Important! : Is she dead??? Help....

14th March 2013, 23:33

Right love my little 1.1 to bits

she's been good to me for 3 years now and have it looking nice (as it can be) for me so reluctant to get rid if she can be fixed.

Driving down the road today and it lost all power and finally came to a stop at the side of the road.
Wouldn't strike up again although everything seems to be doing what it should apart from the fact it doesn't seem to be sparking the petrol.
I thought it could be something simple like an earth to the plugs or something but the recovery guy (as useless as he was

) said it was the cam belt although it hasn't snapped.
He said that it could of jumped and thrown the timing out so I have no compression.

Firstly - is he right?
secondly - can she be fixed? and if so...
*how much am i looking at?
*is it easier to just get a new engine?
*how difficult is it to fix?

would appreciate any comments from people who know what their talking about or someone who has had the same problem.

I have a basic knowledge of mechanics but I'm far from any expert so apologies if I ask stupid questions.

15th March 2013, 00:02

Scrap the 1.1 stick a vts in it, very easy to do

15th March 2013, 00:17

could be various things, take it to your local garage have them look it over, if he finds the problem & its expensive it may just be worth putting a new 1.1 engine in her, (cant imagine the insurance with a vts engine), goodluck & keep us posted

15th March 2013, 00:20

Did you witness him doing a compression test?

These engines turn over very smoothly.

If your timing so much as jumps a tooth, you'll be whacking valves which will be audible.

I think it's an electrical problem, especially if you have no spark :rolleyes:

15th March 2013, 00:47

Thanks guys.

No he didn't do any kind of test just took the car belt cover off had a look and told me it was my cam belt lol.
I'll have to get it down to a garage and get them to have a look over it. I was thinking electrical but obviously I'm not a mechanic.
I'll keep everyone up to date. :-)

15th March 2013, 00:51

lol you would be a better recovery driver, goodluck let us know the problem, fingers crossed its a cheap repair.

15th March 2013, 08:00

Does it make any unusual noises when trying to start? If valves are bent due to a timing belt slip then it can 'whine' when trying to start.

15th March 2013, 09:48

Quote:

Originally Posted by FisherVTS

Scrap the 1.1 stick a vts in it, very easy to do

standard saxP reply.
If the car is really tidy and you want to keep it using the rule 'same year same fitment' source a replacement 1.1 lump.
I saw a 3 plug 40,000 mile lump on ebay the other week fail to get any bids at £50.

Im sure you could find a member on here who would be willing to swap the engines for £100 or so. Its not difficult.

Cambelts dont often snap, usually the teeth inside them come apart. Its possible that has happened, but as has been said. You would hear valves touching.

15th March 2013, 12:52

Quote:

Originally Posted by Scott83

Does it make any unusual noises when trying to start? If valves are bent due to a timing belt slip then it can 'whine' when trying to start.

That's a confusing diagnosis, my timing belt whines all the time.

If the timing was out, I'd say it sounds more like a wood pecker.

15th March 2013, 13:38

If your getting no spark then the 1st thing i`d check is the crank sensor mate.

15th March 2013, 23:49

First thing to do is make sure there is a fuel in the tank, you may have a faulty fuel gauge and your out of fuel (when did you last fill up?)
Which leads to another possibility, a faulty fuel pump. When you turn the key to "ignition" (the one before you turn it more to start the engine) you should hear the fuel pump (I presume it's in the same place as a VTS which in under the back seats-ish, it should last a few seconds A sort of humming noise).

The spark plugs earth is the engine block itself, make sure your battery is charged, remove one of the plugs and using a pair of insulated pliers press the threaded part of the spark plug against a clean (rust/paint-free) part of the block. Get a friend to try and start the car and you should see a bright spark (it's best to do this in a shaded area) (you can use bare hands, but electricity finds the easiest path back to earth and you don't want your body to be the easiest path)

If you see a "strong" spark....

The recovery man might be right and the timing is out (even if only a couple of teeth have skipped chances are it won't start). (I'm sure there is a guide on here on how to to get to TDC (top dead centre) and align the cam shaft to match.

Other possibility could include,

Broken/blocked fuel line/filter (unlikely)
ECU problem (again unlikely as you said it stopped whilst you were driving)
corrosion on terminals (but if you can hear the starter motor turning the engine again unlikely)
(other members insert your 2 pence here)

Good luck, I know how annoying it is when your baby breaks.

16th March 2013, 08:37

Quote:

Originally Posted by MartinObviously

That's a confusing diagnosis, my timing belt whines all the time.

If the timing was out, I'd say it sounds more like a wood pecker.

It's only confusing if your belt constantly whines.......

This is the whine I was on about, it's not your usual whine. Not my vid but my mate did exactly the same as the youtube poster and that's the reason I have a VTR bottom end sat in the back of my garage instead of a full VTR.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M48ZLG0ASss

13th July 2013, 00:03

thanks for everyones comments

in the end turned out to be the cam belt which had lost a lot of teeth!
completly through the timing out and manged to pick up a new block from a local scrappy so just in the process of replacing vital bit then will have her back up and running smooth again

thanks again everyone

13th July 2013, 09:59

Did that not damage the head?