Ford Cortina Mk3 with a Tercel Engine 3A Vacuum Leak

[dlb]

hey dinka. do NOT block the two ports on top of the engine. doing so can burst crank case seals. the port closest to the firewall should be hooked up to the air filter housing because it sucks in fresh air. the port closest to the front of the car should be hooked up to a port at the base of the carb so it can dump crankcase vapors back into the intake. the port at the base of the carb is usually on the spacer but i don't know what you used for that so you may have to get creative there. at the very least, you need a small, fine filter on the rear port so it doesn't suck dust in and kill the engine right quick. the front one could do with just a hose on it, draped over the side of the engine so any crap that comes out of it will at least not be sprayed straight up and all over the entire engine.

i'm not a clutch expert but i think it's probably the pressure plate or the clutch disc since the grinding occurs when the clutch is engaged. does it happen in all gears? are you sure the transmission is all the way in gear? if yes and yes, you'll have to pull the engine or drop the trans to replace the clutch.

[DiNka]

hey dinka. do NOT block the two ports on top of the engine. doing so can burst crank case seals. the port closest to the firewall should be hooked up to the air filter housing because it sucks in fresh air. the port closest to the front of the car should be hooked up to a port at the base of the carb so it can dump crankcase vapors back into the intake. the port at the base of the carb is usually on the spacer but i don't know what you used for that so you may have to get creative there. at the very least, you need a small, fine filter on the rear port so it doesn't suck dust in and kill the engine right quick. the front one could do with just a hose on it, draped over the side of the engine so any crap that comes out of it will at least not be sprayed straight up and all over the entire engine.

i'm not a clutch expert but i think it's probably the pressure plate or the clutch disc since the grinding occurs when the clutch is engaged. does it happen in all gears? are you sure the transmission is all the way in gear? if yes and yes, you'll have to pull the engine or drop the trans to replace the clutch.

Thanks for the info mate I will later on get a small filter and then put a hose on the other. and the car is on neutral not in any gear

[dlb]

the car is on neutral not in any gear

does it make the sound when in gear as well?

[DiNka]

the car is on neutral not in any gear

does it make the sound when in gear as well?

I will check that tomorrow and let you know and this happens while I drive Only on First Gear and Reverse in Dead stop
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5aQluNgMwBc

[DiNka]

After all this got the engine to run fine have a look and let me know if anything else has to be done.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2rLmD7GF5mk

[dlb]

in that last vid, you ask if the knocking sound is coming from the valves. it's really hard to tell with videos but i'd say yes, judging by the clattering sounds i think you need to adjust your valve lash. you need feeler gauges to do that because it's very precise stuff. check page 19 in the FSM for how to do that.

[DiNka]

in that last vid, you ask if the knocking sound is coming from the valves. it's really hard to tell with videos but i'd say yes, judging by the clattering sounds i think you need to adjust your valve lash. you need feeler gauges to do that because it's very precise stuff. check page 19 in the FSM for how to do that.

Yeah I watched a Video but I have to buy the Feeler gauge though, And Mate does the carb tuning effect the engines fuel economy while driving ? If not them is there any tuning component for the engine other than the carb ?

[dlb]

yes, the carb tuning affects fuel economy. if it runs rich, you will burn excess fuel. if it's too lean, you will get predetonation ("pinging" sounds) in the combustion chamber, which can eventually damage the head, valves, pistons, and/or cylinders. the easiest way to tell how it is running is to pull the spark plugs and look at them. they should be a medium brown, chocolate milk colour. if they are too dark, you're running rich. if they're too light or the electrode is melted down, you're too lean. here's a good image guide to follow for checking spark plug condition.



ignition timing is also critical to tuning the engine. have you checked that? stock timing is 5* BTDC but you can set it to 10* BTDC for a bit better performance without harming anything.

[Petros]

I just listened to the video, hard to tell but that sound could also be an exhaust leak, when it happens up near the manifold it has a strong pulse and almost sounds like a knock. Put hour hand down around the head pipe gaske (do not touch!) and feel for exhaust leak, also up under the intake manifold (where the exhaust manifold meets the head), over the top where it meets the head and round the EGR valve or any plugs in the manifold. That strong of an exhaust leak you will feel it when you get close to it.

Also, as DLB pointed out, it also sounds like you need to adjust the valves. That will not harm anything to drive it, it is just the noise is really annyoing.

Sounds like you come a long way with it, idling smooth and evenly.

