RobK Posted April 19, 2008 Share Posted April 19, 2008 Just bought a Westy with this engine. Its was purchased for a reasonable price as there was positive pressure through the breather and it was thought the engine had bore/ piston/ ring damage. Trying to keep the car on the road over the summer whilst doing repairs. Done a compression test that shows No2 cylinder very very low on compression, then performed a wet test and confirmed the problem is bore/ piston etc. Bought head bolts and gasket set etc with a view to removing the head to inspect the bore for damage, maybe hoping for sticking rings and little damage but this is unlikely! Understand there are modifications to the head gasket, now worried that it could be the 1.8 gasket that is modified not the 1.6 that i have? Can anyone confirm the items required? Looking at a re-bored/ rebuilt block from an engine re-manufacturer for a 1.8. This is fitted with over sized pistons and reground crank etc. Can i assume the pistons will be standard on the 1.8 (already fitted) with a 1.6 head? Whats likely? Are we better to strip down and see what is in there first? Trying to avoid this as it will take the car off the road for 2-3 weeks while parts are sourced and the engine rebuilt and fitted. Thoughts anyone? Any advice appreciated Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sedsy Posted April 20, 2008 Share Posted April 20, 2008 Mike Tanski is the CVH guru! not sure where you are but he is in Stafford. He is very helpful and should be able to diagnose your problem. Link to his website here Ferriday Engineering HTH Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobK Posted April 20, 2008 Author Share Posted April 20, 2008 Had the head off this afternoon for further inspection! Not looking good, severe piston damage, bore damage to cylinder No2 and head damage as well. This is a good piston! This is a bad piston (No2 Cylinder) This is the most damaged part of the head (No2 Cylinder) This cylinder has suffered slight damage to the head and piston. Has this been caused by the presence of a foreign body? We are thinking maybe a spark plug tip? Could it be caused by anything else? Rebuilt the car and its back running! Need to source parts so its only off the road for a weekend for a rebuild. Any help appreciated Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carpetstu Posted April 20, 2008 Share Posted April 20, 2008 Mike Tanski is the CVH guru! not sure where you are but he is in Stafford. He is very helpful and should be able to diagnose your problem. Link to his website here Ferriday Engineering HTH Oh no he isn't. Mike moved to darkest Wales over a year ago! His address is on the web site, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjones31 Posted April 22, 2008 Share Posted April 22, 2008 Be interested to know more about this problem as i have the same engine . Mine is an 1800 sierra block bored to 1850 and as yet haven,t had the head off so dont know which gasket or pistons are in. Mine uses the 1600 head as well which has been ported with different cams etc,etc. Currently looking at going solid lifters and another cam. Mark Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jenko Posted April 22, 2008 Share Posted April 22, 2008 Certainly does look like there has been something in the engine...... Hate to say it but the engine looks scrap - Good news is, you can paick a cvh engine up now for not much money - or go to Zetec.... PJ. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobK Posted April 22, 2008 Author Share Posted April 22, 2008 Hi, i am trying to find someone with this combination to gather info from. Also wanting someone with piston experience to comment on the pics. We are thinking it must be damage from a foreign body rather than heat damage? Not sure as i havn't seen heat damage before. All plugs were intact when the head was removed. The gasket on ours appears to be a 1.6 without any mods. I thought we would have to mod it slightly but the existing one wasn't modded when removed. Thats not to say we have the correct gasket on! Also needing to know if the engine mounts are different on the 1.8 block as i was thinking of dropping a standard 1.6 in just to keep the car on the road through the summer. FYI, Ferriday Engineering has too many commitments on at present to look at any CNC machining but is happy to provide me with info. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobK Posted April 22, 2008 Author Share Posted April 22, 2008 Thanks Jenko, that confirms what we thought. Bore damage doesn't seem too bad, needing to check and find if its already on a rebore and see whats left to take off. Would the damage to the head be removed if we had the head machined to a lower CR for a ZVH Turbo or does it look much? