Springfield

No need to read all of the posts in the thread. Every car problem is different. Post 'em when you got 'em! I'll add to that... What speeds? Turning left? Right? Both directions? The more information the better when asking us to diagnose your car over the internet.

If the battery is weak, you will hear a rapid clicking and the lights will dim usually. If the battery is completely dead, you won't hear anything and there will be no power in the dash. If the starter is going bad you will hear one single click. This is because the battery is supplying power to that starter but it won't turn the engine. Banging on the starter will usually get the car to start. Turning the key 5 times or so will usually get the car to start as well. Just figured I'd queue you in on that.

That's what I thought when I read your first post. If it doesn't take a jump, a large majority of the time, it is the starter.

Given your descriptions and responses I would have to assume that your problem is caused by the belt breaking or belt replacement. Does the hesitation happen all the time while driving? I can only assume that is intermittent because you say the CEL isn't on all the time. Also, this hesitation... is it like a vibration when you hit the gas (misfire)? Is it a complete lack of power? Those types of things would be helpful. It's possible that the technician didn't get the timing marks up correctly when he was installing the new belt. It is also possible that there was a valve bent or damaged when the timing belt broke. I don't think that the valve cover leak (it seems minor by your description) is what is causing your problem.

I've seen it happen, many times. What I believe the cause would be is really the wires being saturated in oil. The oil will get damn hot sitting in the spark plug tubes and deteriorate the rubber on the wires. The hard rubber will get soft and there will be resistance problems. I don't think that the plugs will be a problem because they are covered in ceramic which is resistant against heat. I'd still replace them if you suspect the wires are causing the misfire though because a misfire can foul a plug rather quickly. The VWs (at least most of them) have a metal shield around the ends of the wires where they mount to the plugs. This may counteract the heat that would deteriorate the ends of the wires where oil would pool up. I can't say I've seen tube seal leaks as a common problem on many VWs though. I mostly see it on 4 cylinder Fords and Chryslers. Most (if not all) Fords and Chryslers have rubber ends on their plug wires, terrible shielding and very brittle.

:rotflmao:

That would be me.

First, a little info on the Escort ZX2 has an overhead cam engine (possibly double overhead cam) meaning that the camshaft is mounted in the head instead of the block (that would be overhead valve). All modern 4 cylinder engines are SOHC or DOHC (Single or Double Overhead Cam). That means that the spark plugs go into the engine through the valve cover. As far as your oil leak. Your valve cover gasket, more rather spark plug tube seals are leaking. If you buy a valve cover gasket, the tube seals will usually be included. The oil will leak from the tube seals into the spark plug tube and pool up (think of the spark plug tube as a long hollow cylinder). This can cause misfire problems as the spark plugs and ignition wires (that connect to the plugs) can become oil saturated. If the oil has pooled up far enough to saturate the wires as well, I would replace the valve cover gasket (with tube seals), spark plugs and ignition wires. As far as your serpentine and/or timing belt problem. I would definitely need to know what broke. The serpentine belt drives all of the accessories (alternator, power steering pump, AC) and can be seen in the engine bay. The serpentine belt is the main drive belt. The timing belt drives all of the timing components (crank gear, cam gear and water pump) and cannot be seen if you look around in the engine bay. The timing belt is covered by a cover and if it breaks is rather difficult to replace. That said, if either belts break your car won't run any longer. If it was your timing belt that broke, the engine would die immediately. The escort engine is an "interference" engine meaning that if the timing belt breaks the valves could hit the pistons and bend and/or break. This would cause major engine damage that could mean anything from not running well to making noise (ticking from engine) to not running whatsoever. If you timing belt did break, the mechanic working on the vehicle should have informed you of this before he replaced the broken belt. Also, if the belt broke at 70 something K miles, there would usually be a reason that it broke, such as a locked up pulley. If it was your serpentine belt that broke, the engine would not die immediately but continue running until the batter could not provide any more electrical power. Your car wouldn't have any power steering either, from the point that the belt broke until your batter ran out of power. If the serpentine belt breaks, it's not as big of a deal as if the timing belt breaks. Check all the pulleys and make sure there's no problem, install a new belt and the car is ready to go. No risk of major engine damage with a broken serpentine belt. Now... as far as your intermittent rough running and CEL (check engine light). When did it come on? Was it before or after your break down? How much time before or after? Do you know what code set the CEL? Having the code would be very helpful. The rough running issue could certainly be the spark plug tube seals leaking oil onto the spark plugs and/or wires. It could also be a bent valve if your timing belt broke and caused damage. I'd always try the easier route first (spark plugs and wires). As far as replacing the valve cover gasket and tube seals. It isn't terribly difficult on that car. 10 bolts or so and you can pull it off. Make sure you torque the valve cover correctly when putting it back on because an incorrect torque can cause further leaks or warp the cover. Other than that, it isn't too difficult. If you were replacing the gasket, I'd also replace the plugs and wires at the same time as good measure.

