94 Ford Escort 1.9L Engine Rebuild Issue

[hakachukai]

I'm working on a Ford 1.9L SEFI engine. I did a valve job on the head, cleaned out the oil pan, put new gaskets everywhere. New oil filter and fresh oil. I turned the engine over till I saw oil squirting out of the top of the lifters.

I then started up the engine and tested it for about 15 or 20 seconds ( with no coolant ).

I ran it in sequence at:
1k
2k
3k
4k
5k
6k
Then Idle.

At all rpm ranges it sounded perfect! Not a single tick, misfire or anything!
At idle it stalled and refused to start ( the starter sounded bogged down. It was having a hard time turning ).

After the running test the crank shaft is now hard to turn. It seems like the crank shaft didn't lube itself even though it was bathing in oil? How is this possible?

The oil was full ( according the dip stick [ I know for sure that I added between 4 and 5 quarts ] ) at the time of the test. I ran the test for about 15 seconds with no coolant. The engine didn't heat up much at all, so I don't think it's an over heating issue.

Since then I've disconnected the pistons from the crank shaft and removed all 5 crank support caps. The crank is still difficult to turn ( even with the pistons disconnected and the crankshaft caps removed ).

The piston caps and shims show no significant wear. The pistons seem to slide pretty easily ( I can easily slide them by hand ).

The Crank shims all have visible wear marks and seemed pretty dry. Even with the crank caps removed and pistons disconnected, the crank shaft is hard to turn.

Is there any realistic way to remove the crankshaft from this engine without pulling the engine from the car?

Why did this happen in the first place? Let's say that I replace the crank bearings and re-assemble the engine. What will stop this from happening a second time?

[12Ounce]

Not knowing the history of this engine, but going by by your description ... I would say the oil arteries to the crank are blocked for some reason. Best to carry the block to a shop that does "acid vating'.

Yes, you will have to pull the engine. Not a huge job with this engine. I've pulled more than one ... with just myself and one other person lifting ... no hoist. Just a 4x4 across the engine bay and chains.

i would never run this engine without coolant. The head on this engine is very prone to drop valve inserts ... By the time you sense "engine heat", the combustion chamber is torched! I go to extensive lengths to prove that the cooling system is filled completely before start-up.

[hakachukai]

Is there any special oil priming routine that I need to go through for this engine? I plan to fix it, but I don't want this to happen twice!

Here is some of the history:

I bought this car about 6 weeks ago ( 94 Ford Escort wagon ).
It had serious overheating problems ( it was the head gasket ).
The head had serious pitting over cylinder #1 and so did piston #1.

I went to pull a part and got a replacement piston and head.

I lapped the head and did a valve job ( it seals and is level ).
I also verified that the head is easy to turn.

I haven't checked the cylinders yet, but I don't think they are damaged.

[12Ounce]

"Serious pitting" reminds me of what a loose insert can do. It can come loose ... get sideways, doing a good bit of damage ... and end up re-seated, looking quite innocent. A loose insert, on the other hand, can also completely wreck a piston top, rod, and cyl wall. This may requred the block cylinder to be sleeved.

I use a shop to reface my heads ... and I request that extra effort is made to assure the seats will never loosen. Of course, there are never any absolutes on this effort.

BTW, when I suggested me and one other removed the engine ... that is only the block, crank, and flexplate ... everything else has been removed. Not very heavy in this condition. Remember once the crank is removed, it should be stored on-end, never on its side! Yours may need turning.

I usually smear on axle grease on all crank bearings. The rings and pistons are very oily as they are mounted. I also pack the oil pump gears with petroleum jelly ... not grease ... this helps during priming. On this engine, I assemble everything but the timing belt, valve cover, and plugs... pour in the oil across the length of the head ... making sure the cam gets wet. Then with the filter loose, and a catch pan underneath, I turn the crank by hand until oil appears at the filter ... then the filter is tightened. I continue turning crank by hand until I see oil flowing at the top of the engine. Then assembly is completed.

If you don't have access to a shop that has a vat ... you can do pretty good on your own. It requires compressed air. Just remove every thing down to the bare block ... remove the M10 hex socket plugs at each end of the block ... and squirt brake cleaning fluid into all arteries. Blow out with compressed air until you are assured all passages are clear. Re-install the plugs using some Loc-tite.

[hakachukai]

Ok, so I removed the engine. I stripped it down to the block and crank and removed it by myself. MAN that thing is heavy!

Surprisingly I found no engine damage!

