dropped valve seat. (maybe)

[jamesmetairie]

99 lx. 128k miles. replaced timing belt,tensioner at 95k. tonight tried to start the car and had a metallic sound,noise. engine turned over but did not start. valve train is moving. accessery belt is moving. does this sound like dropped valve seat? in morning will check compression. if one cylnder has lost compression will assume it,s the valve problem. does www.zxtuner.com still put out good engines or should i cross fingers and buy at junk yard.

[mightymoose_22]

I'm not sure if that generation had the same valve seat problem.
You would hear a scary knocking sound if that was it.
If it is a knocking osund, first thing you need to do is STOP CRANKING THE ENGINE!
Take the plugs out and rotate the engine by hand and try to figure where the sound is coming from. If it is the valve seat you will be able to figure out which cylinder by feeling for the obstruction.

[The ford man]

i work at a ford dealership and i dont see many seats broken if you send a vin # i can check for service messages or if you send make model and engine size i can also check them but ive seen more of those tentioners go bad than anything else its possible that the tentioner is loosing oil pressure and not keeping the belt tight causing the rattle even if it is semi new. write back or send email and i will try to help

[The ford man]

Originally Posted by jamesmetairie

99 lx. 128k miles. replaced timing belt,tensioner at 95k. tonight tried to start the car and had a metallic sound,noise. engine turned over but did not start. valve train is moving. accessery belt is moving. does this sound like dropped valve seat? in morning will check compression. if one cylnder has lost compression will assume it,s the valve problem. does www.zxtuner.com still put out good engines or should i cross fingers and buy at junk yard.

if you are looking for a rebuildable motor we have blocks and heads go in the scrap pile all the time at my dealership if youre around arkansas and turn out to need one i can keep one for you if youd like email me if serious. free of charge if i can find one thats salvageable.

[mightymoose_22]

Ford Man:
The 1990 through about 1996 model Escorts are notorious for dropping valve seats, almost always in the #1 cylinder. It usually happens around 120k miles or so. Best guess is that the aluminum head can only hold on to those steel valve seats for so long... they just work themselves out over time as a result of heating and cooling.
These are great, economical engines, but those little valve seats sure tear them up fast. Any car with that many miles that has not had valve seats replaced is asking for trouble. It is a good preventative maintenance task to consider if the head is coming off for any reason.

I am not so sure about how common it is with '99's and newer though. It may very well be a tensioner. We need a better description of the noise that is heard if we are to get anywhere with a diagnosis.