Don't you just hate it when that happens.

[DamperMan]

I'm planning to get it rolling roaded soon. When I fitted the zetec I didn't change the timing belt. I wanted to see it ran first. The belt looked ok. Anyway I bought a kit about 6 months back. Whipped it all apart ... drat wrong belt and idlers. Don't you just hate it when you start something now you can't finish for a few days. Or in my case probably 2 weeks as I'I working next weekend .. drat.

[Dave Eastwood (Gadgetman) - Club Chairman]

Yup, had that a few times recently; get everything together you think you'll need for a job, then something hits you from left field and you find you need a different bit etc.

[DamperMan]

It seams to be a trend on this car!... the last biggy was taking the rear suspension arms to rebush and powder coat. I severed 2 tendons in my hand later at home and it must have been over a month before I put it back together again.

[DamperMan]

I'm a job and finish sort of guy... when I start something I have to finish it... we'll get 95% through it anyway so it works. If I built one of these cars I'd have it done in 1 week. No sleep and shaking with Caffeine. My OCD is killing me now, I'm just going to have to finish it late Wednesday night or I'll be very grumpy.

[pistonbroke]

Could be a lot worse , Zetec is a hoot , be glad its not a tin top where you have to take half the engine to bits and buy the special tools for the job 

[Dave Eastwood (Gadgetman) - Club Chairman]

So true.

I remember changing a headlight bulb on a five series beemer that required me to remove the air box and filter, half the bumper and partially a wheel arch liner. (Mind you, to be fair, some jobs on that car that you'd expect to be horrendous, as they are on most more modern cars, turned out to be simple and straightforward. There seemed no logic between which were which though).

[Thrustyjust]

When we got my daughter a mk1 ford focus, I always upgrade headight bulbs straight away ,in all that we buy carwise. You have to take the front wheel off the near side, undo the inner wheelarch, remove the 'one' bolt underneath, then the two upper ones to get access to the back of the headlight. What should be a 5 min job, was over an hour plus trying to remove it the week earlier without unbolting it ( you only needed an extra 10mm of rear clearance to stop all this faffing) I pulled my back and wasnt good for 3 weeks afterwards. Stupid car...............

[DamperMan]

What i really hate is........

 

The correct belt, Tensioner and idlers all arrived today.   I put the timing bar through the cam and the lock pin in the crank.   Got the belt on.   Did the tensioner.    Turned it over by hand to check nothing touchs.   New cam gasket and rocker cover back on, Spark plugs leads back on.   I though lets start it......It ran for 30 seconds before it threw the belt!   Sh!T.   It was only tick over but!!!!!!!  After a bit of  turning the cam back and forth I got it back to TDC.  Got it all timed up.    Same procedue started it up.. sounded a bit off and with some heavy bangs.. then it stopped and the engine will not turn in a clock wise direction any more.   If i was a betting man the heads fallen off a valve and its all knackered.     The engine was only £200 so no biggy..I did 2k over the summer in it and the engine felt good.  I'm really annoyed with myself.!  I'm not messing witn with this engine.    So the options are an other ebay used engine or.........maybe a new one......   I'm asking myself can I be bothered with "running in" a new one and spend £950 nut have an engine which will be good for a very long time.... Or  by an other engine for £200 and rag it to hell and back from day one, but take the risk its a good one!.        

[congorobot]

My last Blacktop Zetec was £250 delivered and has been bounced off the rev limiter for 10 years without any problems. If it were my money I would go with a 2nd hand one.

[DamperMan]

I know its tempting just to do the cheep thing.   In my head lets say used is £250 delivered.   I'll want to do a timing belt £70.   A new one is £950 delivered.   £630 saving but if the engine turns out to be not great as they are all quite old now I could be spending the same again........  Don't get me wrong spending £950 before Christmas is not my plan but... a new engine is temptingly cheep.

[Thrustyjust]

What i really hate is........

 

The correct belt, Tensioner and idlers all arrived today.   I put the timing bar through the cam and the lock pin in the crank.   Got the belt on.   Did the tensioner.    Turned it over by hand to check nothing touchs.   New cam gasket and rocker cover back on, Spark plugs leads back on.   I though lets start it......It ran for 30 seconds before it threw the belt!   Sh!T.   It was only tick over but!!!!!!!  After a bit of  turning the cam back and forth I got it back to TDC.  Got it all timed up.    Same procedue started it up.. sounded a bit off and with some heavy bangs.. then it stopped and the engine will not turn in a clock wise direction any more.   If i was a betting man the heads fallen off a valve and its all knackered.     The engine was only £200 so no biggy..I did 2k over the summer in it and the engine felt good.  I'm really annoyed with myself.!  I'm not messing witn with this engine.    So the options are an other ebay used engine or.........maybe a new one......   I'm asking myself can I be bothered with "running in" a new one and spend £950 nut have an engine which will be good for a very long time.... Or  by an other engine for £200 and rag it to hell and back from day one, but take the risk its a good one!.        

Do you know why it dropped the belt ? If the old belt ran fine before the change and the only thing that was changed was the belt and tensioner pulley, is there something not right ? Just finding another engine and fitting the belt and tensioners may end up back as you are now.

[DamperMan]

it was my fault, I assumed the belt would say put. I had not fitted the bottom Aux pully  that appears to be what keeps the belt from walking off.    

[dombanks]

Story of my life ... everything I do in work is hampered by that. Or the we've-always-done-it-this-way brigade

[Thrustyjust]

Thats just sods law. I am the coolant messer on my car. The drive is covered in it.

[Steve (sdh2903)]

Just for info. Most of these crate lumps have been sat around for a good few years now and a new timing belt is reccomended. Just a belt I would imagine though.

If it was 3k+ for a new engine then I'd say go for a used one. With the zetec being so cheap relatively speaking it's a no brainer for me. Get a new one.