinder actually increase the firing rate - why doesn't it just make a bigger explosion? Er - does that make sense?
ps www.howstuffworks.com - addictive site! Read more
Cliff
Yes, injection refers only to the method of injecting fuel, and air still reaches the cylinder due to the partial vacuum created when the piston descends on the inlet stroke. There is actually no such thing as 'suck'. The partial vacuum is filled by the ambient air pressure. Because that limits potential air flow, turbo- or supercharged engines were developed to increase the air pressure and allow more efficient filling of the cylinder with air.
The basic methods of injection are as follows:
Diesel engines:
Indirect injection uses a second, small, combustion chamber, connected to the main combustion chamber by a passage. The fuel is injected into this small chamber, where it is ignited by the hot air created by the compression stroke. The flame front then travels through the connecting passage into the main chamber. The result is a more controlled and therefore quieter combustion, which is why it was adopted for car engines. The classic design is the Ricardo 'Comet' cylinder head. The downside is that the slower combustion reduces the maximum feasible engine speed. Also, the secondary chanber reduces the options for combustion chamber design as it's more difficult to obtain the necessary high compression ratio of a diesel.
Direct injection does without the small chamber and the fuel is injected into the main combustion chamber. This allows faster, but noisier, combustion, although it does have efficiency benefits. It is used on large diesel engines, and made its way into vans but has only recently been adopted for car engines. Higher fuel pressures and more sophisticated injector systems have been developed to reduce the noise usually associated with DI on smaller engines.
Petrol injection:
Most petrol injection systems to date have used injectors mounted in the inlet manifold, which spray the fuel into the air being drawn into the engine, thus mimicking the effect of a carburettor. Various sensors determine the correct fuel supply, and this makes fuel injection more responsive and efficient than a carburettor. Early systems (eg Bosch K-Jetronic) used continuous fuel spray, but later systems have standardised on pulsed supply, timed with the engine operation.
Direct injection supplies the fuel direct to the combustion chamber, at the appropriate point on the compression stroke as in a diesel engine. It needs higher fuel pressures and vary accurate metering of supply. Ignition is still provided by a spark plug, rather than the compression - ignition system of a diesel.
Regards
John S
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You can start a four stroke by reversing the ht leads.bear in mind roughly.misfires will prevent from running correctly.please dont confuse 2stroke with four.question wasnt about this.point has I think been made on this.
Was mech1