[DiNka]

yes, the carb tuning affects fuel economy. if it runs rich, you will burn excess fuel. if it's too lean, you will get predetonation ("pinging" sounds) in the combustion chamber, which can eventually damage the head, valves, pistons, and/or cylinders. the easiest way to tell how it is running is to pull the spark plugs and look at them. they should be a medium brown, chocolate milk colour. if they are too dark, you're running rich. if they're too light or the electrode is melted down, you're too lean. here's a good image guide to follow for checking spark plug condition.



ignition timing is also critical to tuning the engine. have you checked that? stock timing is 5* BTDC but you can set it to 10* BTDC for a bit better performance without harming anything.

I cheked after I came after a ride and the plugs are black with carbon soo I need to adjust the mixture screw right ? And yes about the timming.. I will go to that a bit later I need to learn something as I know nothing about timing :/ You set it from the Deezzi right ?
Alright the Video is up!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MUQgI_C0 ... e=youtu.be
Alright so From 0:06 to 0:09 There is a miss ?
From 0:14 to 0:21 It accelerates OK ( Not perfect but no miss there till I shift to 3rd)
And then again 0:22 to 0:27 There it is again this time its longer..
And then again 0:37 to 0:40 it hits again.. After that I didn't get the miss as I was close to home and wasn't speeding and the whole time when this happened it lacked power! ALOT!

And from 1:01 to 1:06 Do you hear a Grinding ? This happens the whole time I drive you here it well as I don't accelerate and the engine reving sound doesn't block it.. Is that gear Grinding or bearings craped out ?

PS- I just came after a ride again and the Violent chatter is back ? This morning it didn't have any issue with 1st gear all smooth but after I took it out again after about 1km from a dead stop in 1st gear the Violent shake/chatter began :\ It idles good but It feels like it has no power This happens when the car heats up I guess because when I start it for the first time it goes fine on 1st gear.. Uploading a Video that I did in the morning (It didn't shake in 1st gear in the morning)

[dlb]

since you probably have the AAP blocked off, it shouldn't cause rich running. is your choke wide open once the engine is warmed up? if so, then yes, i think you need to adjust your mixture.

yes, the ignition timing is set by turning the distributor, aka the dizzy. you will need a timing light to do that. first, do you have any vacuum hoses running between the dizzy and the carb? if so, you will need to disconnect and plug them. then you will get the car warm, hook the light up to the battery and the #1 spark plug lead (the one closest to the front of the engine), and shine the flashing light down at the crank pulley. you should see a mark on the pulley that shows up in time with the flash of the light. right next to the pulley is the lower timing belt cover, and on it there are some raised #s to indicate the degrees before top dead center, aka BTDC. the mark on the pulley should line up with either the 5* or 10* mark. if it doesn't, loosen the 12 mm bolt at the bottom of the dizzy and rotate the dizzy one way or the other until the mark is at either the 5* or 10* mark. tighten the 12 mm bolt down, recheck the timing, and adjust again as necessary. hook the vacuum hoses up again if you have them. if you don't have any vacuum hoses, i recommend you set the timing to 10* to partially make up for the lack of vacuum advance.

sorry, i can't tell anything from your video. it's missing and running shitty sometimes so you need to finish tuning the carb, setting the timing, and replacing any old dizzy cap, rotor, and wires. if the car is good cold but lousy hot, it's partially because it's too rich, which you can see from your spark plugs. like i said, fix all the stuff first and then how it runs.

[DiNka]

since you probably have the AAP blocked off, it shouldn't cause rich running. is your choke wide open once the engine is warmed up? if so, then yes, i think you need to adjust your mixture.

yes, the ignition timing is set by turning the distributor, aka the dizzy. you will need a timing light to do that. first, do you have any vacuum hoses running between the dizzy and the carb? if so, you will need to disconnect and plug them. then you will get the car warm, hook the light up to the battery and the #1 spark plug lead (the one closest to the front of the engine), and shine the flashing light down at the crank pulley. you should see a mark on the pulley that shows up in time with the flash of the light. right next to the pulley is the lower timing belt cover, and on it there are some raised #s to indicate the degrees before top dead center, aka BTDC. the mark on the pulley should line up with either the 5* or 10* mark. if it doesn't, loosen the 12 mm bolt at the bottom of the dizzy and rotate the dizzy one way or the other until the mark is at either the 5* or 10* mark. tighten the 12 mm bolt down, recheck the timing, and adjust again as necessary. hook the vacuum hoses up again if you have them. if you don't have any vacuum hoses, i recommend you set the timing to 10* to partially make up for the lack of vacuum advance.

sorry, i can't tell anything from your video. it's missing and running shitty sometimes so you need to finish tuning the carb, setting the timing, and replacing any old dizzy cap, rotor, and wires. if the car is good cold but lousy hot, it's partially because it's too rich, which you can see from your spark plugs. like i said, fix all the stuff first and then how it runs.

