Ford Focus Major Engine Trouble - advise please?

hannac

Hi all,

I have a '09 ford focus diesel 1.6TDCI, 45mls, the car developed a knocking noise in the engine last week. The garage have yet to actually diagnoise the problem but from listening to the engine they are suggesting i will more than likely need a replacement engine.

The car was serviced only 10weeks ago and since then i did notice it was a bit sluggish & losing power at times. I mentioned this to the garage but they are not willing to accept any responsibility & dismissed this.

I've contacted Ford Ireland to see if it was still under warranty (It is a UK car & should have 3yrs) however the warranty expired 4months ago so they want nothing to do with it & also because the service interval was exceeded by about 4000 mls before my latest service.

Can anyone provide any advise on what i should do? Has anyone had major engine trouble with relatively new Focus' with low mileage?

I feel like im totally at the mercy of the garage they could tell me anything so any advise, suggestions much appreciated.

mullingar

hannac wrote: »

also because the service interval was exceeded by about 4000 mls before my latest service.

Delaying a service on any modern diesel was extremely silly.

What is the oil level like at the moment?

If it is very low, the engine and turbo would have been starved of oil and it would have grinded its self down to nothing and it is beyond repair.

hannac

Silly for sure - i've learned a leason.

There is plenty oil in it now.

mullingar

Did you top the oil up since the service?

hannac

The service was done 10wks/3000mls ago and i havent put oil in it since.

mullingar

If the oil level is OK now, the garage cannot be blamed for any damage caused by lack of oil post service.

If there is serious internal engine damage due to lack of oil before the late service, no amount of new oil will fix it.

Get it diagnosed properly first.

navara man

hannac wrote: »

The car was serviced only 10weeks ago and since then i did notice it was a bit sluggish & losing power at times. I mentioned this to the garage but they are not willing to accept any responsibility & dismissed this.

they could have put in the wrong oil filter or a faulty oil filter that would causes the knocking noise

Nissan doctor

hannac wrote: »

Silly for sure - i've learned a leason.

There is plenty oil in it now.

When you say plenty of oil in it now...was there a point when it wasn't full of oil? Diesels use oil more then petrols so how often where you checking and topping up your oil between services?

hannac

It was serviced @17k mls & 42k mls so there was a gap between service & oil top ups.
In my defence I think I let it go so long because the garage wrote the next service in Km & not miles.

Would doing an extra few 1000miles really cause an engine in a 09 car to die?

I'm going into the garage for their assessment now. they are charging €300+ to actually diagnoise the problem.

Nissan doctor

hannac wrote: »

It was serviced @17k mls & 42k mls so there was a gap between service & oil top ups.
In my defence I think I let it go so long because the garage wrote the next service in Km & not miles.

Would doing an extra few 1000miles really cause an engine in a 09 car to die?

I'm going into the garage for their assessment now. they are charging €300+ to actually diagnoise the problem.

I don't think that's in your defence at all TBH.

So did you go 25k miles(over 40,000 kms) between services and without checking your oil?

sanbrafyffe

sorry to hear bout your troulble mate,,,,my sis has an 08 and it is givving an awful lot of trouble,,,she has the 1.4 petrol,,,,,she is getting rid of it in the new year,,,if you scroll back all the pages here in the motor section,,,just take note to all the fords in this forum and especially the focus's.....

do yourself a favour and next time go for a skoda,fiat or i even hear the seat arent too bad

ive a fiat van myself and never looked back

hannac wrote: »

Hi all,

I have a '09 ford focus diesel 1.6TDCI, 45mls, the car developed a knocking noise in the engine last week. The garage have yet to actually diagnoise the problem but from listening to the engine they are suggesting i will more than likely need a replacement engine.

The car was serviced only 10weeks ago and since then i did notice it was a bit sluggish & losing power at times. I mentioned this to the garage but they are not willing to accept any responsibility & dismissed this.

I've contacted Ford Ireland to see if it was still under warranty (It is a UK car & should have 3yrs) however the warranty expired 4months ago so they want nothing to do with it & also because the service interval was exceeded by about 4000 mls before my latest service.

Can anyone provide any advise on what i should do? Has anyone had major engine trouble with relatively new Focus' with low mileage?

I feel like im totally at the mercy of the garage they could tell me anything so any advise, suggestions much appreciated.

navara man

hannac wrote: »

It was serviced @17k mls & 42k mls so there was a gap between service & oil top ups.
In my defence I think I let it go so long because the garage wrote the next service in Km & not miles.

Would doing an extra few 1000miles really cause an engine in a 09 car to die?

I'm going into the garage for their assessment now. they are charging €300+ to actually diagnoise the problem.

25 thousand miles between servicing . :eek::eek::eek:

1867IE

navara man wrote: »

25 thousand miles between servicing . :eek::eek::eek:

No wonder there's a knock in it!

I'm all for getting your entitlemnts etc, but an imported Focus 25,000miles overdue a service.......

Most respectfully OP, I wouldnt expect the dealership to have any sympathy/goodwill.

Stheno

1867IE wrote: »

No wonder there's a knock in it!

I'm all for getting your entitlemnts etc, but an imported Focus 25,000miles overdue a service.......

Most respectfully OP, I wouldnt expect the dealership to have any sympathy/goodwill.

I can't imagine they will either.

Expensive lesson OP

Saab Ed

Ah lads, the chap is stuck for advice. Lets forget the lack of maintenance for now.

