Noooooooo!!!! Big end failure! (I think)

[Error404]

The project car is on my drive at the moment - it has no rear calipers on it, but i can probably get that sorted this week so it will be easily moveable..... it would just mean pushing them on and off the drive....

[Error404]

Az - legend!
I'll give you a buzz this evening

I'm ill this week, so this might have come at a good time - i might take a couple days off work 'ill' and get as much done as possible to prepare... the hardest bit i think will be juggling the cars about and lifting / moving the engines... i'm looking into finding and borrowinig a crane to make life easier.. we'll see... if anyone in the midlands has a crane they wouldn't mind lending for beer tokens, much appreciated

Waterpump sounds a real possibility.. the rattle is coming from the front of the block, waterpump kind of area..
weird - started the car up this morning to go to work - the rattle was much much quieter - as soon as the engine had warmed up, it was back as bad as yesterday when i got home from work and took the videos.. you can't hear the rattle under load either, i drive under a long railway bridge on the way to work and couldn't hear anything except a sticky tappet i've known about for a while...

[Error404]

Good news - borrowing an engine crane of one of my *ahem* SXOC friends

[quattrostyle]

does the 20V has an vaccuumpump like the 10V NG engines? if so that would be my first thing to look at

[Error404]

Haven't got a clue

[Error404]

How would i go about diagnosing if this is the water pump / vacuum pump(?) that is knacked?

Just thinking that would be a hell of a lot easier to sort out than doing an engine swap

[Ski]

Either way well done, aint easy to break a 7A, and i've been trying

For a quick fix i'd pull the sump off and take a look, chuck a few new bearing shells at it and hope for the best

classic!!!

[volcano rs]

Never had a bottom end go on me - can't understand how it happened so suddenly, oil pressure and level have been right... not even been driving it hard in the last week becasue i'm skint

Fook it!

if you're skint putting petrol in then you are deffinetly fu**ed fixing the engine

[Error404]

I'm only skint becasue its the last few days before payday and i spent all my money on parts for my other coupe

[volcano rs]

I'm only skint becasue its the last few days before payday and i spent all my money on parts for my other coupe

you,re still fuc**d if you are relying on your next payday to build the engine no food for you then for at least 2 months

[Error404]

I'd rather have a working car than food. if you drive fast enough you loose your appetite anyway

[Azman]

Too right!!!

[Error404]

Good news! after investigation, I am 99% certain this is the waterpump. the noise is coming from the waterpump location, below the PAS pump. A bit of 2x4 against the housing and to my ear produced some horrendous cavitation / rattling crunching / grinding sound! something in there is foooooked!
So it may be a bit of an easier fox than removing two engines! My plan is to be 'ill' tomorrow and try to get it fixed.
New pump is only £25.

I'm a bit daunted by it because of the cam belt - never done one before and the thought of getting it wrong scares me!
According to Haynes it sounds easy, but a couple things i'm not sure about i've highlighted in italics :-

1. Drain system
2. Move PAS pump to one side
3. Remove timing cover
4. Set Engine to TDC on Cylinder 1 - How is this done - i'll be fighting compression so shall i remove the spark plugs? How is the engine rotated? How do i lock the crank and cam pulley in place whilst i take the belt off and change the pump?
5. Loosen water pump mounting bolts - rotate pump clockwise to remove belt tension.
6. Remove Cam belt from cam and water pump pulleys and tie to one side
7. Remove the cam belt rear cover
8. Unscrew the remaining water pump bolts noting location of the stay - whats this "stay" they are banging on about?
9. Remove water pump and remove sealiing ring.
10. Refit

A few things worry me! any advice / pointers much appreciated : -

Setting engine to TDC on Cylinder 1 - how?
Locking crank and cam in place? - i'm scared of fecking this bit up royally!!
I'm guessing re-tensioning is taken care of by refitting the pump itself, as nothing else is adjusted?
Is the sealing o-ring a dealer only part? Will it come with the new pump?
Anything else worth replacing while i'm in there?

[mcandmar]

Good news

TDC is marked on the crank pulley / lower timing belt cover, also on the flywheel looking through the peep hole, and on the cam pulley/valve cover. Find those three first before you take it apart. Also remove the spark plugs so you can turn the engine over by hand. No need to lock the crank or cam when taking the belt off either.

Tricky part is removing the timing belt rear cover as it’s trapped up behind the cam pulley. If it gives you grief just take the cam pulley off.

When putting it back together roughly tension the belt and lock one bolt down on the water pump, then check the TDC marks and turn the engine over a few times by hand, double check, triple check When your sure its correct move onto setting the belt tension, the design is a bit crap so it will take a few goes to get it right. Don’t know how to explain in words what it should feel like, enough so it’s tight, but not enough to overload the water pump bearing. If it’s too loose the distributor will rattle at idle, too tight and the water pump groans and won’t last long.

The "Stay" is a metal bracket that’s a part of the power steering pump adjuster, think it’s mounted on the right hand water pump bolt.

I would also advise you change the timing belt while it’s off, bit of a PITA to undo the crank pulley having said that.

Good luck, Mark.

[Error404]

so using the TDC markers should mean i don't need to lock the pulleys. that makes it easier.

how do i rotate the engine by hand?
How do i remove the crank pulley? big fook off bolt i'm guessing?

any special tools i might need?

Cheers for your assistance mate