You're not the only one. I've had conversations with some dude claiming to be a 17 year old kid? He seemed to be so genuine when I ruined his life informing him that Springfield Mall was ghetto. What was his alter ego?

That's nasty.

:rotflmao: It's all good friendo.

Don't you hate not having the VW specific software? Damn Germans. There is nothing that I can remember off the top of my head as far as that goes. Obviously it has to be something in the ABS. Perhaps a pump problem? Try flushing out the brake fluid? If it was an electrical problem you'd probably have an ABS light of course.

I see what you are saying. I don't know if that would have any effect on the MIL though. It's worth a shot as it's essentially free. I would suspect that if it was the O2 sensor (which it may very well not be) that it's setting the code once it goes into closed loop. Skipping the warm up time may just make it go into closed loop faster and thus cause the MIL to come on sooner. This is strictly business here. (I just like sharing my knowledge to be honest)

O2 sensors? On the valve covers? :doh: They are in the exhaust just like every other car. Perhaps you were thinking PCV valve?

I would respond but twa has probably offered just as much, if not more, advice that I could have on the subject. Carry on.

Fist thing, as twa suggested, check the brake fluid. Checking that could save you a lot of time if it is as simple as that. That said, I would say it probably isn't the brake fluid. Any technician with a head on their shoulders would know to check and/or fill the brake fluid after doing a brake job. The ABS pump is a very common problem on those vehicle. Also, if memory serves correctly, I believe that there is a TSB (technical service bulletin) about a power wire that can rub through causing an ABS light. Other possible problems could be a speed sensor or the ABS ring (what the speed sensor reads) on the wheels. A good technician should have noticed a broken ABS ring during the brake job though. There is probably a code stored for the ABS though. That should lead you (or somebody) in the right direction. You may also try and find a place online that lists the TSB's for your vehicle, that may be helpful as well.

The computer does go back to default after the battery is replaced. It takes a bit of driving before the computer relearns everything. This can sometimes be a result of carbon deposits (build up) around the throttle body. If the computer resets the IAC (Idle Air Control) back to base and there is a ton of carbon built up in the IAC passage it may not open far enough to maintain the proper idle. Example: We had a Toyota Camry in the shop about a month ago. We replaced the battery and the vehicle would start out and then die. I could hold my foot on the throttle and it would run. I tried driving it to get the computer to relearn but it never got back to normal. This vehicle was equipped with an electronic throttle and it wouldn't learn to go back to where it was before the battery was replaced. I had to do an induction service on this vehicle because without it, the car wouldn't stay running. After the induction service, the car ran great and the customer was as happy as could be. (I don't think your vehicle has electronic throttle so that shouldn't be the problem. The IAC might be though.)

Wow... appears I've got some catching up to do... It could be a number of different things. Like others have suggested and given your symptoms (which seem like none), I would probably suspect a bad O2 sensor but it's impossible to know for sure without having it checked out when the light is on. Being that this vehicle is pre OBD II (aka OBD I) it will only store a code when the light is on. After the light goes out a scanner won't be able to tell you much (at least as far as why the light is on). What is OBD II you ask? OBD stands for On Board Diagnostics, and OBD II is the second version of it. It is found in every car '96 and newer and allows for a standard in communication with the PCM (Powertrain Control Module, ECU, computer, what ever you want to call it). OBD II allows emissions tests to be performed with accuracy without running the car and sticking a probe in the tail pipe. When the MIL (malfunction indicator light, check engine light, service engine soon light, what every you want to call it) comes on it will store a code that will not go away until the detected problem does not occur for a certain period of time. Even if the problem is not happening, the code will be stored in the memory and the light will remain on. OBD II is accurate enough to tell if there is something wrong with the car, even if the computer can cover up this problem by changing the the way the car is running (in the end, the driver may feel no difference in performance). But your car has OBD I... OBD (you guessed it On Board Diagnostics) I is a very remedial form of self diagnostics. If the PCM detects a problem, it will turn on the MIL only when the problem detected is occuring. It will not save any codes so a technician scanning for codes on an OBD I car that doesn't have a light on would be pointless. Furthermore, OBD I can only detect a limited number of issues compared to OBD II. Most times when the MIL is on in an OBD I vehicle, something is very wrong. Now, as this relates to your vehicle and why I would suspect an O2 sensor failure... an O2 sensor problem can be detected by OBD I and will not cause major running conditions (in most circumstances). The most noticeable symptom with a failed O2 sensor would be decreased fuel economy. Given that you don't see any sort of misfire or such, I would suspect a bad O2 sensor. All of that said, I would have it checked out by somebody. MIL's are very difficult to guess about unless I know the code that is being set. Try to make sure the light comes on too, I know it's hard to do something like that but it would be very helpful to whoever is working on it. I don't see how he could imply that it was running slightly rich but I do agree that letting it idle for excessive amounts of time could be more harmful than beneficial. PS: Thanks for handling the thread while I was working. I do appreciate. I am of the notion that letting all of the car warm up at the same time is a good thing. When you let it idle for extended periods and go to drive, you are meshing a hot engine with a cold transmission. Hot and cold don't get along. 89 octane should be all you need for that beast. Grade of gas shouldn't be the problem. Thanks for the shout out! I would bet that the light comes on even without a long warm up too. If it is an O2 sensor, the warm up time won't really matter. I don't think that OBD I computers are advanced enough to have a code set by carbon deposits alone. That said, if you haven't had an induction service (decarbonization service) done within the last 30K or so, it would probably be worth your while. Not very hard if all goes well (rust problems can suck tremendously). Much easier when it's on a lift though. They're under the truck in the exhaust. Knowing which one to replace is key though. You could splurge and replace all of them though.