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jenko Posted April 22, 2008 Share Posted April 22, 2008 The head really does look scrap, to remove that damage, you would have to machine out the combustion chamber - which of course means you would have to do the same on all chambers. As for the block, obviously, the piston needs replacing, but I would also be suprised if the bores are perfect after that sort of damage....by the time you have found a piston, you might as well replace the block.... I would imagine a 1.6 would fit the engine mounts - you may have to retap a few holes on the block to fit a type 9, but nothing serious............. The other option is to go for the ZVH - i.e. use a zetec bottom end... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobK Posted April 22, 2008 Author Share Posted April 22, 2008 The other option is to go for the ZVH - i.e. use a zetec bottom end... Does the Zetec block use the same mounts as the CVH? There are a quite a few other item to change/mod as well though even when keeping the head For a quick fix a 1.6 complete engine would be easy. Thanks for the advice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MK11 Posted April 22, 2008 Share Posted April 22, 2008 May I suggest that you drop an Email to the man who coined the ZVH name, Mr Ian Howell at Tech@FiestaFrenzy.co.uk. He can tell you all you need to know about CVH, ZVH, ZVH Turbo, Zetec Turbo and Duratec Turbo. An example of his work can be seen HERE Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frubpato? Posted April 23, 2008 Share Posted April 23, 2008 I have a 1800 with a 1600 head . In answer to your questions 1. The head gaskets and bolts are 1600 2. The head is junked as others have mentioned 3. Even if the bore is Ok , I would suggest that the block would have to be v good otherwise to save reasons for this are From the pictures it seems as if you have humphy pistons - my experience was that the 1800 (which was sold as a lean burn for company cars) had flat tops with the swirl in the head chamber. If you get another 1800 with flat tops and you match that with the hemi head 1600 you will end up with a 7.8:1 comp ratio - I know I did. YOu can get a small rebore and put in bigger (taller)pistons but then you have to manually pocket them to stop the valves kissing them . I am guessing that if the positive pumping you were getting was from No.2 cylinder then the bore might be damaged allowing gas to bypass the rings and pressurise the sump. I would go ZVH if you want to keep low down torq and 8 valves but std zetecs are not pricey and you are probably looking at 500 ish to fix your issue. Having dais that I love my CVH - dead relaiable and brilliant in real world road driving (below 6500 rpm) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jenko Posted April 23, 2008 Share Posted April 23, 2008 I agree with Frubpato....Really consider the zetec option.... The main cost of the conversion is probably the Exaust system, and engine management - But if you have twin carbs at the moment, you would need to convert the ignition system, as zetecs do not run distributors - Best option would be something like Megajolt that runs the ford coil pack.... Best of luck.. PJ. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobK Posted April 23, 2008 Author Share Posted April 23, 2008 Thanks for the advice. To get the car back on the road quickily i think we are going to drop in a 1600 CVH. The bore is damaged on No2 cylinder, not sure yet if its possible to re-bore. Zetec sounds nice but does nothing for me, prefer something a bit different TBH. Other westfield is a Pinto Turbo and we really like it. Winter upgrade time could see this going to either a ZVH or 1.8/ 2.0 CVH Turbo. Have the option of a re-manufactured block with new bore and pistons, reground crank and oversized big end bearings. The pistons are flat though, but that CR sounds ok for a turbo application.... hhmmmm... maybe the winter upgrades will come early! In reality a 1600 CVH will do for now then i can strip and assess the parts and start getting everything together for the winter, as already posted, i doubt any of the old engine will be of use Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobK Posted April 23, 2008 Author Share Posted April 23, 2008 I have a 1800 with a 1600 head . In answer to your questions 1. The head gaskets and bolts are 1600 2. The head is junked as others have mentioned 3. Even if the bore is Ok , I would suggest that the block would have to be v good otherwise to save Are the engine mounts the same on the 1.8 to a 1.6, hoping a 1.6 will drop straight in. Thanks for the advice Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.