The crank was hard to turn because the oil pump that is mounted on the crank destroyed itself! It's full of aluminum shavings from the pump gears gouging out the pump walls.

Since then I've re-installed the crank and tightened up all of the crank caps ( not torqued, but tight ). The crank now turns completely smooth and easy like it should, as long as the oil pump is not installed.

So now the question is... what in the world would cause an oil pump to cannibalize itself?!
Was it something that I did, or am I just very unlucky?

[12Ounce]

I started to suggest it was the oil pump. It happens ... you probably know little of the engine's prior life ...all it has to do is run dry, or some folks like to dump all kinds of miracle cure stuff in their crankcase, you can never tell. It is good money spent to buy a new pump even if the old one is usable.

Now that you know the oil pump has fragmented ... all the more reason to make sure the arteries are clear throughout. You don't know what may have sliced through the filter or when.

[12Ounce]

Don't forget to pack the inlet of the new pump with petroleum jelly ... 'til it comes out the outlet. No need to fill the pickup tube.

[hakachukai]

Thanks for the info!

I'm wondering about the details of packing the pump with the jelly. Do I just put the jelly in the gears of the pump by hand, or will it suck it up?

Since you said to pack it until it comes out of the outlet, that makes me think that maybe I'm supposed to do this with the pump removed? I'm pretty sure the outlet is hidden once the pump is installed (because it pumps straight into the block).

Once I've done all of this, how do I get the jelly out of the engine? Won't it clog up some of the oil channels?

[Paulster2]

Originally Posted by hakachukai

... I'm wondering about the details of packing the pump with the jelly. Do I just put the jelly in the gears of the pump by hand, or will it suck it up?...

Open it up and pack it by hand. It will not suck it up on it's own.

[12Ounce]

Actually while the pump is in your hand, you can poke a bit in ... turn the shaft detail (in the correct direction!) ... poke in a bit more...continue til it comes out the outlet. Or, yes, you can open it up ... a bit more work. Either way, the idea is to have the gears awash in jelly ... this will help the pump prime without being dry. The jelly will stay in place unless temps are over 100F degrees ... and this small volume will essentially disappear/dillute into the oil once the engine starts up. Remember, petroleum jelly is a well-head product. I've used this "trick" many times.

[Intuit]

After every oil change I'll prime the engine by holding the accelerator to the floor, before and during the crank. This eliminates the brief instance of valve clatter during the first start after an oil change. When the PCM senses WOT at crank, it refuses to activate the injectors. Thus, the engine does not start. Feature is meant to help clear a flooded engine.

[12Ounce]

I've never concerned myself before about the engine firing up after an oil change... but your procedure is a simple one to add to the process. Can't hurt.

After a rebuild, I have always primed the pump directly when possible ... using a drive shaft and drill-motor. Otherwise, I turn the engine several times with the starter before the plugs are installed.

[hakachukai]

Update on this Engine:

All of the new parts shipped in.

I just put in a new:
Oil pump
Rear main seal
Push rod bearings
Crank bearings

The engine is still in my workshop.

I measured the thickness of the new bearings with my calipers. They are the correct standard thickness.

I put it all together dry with all bearing caps loose.

I poured oil down from the top of the cylinder through the oil port while turning the crankshaft ( to oil the crank and push rod bearings ).

I removed the bottom bearing caps to check for oil.
Confirmed. Everything got a nice healthy coat of oil.

I re-installed the bearing caps and torqued them to spec
30ft-lbs for the push rod caps
70ft-lbs for the crank bearing caps

The engine is locked! I can't budge it with a 2ft ratchet!

So I loosened all of the bearing caps except for #1 and #5 on the crankshaft.

I can now turn it, but it is amazingly hard to do!

If I loosen all of the bearing caps, it turns easily with no problems.


Why !?!?
Is this normal?

Since the bearings are standard size ( and measured in spec ) and the crank is actually slightly worn ( 1/1000th out of spec ).... WHY would it bind up?

[12Ounce]

I always use assembly grease on cranks and throws. With this grease and oily cyl walls... the crank should be easy to turn with a wrench.

I suspect one or more of the bearings are actually undersize. Are you familiar with Plastigage? You can read about it in any Haynes.

[hakachukai]

yeah, I got some plastiguage.

I tore it back down again.

Everything looks perfect in terms of assembly. I couldn't find any mistakes, everything lines up perfectly!

I did however find wear marks on the new bearings. The wear marks are not consistant at all.
They were indeed well oiled!

I'm thinking it either has be wrong sized bearings or an uneven crankshaft. I'll investigate a bit later.