Engines (1 Viewer)

Jun 17, 2012
2,919
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>12 but <13
It is clear there are some very experienced and wise old heads on this Forum.
Here's one for you, most know on a 4 cylinder engine the pistons go up and down in pairs, ie 1 & 4 and 2 & 3.
You will see in the pictures the piston in 3 stays in the same place. My son's customer recently bought the Transit and noted it was a bit smokey and lumpy. A compression test gave zero compression on 3 so off with its head!
The bore is brown rust and swimming in diesel.
Our guess is engine got water in it, bent the con-rod on 3 then was left to stand around. Then someone removed sump and had con-rod cut off and left piston seized in by the rust.
Customer has been informed and we await for what to do next.
Con-rod must be missing I believe, sump will be removed to put us out of our misery and I've got a tenner on an oxycetalene torch has been in use against a fiver of it being somewhere in the sump, NO CHANCE!

Anyone else got tales to tell of a really good botch?
 

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jonandshell

Free Member
Dec 12, 2010
5,476
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Norfolk
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There must have been zero oil pressure with the redundant big end journal hemorrhaging oil everywhere!
Did the bodger remove the oil pressure switch wires or did they plug the crank oil gallery with a bit of weld?

I can imagine the sales pitch- yeah mate, it's only a dodgy injector.............:Angry:
 

jonandshell

Free Member
Dec 12, 2010
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On second thoughts, the con rod remains could still be resident in the sump!:Eeek:

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Aug 30, 2012
4,270
11,303
Home of the war horse
Funster No
22,676
MH
burstnar T640
Exp
2010
In a misspent youth I sezed up a old ford zephyr on 1 piston
Piston out leather strap around crank with jubilee clip rebuild ran like a bag of knackers but it went though auction and I got paid out
O the joys of brain dead youth I bet the old bus would be worth a bob or 2 now
 
Oct 5, 2009
348
315
anglesey
Funster No
8,762
MH
Autotrail Delaware
Exp
since 1999
Looks like the piston crown has broken off usually around the oil control ring.
Bottom half of piston will still be going up and down, looks like a rebore and pistons required although you can sometimes get away with honing the bore and just replacing one piston if you want to bodge it.
 

DuxDeluxe

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Jul 10, 2008
14,627
72,223
Planet Zog
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3,243
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A woosh bang van
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since 2008
I am just amazed - ace bit of bodging, that

Edit - rather disappointed to see Maxsdad's very logical post above. The bodge sounded better :RollEyes:

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Last edited:
Nov 6, 2008
3,943
40,800
Ramsey, Isle of Man.
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4,847
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Coachmen Concord 300TS
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8 years with an RV
4 pistons, 3 con-rods, no wonder it was lumpy. I'm with you on this one not having a con-rod, or a con-rod altered with a gas spanner.

Craig
 

Snowbird

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Apr 24, 2009
11,818
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Have seen all sorts when we were exporting old truck engines. One of the favourites was where a leg had thrown out of bed, filler had been used to patch the block, sanded back and covered in oil. Have even seen Gardener blocks stuck back together with Araldite. When out buying my favourite tool was a magnet to check the block and a length of wire to check all pistons were where they should be. Those Chinese and Africans were great re builders of what was thrown away here though.
 

pappajohn

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Aug 26, 2007
43,203
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172
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Since 2005
a mate of mine put a road legal enduro bike through the auction with no flywheel.

the end of the crank had snapped off with the flywheel attached so no magneto or means of opening the points.

as the auction didnt allow bikes to be started nobody knew....but i bet the buyerwas well pissed off.

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Larby
Jun 17, 2012
2,919
9,815
North Essex
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Autotrail Delaware
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>12 but <13
Looks like the piston crown has broken off usually around the oil control ring.
Bottom half of piston will still be going up and down, looks like a rebore and pistons required although you can sometimes get away with honing the bore and just replacing one piston if you want to bodge it.

This explanation would only work if broken off at top of stroke else crank will still shove bottom bit up to to the crown and right uo to the top
 
Last edited:
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Larby
Jun 17, 2012
2,919
9,815
North Essex
Funster No
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Exp
>12 but <13
There must have been zero oil pressure with the redundant big end journal hemorrhaging oil everywhere!
Did the bodger remove the oil pressure switch wires or did they plug the crank oil gallery with a bit of weld?

I can imagine the sales pitch- yeah mate, it's only a dodgy injector.............:Angry:

Big end may still be attached? Or it previously belonged to Peter Tame, (see his offering !)
 

pappajohn

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Aug 26, 2007
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it aint in the sump, thats for sure.

i have first hand experience of a broken con rod and it aint pretty.

Hillman imp threw a rod at 60mph and the crank hit the end of it and knocked it right through the top of the block...engine laid on its side remember.

the engine still ran, as the rod was wedged in the block out of the way, and got me the 2 miles home....but most of the oil had gone :Doh:

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Aug 30, 2012
4,270
11,303
Home of the war horse
Funster No
22,676
MH
burstnar T640
Exp
2010
Have seen all sorts when we were exporting old truck engines. One of the favourites was where a leg had thrown out of bed, filler had been used to patch the block, sanded back and covered in oil. Have even seen Gardener blocks stuck back together with Araldite. When out buying my favourite tool was a magnet to check the block and a length of wire to check all pistons were where they should be. Those Chinese and Africans were great re builders of what was thrown away here though.