OP - The car is out of warranty so you have no obligation to bring the car to a main dealer. Where bouts are you based? There's enough guys in the trade on here to be able to advise someone good to go to (where ever you are) and assess the damage. These things are not always as bad as they seem.

Nissan doctor

Saab Ed wrote: »

Ah lads, the chap is stuck for advice. Lets forget the lack of maintenance for now.

His entire opening post is eluding to there being some form of fault with the engine which has caused the issue when it seems very likely that the lack of maintenance is the actual cause so its difficult not to mention it.

lomb

If its any consolation I once got a 405 engine for 200 and got someone to fit it for 250. Im not sure what engines go for these days or labour but Id say a good indi could probably supply and fit an engine for that car for less than 1200e.
Id stay out of the dealer network for something like that as the bill would be 3 times that.

mullingar

+1

There is no shortage of second hand 1.6 diesel engines out there as the same engine is used in fords, peugeots, citroens, volvos, suzukis and minis.

enumbers

not that easy to get a good used one as they have serious issues if not serviced regularly normally results first with turbo failure due to poor oil but we have had one recently seize the bottom end and customer is struggling to get a warranted 2nd hand unit

lifer_sean

mullingar wrote: »

+1

There is no shortage of second hand 1.6 diesel engines out there as the same engine is used in fords, peugeots, citroens, volvos, suzukis and minis.

You must be joking, there is very high demand for these engines, so hard to get and expensive when you find one. You would do well to get one for 1000-1200 euro.

They might be fitted to lots of cars/vans, but lots of them are incorrectly maintained and hence are failing.

@OP, it's a bit late now, but for any of these I sell I recommend that the buyers change the oil and filter every 6k miles or so. 25k miles between servicing is way too long.

I have seen Citroen refuse to give warranty on a 2 year old Berlingo with this engine which failed 2 weeks out of warranty, and was serviced on time per the on-board service indicator.

Nissan doctor

mullingar wrote: »

+1

There is no shortage of second hand 1.6 diesel engines out there as the same engine is used in fords, peugeots, citroens, volvos, suzukis and minis.

Quite the opposite....They are an engine that can be troublesome on their own and their reliability is made worse by poor maintenance so finding good second hand ones is near impossible.

In the OP's case, if its big ends that have failed due to an oil pump failure or similar oil issue then the turbo is likely damaged too.

Pottler

Nissan doctor wrote: »

Quite the opposite....They are an engine that can be troublesome on their own and their reliability is made worse by poor maintenance so finding good second hand ones is near impossible.

In the OP's case, if its big ends that have failed due to an oil pump failure or similar oil issue then the turbo is likely damaged too.

Is getting it fixed not an option? I've a mate who buys 1.8T vag cars, pretty much all with engine issues. He rebuilds them and sells them, it's usually crank bearings that are gone which is not the end of the world.

BTW the same lad stripped down that Boxer engine I've got which was dead, turns out it needs rings, a hone, a head skim and putting back together. Everyone else said it was toast, me included. Repair cost is less than €500... Just a suggestion.

Padraig Mor

What's the service interval on these? If it's 20k miles as the op suggests, they didn't go THAT far over (any time limit aside). I have heard reports of Ford Ireland being very poor at covering uk cars, even within warranty. OP, where/when did you get the car? There's a lot of diesel Focuses coming across the water, and some of these have had ye olde haircut along the way. ...

hannac

Padraig Mor wrote: »

What's the service interval on these? If it's 20k miles as the op suggests, they didn't go THAT far over (any time limit aside). I have heard reports of Ford Ireland being very poor at covering uk cars, even within warranty. OP, where/when did you get the car? There's a lot of diesel Focuses coming across the water, and some of these have had ye olde haircut along the way. ...

For all of you that have replied thank you. I am actually a woman just to clarify. I know it's no excuse but maybe that will slighty justify my big miss on the service interval etc.

I bought the car almost just over 2 yrs ago from a dealer in Clare. The car had 9k mls on it & was more or less new., it was 9 months old at the time. Manufactured in July 09.

I've accepted that letting the car go over 24k has caused this issue & getting the dealer to replace for €1700.

He is getting second hand engine from a 2010 focus with 30k on it.

I was going to trade as is but only offered €7/8k for it which isn't an option I'd prefer get an engine into it as I like the car.

Generally do cars with replaced engines cause trouble?

What else do I need to be aware of when going down this road?

What's the story with warranties on 2nd hand engines?

Also thanks to those of u that don't judge others! Some ppl are v quick to point out the faults of others which isn't nice when ur already feeling stupid & **** about something!

OldmanMondeo

If you go with the new engine, get it serviced regulalry, even before the due milage. Check the oil every week, also keep an eye on coolant levels. The garage will show you what to look for if your unsure.

Aint Eazy Being Cheezy

Pottler wrote: »

I've a mate who buys 1.8T vag cars, pretty much all with engine issues. He rebuilds them and sells them.

Can you PM me his number?

enumbers

generally you will not have any extra issues with a 2nd hand engine but there is some things that can cause trouble if the 2nd hand engine has been sitting for a long time oil leaks etc.
If the engine sump is taken of , oil strainer cleaned, turbo feed and drain pipe checked and if the engine is complete with injectors that there checked for any sign of leakage around the seals it should be fine , but saying all this if its a garage that you trust and are reliable they will do all of d above and more to make sure the job is done right