Car trouble

[Boiler 45,292]

A diagnostic code would not determine a faulty seal, it might imply a faulty seal.

Most of the Car Shops will lend you a machine to read the code, and then its just a case of double checking with the Repair Manual.

If you do not have a local repair guy you trust, take it to a Ford Dealer and get a detailed quote.

Most error codes seem to be defective O2 sensors, well all mine have.

[Tim and Bethanie 1]

Definetly take it to a ford dealer and let them hook it up to see what code it is before you go any farther.

[Dr_LHA 3]

PS stalling is often caused by a broken or unplugged oxygen sensor, which would cause the engine light to turn on, but also should be reported in the car's fault code. A Ford Dealership, if kosher, should be able to diagnose this problem straight away. That said, any other mechanic worth his salt should have the computer box. My father in law has one, and he's just an amateur!

[Heracles 417]

No smoke, just the stalling problem sometimes.

I found the following for you..

If the 'check engine' light came on in a 2000 Ford Focus and the car stalls at idle when warm what might be wrong?

Answer:

its just a vaccum hose probably. mine did it before too.

Answer:

Check that the Oxygen sensors are correctly installed and working. Also check with your ford dealership to see if your car is one of many that needs a new FUEL pump. Ford has a TSB on this and will replace it for free... I have a 2003 Focus SVT with all the same problems.

Answer:

could be a PCV Valve. My 01' Ford Escort with similar engine needed that recently. Appox 5 dollars easy fix.

[SteveLaura 0]

This is what the receipt from the garage says: "Check with scan tool, check for codes (codes retrieved: PO301) run system tests. Remove spark plug for cylinder #1 and use borescope to view piston. Piston is damaged and vehicle has a vacuum misfire on decel warm. Vehicle is prone to valve seats coming apart."

[Dr_LHA 3]

A broken vacuum hose could definitely cause that fault code to come up.

[SteveLaura 0]

No smoke, just the stalling problem sometimes.

I found the following for you..

If the 'check engine' light came on in a 2000 Ford Focus and the car stalls at idle when warm what might be wrong?

Answer:

its just a vaccum hose probably. mine did it before too.

Answer:

Check that the Oxygen sensors are correctly installed and working. Also check with your ford dealership to see if your car is one of many that needs a new FUEL pump. Ford has a TSB on this and will replace it for free... I have a 2003 Focus SVT with all the same problems.

Answer:

could be a PCV Valve. My 01' Ford Escort with similar engine needed that recently. Appox 5 dollars easy fix.

Cheers. The engine light came on last year, took it to the same garage and they found a hole in some hose (don't remember what hose, not good with cars, it was over a foot long, black... ) and replaced it.

[Dr_LHA 3]

While online car mechanics is fun, I think the answer here is you need to take it to another mechanic or dealship for a 2nd opinion!

That's good advice when faced with any high cost repair.

[SteveLaura 0]

While online car mechanics is fun, I think the answer here is you need to take it to another mechanic or dealship for a 2nd opinion!

That's good advice when faced with any high cost repair.

I think I will. Cheers all for the advice. I will also check out some car maintenance evening classes, maybe...

[Boiler 45,292]

This is what the receipt from the garage says: "Check with scan tool, check for codes (codes retrieved: PO301) run system tests. Remove spark plug for cylinder #1 and use borescope to view piston. Piston is damaged and vehicle has a vacuum misfire on decel warm. Vehicle is prone to valve seats coming apart."

That makes sense. My Ford with that code would have been

Misfire at Cylinder 1 detected.

[derekkj 0]

If you are looking for a second opinion, you can always look on the Car Talk Guys website. Just enter in your zip code and a list of mechanics should hopefully pop up.

http://www.cartalk.com/content/mechx/find.html

[SteveLaura 0]

If you are looking for a second opinion, you can always look on the Car Talk Guys website. Just enter in your zip code and a list of mechanics should hopefully pop up.

http://www.cartalk.com/content/mechx/find.html

Cheers! I'll check them out.

[Dan J 277]

Considering how much of a car is a computer these days, it could be anything. I recently had some issues with my car stalling, but it turned own to be bad cam and crank sensors, basically, the computer didnt know which position the engine was in. Had them replaced, and it worked fine. The computer tunes the engine based on the data provided by the sensors throughout the engine. If any one of those senors is bad, you may end up with just lower gas milage or your car may stall/not start or have very rough idle.

Get a second opinion, it sounds a bit like they want to make money off you suggesting to fix something thats expensive and may not even cause the problem.

[Yodrak 7]

jasman,

If that were the case the shop would have offered to fix the problem, not send her elsewhere.

Yodrak

I would get a second opinion from a Ford dealer. It suspiciously sounds like the old muffler bearing problem

[Yodrak 7]

SteveLaura,

I'm with those who suggest that you get a 2nd opinion from a dealer, and have them look up service bulletins, recalls, and your warranty. Even if you're not covered by any of the preceding, if the diagnosis is confirmed it's possible for the dealer to consult with the local manufacturer's rep to see if Ford will cover the problem anyway. Sometimes they will do that if, after opening the engine, it's seen that the failure is due to defect.

And, as Dan + Gemvita wrote, it could well be a computer or sensor problem that the shop you visited was not properly set up or trained to diagnose.

Are you burning oil, or low on oil at oil changes? If so, it may be a seal problem. If not, it may be a sensor or computer problem.

Yodrak

I have a 2000 Ford Focus SE station wagon. (I know - pretty cool... ) The engine light came on at the weekend. Took it to a garage to have it checked out, and they say that it's a seal on one of the pistons. They don't do work like that and recommended another place to take it to. Phoned them up, they say they just replace engines, and were surprised to learn that the car would have this problem with only 47,000 miles on the clock. They're offering to replace my engine for $1500.

So, do I try to find someplace that will take my engine apart and fix this seal (which I'm learning seems to be a tricky procedure and may be equally costly), get the engine replaced or get a 2nd opinion? I'm reluctant to pay $1500 if the first place has misdiagnosed this engine light, now the 2nd garage has put a doubt in my mind.

If you need more info, please ask simple questions; I know little about cars. 4 wheels, steering wheel, runs on petrol. That's about it.

Cheers.

Edited April 19, 2007 by Yodrak