Best Diesel engine ever made Gardner in all its variants Except 220 turbo
Biggest pile of poo ever
I know where there is some old 5 pots still running fairground lighting sets must be from 50 s and still going strong
 

TheBig1

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Nov 27, 2011
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many many years! since I was a kid
we had a work van that sheared off a piston head that still ran, but like a bag of old spanners. on investigation, the mechanic couldnt believe it was still able to run. ended up fitting a replacement from a breakers yard as the cheapest option and the van back on the road quickly.
 
Oct 5, 2009
348
315
anglesey
Funster No
8,762
MH
Autotrail Delaware
Exp
since 1999
This explanation would only work if broken off at top of stroke else crank will still shove bottom bit up to to the crown and right uo to the top

YES THATS WHY THERE ARE THREE PISTONS AT THE TOP :Doh:

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Snowbird

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Apr 24, 2009
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Best Diesel engine ever made Gardner in all its variants Except 220 turbo
Biggest pile of poo ever
I know where there is some old 5 pots still running fairground lighting sets must be from 50 s and still going strong

Almost all of our exported Gardners went to Hong Kong and went into those old sailing junks. Those Chinese must have thought they had a speedboat with a 180 in it :ROFLMAO:. 5LWs were always in demand. They would have anything as long as it was in one piece as they had all the parts to rebuild them. They never returned anything anyway :winky:.
 
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Larby
Jun 17, 2012
2,919
9,815
North Essex
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>12 but <13
YES THATS WHY THERE ARE THREE PISTONS AT THE TOP :Doh:

Yes, 1, 2 and 4 make it to the top but 3 remains partially down the bore.
If crown was broken off piston 3 the bottom bit would smack it up to the top but it remains where it is which is why my money is on no con-rod
 

duane0001

Free Member
Jan 18, 2013
792
778
East Coast, North Yorks
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24,332
MH
Expedition 67 soon!
Exp
2021 This time
Yes, 1, 2 and 4 make it to the top but 3 remains partially down the bore.
If crown was broken off piston 3 the bottom bit would smack it up to the top but it remains where it is which is why my money is on no con-rod

I am with you Larby its obvious to me its not the crown because like you say, it would be at the top
Oh <---was a vehicle specialist in the army, thats my credentials

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Jan 22, 2013
1,245
58,350
London SE
Funster No
24,385
MH
A class Adria vision I707
Exp
since 1971
Reminds me of a customer many years ago who brought a rover 110 from the auction with a misfire , got it back home and found on of the spark plugs had no gap between the electrode, so he thought Easy! Regap all the plugs and started her up to have the dipstick ejected with a plume of oil,
On removal of the cylinder head found no piston or conrod, obviously at some point a big end had gone so they had removed the piston and conrod welded up the oil feed to the journal and put it to auction,
Moral of the story is it bargain or a millstone ,:cry:
 

rainbow chasers

Free Member
Oct 30, 2009
3,680
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Mid Cornwall
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9,132
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Various
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9
Newer transits seem to have issues with pistons/rods. They are often bodged due to the replacemnts having to be bought in sets of four as they are all balanced as a set. They can get quite expensive!

I am looking for a larger van for work at the moment - the more I look, the more I am out off with more modern vans. I have, believe it or not, been tempted by a very clean old type transit! lol! At least it has a standard clutch, serviceable engine etc. Not made my mind up yet - but definitely tempted.
 

jonandshell

Free Member
Dec 12, 2010
5,476
8,299
Norfolk
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14,648
MH
Not got one!
Exp
Since 2006
Newer transits seem to have issues with pistons/rods. They are often bodged due to the replacemnts having to be bought in sets of four as they are all balanced as a set. They can get quite expensive!

I am looking for a larger van for work at the moment - the more I look, the more I am out off with more modern vans. I have, believe it or not, been tempted by a very clean old type transit! lol! At least it has a standard clutch, serviceable engine etc. Not made my mind up yet - but definitely tempted.

Nowt wrong with the Mk7s.

I did 140k in my last van, a 2.2 FWD swb 300, no clutch needed. No oil needed between 15k services.

Better van than my POS Nissan Primastar.:Angry:

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Dec 23, 2007
4,077
6,547
Wirral
Funster No
1,064
MH
Hobby Van Kenobi
Exp
started when I was 11 with my parents-forgot to stop!been real one since 1980!
Reminds me of a customer many years ago who brought a rover 110 from the auction with a misfire , got it back home and found on of the spark plugs had no gap between the electrode, so he thought Easy! Regap all the plugs and started her up to have the dipstick ejected with a plume of oil,
On removal of the cylinder head found no piston or conrod, obviously at some point a big end had gone so they had removed the piston and conrod welded up the oil feed to the journal and put it to auction,
Moral of the story is it bargain or a millstone ,:cry:
Snap-almost I bought a Rover 105s at auction,drank oil and when the engine was opened up it appears that piston rings when replaced previously only where the top and bottom leaving out the middle which was known as the oil scraoer!
 

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