Major Power Loss 1.9 8v

[dicky20014 4]

Bit of background:

 

Engine swap for a standard 1.9 8v (other one was dead), have solved various issues around wiring and managed to get it to idle pretty much spot on, all gauges working, revs up fine with no misfires etc. As soon as we came to drive it problem became apparrent - serious lack of power, not talking a few horses i mean its probably putting out less than 50bhp.

 

have put new ignition leads on (they were slightly frayed), rotor arm, dizzy cap, tried swapping the afm, have set the tps sensor properly (just clicks as you open the throttle), tried moving the ignition timing; advanced and retarded but just seems to make it backfire so I take it its not that? Checked the vaccum advance, cant blow through it.

 

So, what items could cause this huge lack of power? is the only one left to check the engine timing? (which I'm a little unsure of how to do, engine doesnt sound rough either) or could other things eg earths, ignition amp, maybe other afm was duff? wiring etc be the cause of this? (there are a couple of loose wires coming out of the main wiring harness that I dont know where they go). What baffles me is that it sounds and runs fine when revving / idling etc, I would have thought it would misfire etc if it was this much down on power?

 

any help much appreciated,

 

Rich

[ORB 227 1 Cars]

I would put fresh plugs in and maybe even swap the coil?

[DamirGTI 342]

.. check the cambelt .. lock the crank pulley and see if the camshaft is off on either a retard or advance side ..

 

Damir

 

EDIT : also , engine off remove the top air pipe and poke AFM flap with , something , it should be kinda loosen and should move easily without the need to force it .. if it's tight someone wound the AFM spring clockwise (lean mixture) and thus the engine will perform like a bag of s*it while driving .. worth to check if the springs are sound inside the dizzy as well ..

Edited April 13, 2010 by DamirGTI

[matthewm 1]

Check your timing belt is on correctly, sounds like it could be a tooth out.

[woo83 0]

As said above I'd check the cambelt timing. I had similar issues a couple of years back, After pi**ing around for hours I finally re-timed it and it was fine.

[MrG 3]

whats the exhaust like? If damaged internally it will restrict the output.

 

But it doesn't sound good, have you done a pressure test to see if anything has worn?

[dicky20014 4]

Have checked the timing just now, am I right in saying the top pulley should line up with the hole in the 7 o clock postion and the bottom pulley (one with alternator belt round) should be at 10 then insert a drill bit into the holes to check? Just changed the coil - no difference, oil filter, plugs, fuel filter changed recently, exhaust is a new (second hand system) but seemed to be fine when we put it on. It has started back firing slightly when warm if you rev it quickly then let off, doesn't do it all the time though, haven't checked the compression, is this the next step? As I'll have to buy a compression tester

 

cheers

 

rich

[dcc 855]

engines behave differently under load. my old 1.9 8v with headgasket failure used to idle perfect but when driving, it was down on power and felt liek it only ran with 2 cylinders.

[brumster 135 1 Cars]

Must admit I'm a great fan of the old compression tester, particularly when you're getting to the stages you're approaching now. Before you start chasing some electrical bug it's worth checking that the compression is where it should be. If you were local, you'd be welcome to borrow mine

[ORB 227 1 Cars]

Dont suppose you come to Carlisle often do you?

[dicky20014 4]

I bought myself a compression tester from Halfords, checked and they were all 180 psi, give or take 1 psi, I take it this means I have a nice healthy engine?

 

Tried altering the spring in the afm but it just made it worse, what else could it be? Also when we took the plugs out for the compression test, they were quite oily, does this indicate overfueling?

 

Cheers

 

Rich

[welshpug 1,657]

I would get another AFM and start afresh, preferably an unit that has never been tampered with.

[brumster 135 1 Cars]

I bought myself a compression tester from Halfords, checked and they were all 180 psi, give or take 1 psi, I take it this means I have a nice healthy engine?

 

Yup, so that's a weight off your mind

[powermandan 0]

have you checked the vacume advance on the dizzy pipe or diaphram could be split, might be worth borrowing a timing gun to check it wasnt altered when you swapped the engine out.

 

edit

 

sorry i just noticed you checked that already

Edited April 15, 2010 by powermandan

[martyn180 9]

Shot in the dark, is it the same engine code on the block as the old engine??

[dicky20014 4]

Resurrecting this a bit but I havent had time up until now to do any more work. I got a decent AFM off one of the lads on here and tried that but it hasnt made any difference which makes me think its not the AFM. The car seems to be going through a rediculous amount of fuel - its not insured, taxed or moted yet, so we cant take it to a petrol station, but weve put a couple of jerry cans full in but its gone back down to the reserve light already and we've only been round the ahem (private) block a couple of times trying to get it running right. Could it be the fuel pump is giving it too much fuel? Or the prssure regulator has failed?

Any idea's, advice, appreciated, this is getting frustrating now

 

cheers

 

Rich

[timb1046 1]

could it be a temperature sender/sensor failing?

[NeilGTi85 5]

If the blue coolent sensor on the themostat housing has gone it would make the car run like **** and burn lots of fuel.

[dicky20014 4]

If the blue coolent sensor on the themostat housing has gone it would make the car run like **** and burn lots of fuel.

 

We have already changed the blue temp sensor so does anyone have any other ideas?

[DamirGTI 342]

Clogged exhaust ?!

 

Damir

[DrSarty 90 1 Cars]

Changing the coolant temp sensor is one thing; knowing you've changed it for a good one that works properly is another issue.

 

I suggest borrowing one off a car that definitely works.

 

Have you got any silly chip in the ECU or stupid FSE adjustable regulator fitted?

 

Oily/dark plugs means something in the fuelling is wrong, as you have told us the comp is OK.

 

Have you got diesel in there?

 

Either way; it's fuelling.

Edited May 15, 2010 by DrSarty

[DamirGTI 342]

Wouldn't take compression test for granted , cos , if the engine already uses oil compression read out can turn up good because the cylinders/rings are sealed with oil hence the good results (as when you're doing dry and wet test , i.e. adding the oil inside and it always raises the measured compression from the firs dry attempt ..)

I prefer leak down test for precise problem pin point , or cylinder internal inspection with bore scope , or simple poor man's method - poking with an flashlight trough the spark plug holes with the pistons near TDC -> for poor oil control rings you're looking for "washed off" edges of the piston crowns , and wet deposits on the crowns from the edges towards the centre

 

If it was fuel , overfueling , or rich mixture the spark plugs will have black insulator nose and dry black sooty deposits on the outer metal part of the plug , if it's wet/black/oily coating then it's poor oil control from possibly the rings or steam seals/valve guides ..

 

Damir

[dicky20014 4]

Just to finish this thread off really, we started it up again, and one of the steel fuel lines split causing a massive fuel leak all over the garage floor and started smoking on the exhaust. Luckily we noticed it pretty quick and turned it off, could have been a major disaster there! Replaced the fuel lines with plastic (PTFE lined?) pipes. So I think that was the fuelling issue, not enough pressure and probably leaking fuel as we went up the street (checked it at standstill and was fine). Put it back together and it still didnt work .

 

At this point we gave up and told peugeot to put it on there diagnostics machine. Turned out it needed a new ignition amp, so I think it must have been a combination of the 2 problems! Runs well now just need a new throttle body so I can get the base idle down and our first build will be pretty much done .

 

cheers for the help so far!

 

Rich