Yes the AAP is caped and yes the Choke is wide open all the time so the choke being widely open should the mixture screw be turned clockwise more than usual ? And about the timing and such I will have to take it to the garage I will not be able to do that and yes there is a vacuum hose going from a part under the distributor that is connected to it to the Carb..

[dlb]

no, the mixture screw should be set to best lean idle. I think petros described how to set a mixture screw above so just follow that. make sure the engine is hot when you set it though.

not sure about how much shops cost in sri lanka but here, it's cheaper to buy a timing gun and do it yourself than pay for the labour for someone else to do it.

[Petros]

sounds like a couple of issues, first make sure you have all the vacuum leaks found and capped off. if you have some carb cleaner spray you can use it to find some leaks by spraying it at various places around the base of the carb (use short puffs of spray), and where the engine rpm changes when you spray it, that is where the leak is located. Also check where the manifold meets the head for leaks as well.

ONce you are sure all the vac leaks are capped off, than you should experiment with the spark timing. You can do it yourself without a timing light, loosen the distributor bolt and advance it a little bit (the direction that causes idle speed to go up is in the advance direction) and than drive it. If you get no ping or knocking (a crackling sound from deep inside the engine) when you accelerated hard, than advace it a bit more. Keep doing this until you get that crackling sound (engine knock or ping), and than back off the timing to where you got no ping. YOu want the most advance where there is no ping or knock.

Your problem, best I can tell from the video, is you still have a vac leak, the timing could be too far retarded, needs to be advance, and you are shifting too early (based on the tach I can see in the video). You need to allow the engine to run up to about 3000 rpm before you shift, and much higher if you are accelerating. shifting and trying to accelerate at 1500 rpm will cause it to miss and stumble.

There is one other issue that might be at play here, make sure the trans is filled with the proper gear lube oil, if it is too low it will be hard to shift and might make load gear noise. The other is your clutch might be bad, you description sounds like clutch chatter, that happens when they get oil from a leaky seal (from either the back of the engine or the front of the trans). If you have a seal leaking on the clutch you will have to drop the trans and replace the clutch and the leaky seal(s).

first get the carb and timing sorted out, than try shifting at higher rpm and see how it acts.

This is kind of a strange experience: helping you fix your car from half way around the world. Good luck!

[DiNka]

sounds like a couple of issues, first make sure you have all the vacuum leaks found and capped off. if you have some carb cleaner spray you can use it to find some leaks by spraying it at various places around the base of the carb (use short puffs of spray), and where the engine rpm changes when you spray it, that is where the leak is located. Also check where the manifold meets the head for leaks as well.

ONce you are sure all the vac leaks are capped off, than you should experiment with the spark timing. You can do it yourself without a timing light, loosen the distributor bolt and advance it a little bit (the direction that causes idle speed to go up is in the advance direction) and than drive it. If you get no ping or knocking (a crackling sound from deep inside the engine) when you accelerated hard, than advace it a bit more. Keep doing this until you get that crackling sound (engine knock or ping), and than back off the timing to where you got no ping. YOu want the most advance where there is no ping or knock.

Your problem, best I can tell from the video, is you still have a vac leak, the timing could be too far retarded, needs to be advance, and you are shifting too early (based on the tach I can see in the video). You need to allow the engine to run up to about 3000 rpm before you shift, and much higher if you are accelerating. shifting and trying to accelerate at 1500 rpm will cause it to miss and stumble.

There is one other issue that might be at play here, make sure the trans is filled with the proper gear lube oil, if it is too low it will be hard to shift and might make load gear noise. The other is your clutch might be bad, you description sounds like clutch chatter, that happens when they get oil from a leaky seal (from either the back of the engine or the front of the trans). If you have a seal leaking on the clutch you will have to drop the trans and replace the clutch and the leaky seal(s).

first get the carb and timing sorted out, than try shifting at higher rpm and see how it acts.

This is kind of a strange experience: helping you fix your car from half way around the world. Good luck!

All taken to note, and when advancing the timing after loosening the bolt should I slide it to the top or down ? either way I will have to move it like 1 inch per time I guess. Yes I still guess its a vac leak and about the accelration part the Engine can't be reved to even 5K Its VERY hard to rev the engine even when idle it screams like a idiot but the rev meter doesnt go beyond 4.5K I don't keep reving as the sound scares me that the engine might blow up :/ I usally shit to the engine sound not the tacho meter both my dads van and the rav4 both toyota's are shifted the same but I rev the rav to about 3K rpm and it doesnt sound this bad at all! I'm not sure if the tacho is faulty but it said 4 cylinder on the back of it... Ohh yeah If I try to rev shift I will probably get the miss to hit around 3K rpm

Ps- if the knocking and pingin sound come should I stop the engine immediately and readjust it ? Like if when I'm driving it start to knock and ping