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Topic: Another Newbie wot needs some advice! (Read 706 times) |
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madein1978
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Another Newbie wot needs some advice!
« on: Aug 7th, 2006, 5:03pm » |
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Hi folks, I'm new to the forum, and I daresay this shan't be the last you hear from me! I'm very seriously considering buying a Scorpio (or Granada) V6 24v Cosworth and I was wondering what are the pitfalls of buying such a car apart from the usual ones you would look at with any used car? I'm referring in particular to the timing chain Vis a Vis the unusual situation of having to replace it like you would a rubber timing belt at a particular mileage, it sounds costly and a bit scary as I looked at the procedure and it looks a bit more complicated than a timing belt. Most other chain driven engines I've dealt with, the chain usually lasts the lifetime of the engine, which includes the car I will be selling for the cossie, an Alfa 164 Twin Spark, it has a DOHC chain driven engine with VVT and apart from adjusting the tensioner it has recieved no attention in 25,000 miles, and I'm reliably informed that the chain and engine can carry on to 200,000 miles without needing any major attention. So if anyone can give me any pearls of wisdom about these cars, Thanks!
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bizzay1
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1997 Cosworth Saloon
Posts: 481
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Re: Another Newbie wot needs some advice!
« Reply #1 on: Aug 7th, 2006, 5:48pm » |
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welcome to the site, once you buy a scorp you are not allowed to leave you know (bit like "the prisoner") first port of call I would recommend: -
http://www.fordscorpio.co.uk/scorpio.pdf
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Matt
Senior Member
Manual'd and a 4.0 in the making
Posts: 2816
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Re: Another Newbie wot needs some advice!
« Reply #2 on: Aug 7th, 2006, 8:34pm » |
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the scorpio cossie is a solid motor so long as it's been treated right in the past, my own cossie with 99,000 miles and a cossie engine i have with 130,000 miles on it and both have very little sign of wear. the chains shouldn't be a problem, but the chain tensioners have a tendency to drain of oil over night and on morning start up a loud rattle from the engine can be heard, but shouldn't last longer then 5 secs or so
engine wiring looms and wet fuse boxes can cause all sorts of problems, dont buy it or check everything very carefully if it does not have a battery cover
check the autobox oil, should be a reddish colour, brown or black and the box is on it's way out.
hope this helps
matt
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FDS2000 Scans - Birmingham
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solarpanel
Full Member
I love YaBB 1G - SP1!
Posts: 551
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Re: Another Newbie wot needs some advice!
« Reply #3 on: Aug 7th, 2006, 9:25pm » |
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just bought 1998 cossie one of the last to be made 127k full history and the chain guides are broke on rhs block,now got retail price list for all parts,guides/chains/sprockets/tensioners/full gasket set/water pump nearly £1250 ouch luckly i only need the guides and gaskets
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madein1978
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I'm a YaBB newbie!
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Re: Another Newbie wot needs some advice!
« Reply #4 on: Aug 8th, 2006, 2:05pm » |
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£1250., Thats ouch indeed! I would be inclined to conclude from what others say about the chain that missed oil changes, or changes with cheap oil is bad news for the chain, if it is hydraulically tensioned, if the tensioner gets gummed up with sludge I would imagine it doesn't do its job as Cosworth/Ford intended? I would assume then that there is no hard and fast mileage when the chain should be changed, when it starts to clatter like all chain drive engines is the time to remortgage the house or punt it!?? I read with interest about the loom, surely any broken wires could be soldered back together and shrink wrapped? All very useful so far, I'm starting to build a fair idea of how to spot a bad un' .
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Dave
Senior Member
Tourmallard 24v (ex-owner)
Posts: 1984
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Re: Another Newbie wot needs some advice!
« Reply #5 on: Aug 8th, 2006, 8:11pm » |
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Welcome to the site 
As said above if a Cosworth has been treated right i.e. not thrashed fron cold, regular oil changes using a decent synthetic oil then there is no reason that you should have trouble with the chains. EricR here on the site has just sold his Cosworth at about 130k with, as far as I remember, no timing chain rattle to speak of. He had owned the car since 54k and looked after it well.
I personally had trouble with the engine loom about a year ago due to a water leak that went unfixed - before I owned the car I must add. The affected wires were reinsulated, some were replaced as neccessary and that cured the fault.
They are absolutely fantastic cars, hope you find one that fits the bill 
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Life after the Scorpio ain't easy..
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sector-9
Senior Member
No scorpio anymore
Posts: 1069
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Re: Another Newbie wot needs some advice!
« Reply #6 on: Aug 14th, 2006, 11:21pm » |
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The Scorpio is a nice car to drive and very comfortable on long distances (go for leather!).
BUT... It is an old car now - over ten years for the early ones - and it has a lot of toys which can and do go wrong. That's not a reason to pass on the Scorpio; after all, most ten year old cars have things which no longer work. Electrical problems are the most common and cause a lot of headaches, especially when related to the gearbox - the V6 engine itself is generally very robust though chain tensioners do fail and radiators balloon, but that's about it.
Question is, would you be fixing things yourself or paying somebody else to do it? If you don't mind sorting stuff out then it is possibe to get a nice motor with everything working, and at a good price. If you're paying somebody else to do it then it could potentially be a money pit!
Mechanically the Scorpio is no less reliable than most other 10yr old cars, and the Ford badge generally means standard service items are cheap and plentiful. The exception is Scorpio only items (the engines or variants of them have appeared in various other Fords) such as front wishbones, radiators, etc. which can be expensive to replace.
Don't expect much in terms of fuel economy - but as you're looking at a 2.9 Cossie I don't suppose that's one of your requirements!
Darren
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howiedintheplace
Senior Member
Based near Evesham
Posts: 1194
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Re: Another Newbie wot needs some advice!
« Reply #7 on: Aug 14th, 2006, 11:54pm » |
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As said a 24V BOB needs good oil & regular changes.
If it's had this through it's life it will be a good one.
As said the tensioner one way valve gums up & after that happens it's a case of catching it before the chain snaps.
Looms falling apart & ballooning rads are nothing compared to a chain snapping but can be headaches all the same.
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Dave
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