I actually had the Eibach pro kit on my old car. I didn't have any problems with camber (or at least that many). I'd still get it aligned afterwards to make sure your camber is up to spec. You could probably do it yourself as long as you have a spring compressor. It's much easier when the car's up on a rack though. I have nothing but good things to say about the Eibach pro kit though. It gave me the look I wanted and didn't make the ride too harsh. Any other questions, let me know.

PS Slacky: I personally recommend Eibach. I've used Eibach springs before and quite like them.

First and foremost, make sure you buy name brand ****. That Ebay **** is whack and you'll cry trying to make it work. I'm almost 100% sure that it has struts all the way around. You will need a spring compressor. Replacing the struts isn't all that hard. There are probably 7 or 8 bolts to replacing it. It will take some wiggling, some strength and sweat. It can certainly be done all by yourself if you have enough will-power. A couple of things that you need to know though. If you lower the car, you will need to pay attention to the alignment and the rest of the suspension. When you lower a car it will change the camber angle. Camber is the angle that the tire leans inside or out. When you lower the car the camber will go negative (lean in at the top) because of the shortened height of the strut/spring. This will mean that the inner edge of your tires will wear out a lot faster than the outer edge. You can buy a camber kit (which will allow for adjustment of camber) to make sure that the camber isn't wearing out your tires insanely fast. The camber kit of course needs to be installed and adjusted. You will certainly need to take it in to a shop so that they can use super accurate machines to adjust it properly. There is a whole science to lowering a car and doing it right. Any more questions?

What kind of car do you have? That will probably change my answer quite a bit. Most cars that somebody would want to lower have struts (springs that sit on the strut) instead of shocks. As far as lowering any car. With enough know-how, anybody can do it. There are a few things you need to be aware of though if you're dropping it 1.5 inches. Let me know what's up, I'm not going to be on all night.

In most cases the level of the fluid inside the reservoir will not change. It is more of an "expansion tank" in most cars to be honest. In most cases the tube that comes from the radiator goes directly to the expansion tank and that is all. If the vehicle begins to overheat it will build up more pressure and the radiator cap will open (remember physics, more heat = more pressure) and allow the coolant to expand (or overflow) into the reservoir. The radiator cap is designed to open up at a specific pressure in case of overheating... Some systems have the reservoir integrated into the cooling system in order to provide a more accurate reading. These types of systems normally have no radiator cap and the cap on the reservoir has a pressure relief of sorts. I am not sure which one you have. It is very likely that you have a coolant leak of some sort. If you've had to add coolant twice now, it's very likely that it is going somewhere. Coolant doesn't just evaporate. The system should be pressure tested. They will apply pressure to the cooling system that will equate or slightly exceed the pressure found at normal operating temperature. This will uncover 90% of cooling system leaks. To answer the original question. The reservoir can sometimes be an accurate measure of the coolant level. A more accurate measure would be to remove the radiator cap (when the car is cold) and check the level directly.

Well that was a rather anticlimactic end to that fight.

I don't really watch MMA and don't know much about WEC but I'm going to give this title fight on right now a shot, see how I like the whole MMA.