Club 80-90 Forums

As some of you prolly know I blew a head bolt 2 weeks b4 bugjam. I payed someone to swap the engine for another and now I've been left with a legacy of problems and a pretty much unusable van.

Ive been given it back and its absolutely piddling water out but I'll have to trace and sort that out as he seems incapable!

But the biggest problem I have is the oil pressure light is contasntly flashing and the oil pressure buzzer constantly buzzing!!!! Basically as soon as you rev the engine (doesn't beep when first started) it starts to buzz and doesn't stop till the ignition is switched off.

I think he has wired things up wrong. There is a spade with nothing attached to it on the side of the dizzy and the wire from the oil pressure sender isn't connected to anything. When connecting to the only remaining wire (double plug) it makes no difference. I've tried different combinations on this plug but no change. I'll take some pics over the weekend to see if they can help.
The haynes manual is no good as most of the colour codes don't seem to match the diagram, but past experience of Haynes have never been happy ones!

Also I think the engine may be different. The new one is an early 1.9 engine and the one that dropped a stud a late 1.9, as its now MUCH slower. The water pipes needed changing over too and I believe that the late t25 had 2 oil pressure switches where as the current early engine only has one???. Anyone know what I need to do in this situation with the oil pressure switch? And wire(s) for the original late switches that are prolly the double plug left on the van?

Thanks in advance!

Have some of this:

early vans are single sensor, late double sensor, correct me if I'm wrong people....

Who is this highly skilled mechanic you had the work done by?

Al
would you like me to bring my van over ( early 1.9 ) so that you / we can go over the wiring / coolant problems ?
I'm around all day on Saturday

Big Al,
Also look

here and
here

If the high pressure switch (near the water pump) wiring is open circuit, or the switch the wrong one or faulty, or if the oil pressure is low (of course!!!) you will get the light and buzzer when the revs go above about 2000. If you earth the wiring and the buzzer still goes, check for break in circuit somewhere (14 pin plug under dash cowl one suspect.)
Mike

if you see Onion throw
them bloody horns at him !

hope you get this sorted Al.

if you now have no "high" low oil pressure switch (mounted near the oil pump under the waterpump pulley) as per "early" engines.. then you need to earth the wire in your loom to stop the buzzer..

There should be no difference in performance of an early "DG" to a late "DG".. if healthy..

Thankyou everyone for your responses! The biggest problem I hav is trying to work out which bloody wire is which as they seem to be the wrong colours and I suspect have been put back on the engine incorrectly, that or there aren't enough wires for the engine, if that makes sense? very strange.

I'm going to print out all the info above (thankyou again!!!) read, digest and hopefully try and fix this evening. The damd buzzer is driving me insane!!

I had a good look round yesterday and think the water is leaking from behind the water pump houseing which he must have had off as never leaked b4, its tight on so I reckon the gasket/seal is damaged, means stripping it off though!

Its still running like a sack of "pooh" so I'm going to take the carb off my old engine too if he still has it and swap that over (I know that was working well), leaving only timing issues to look for it that doesn't work.

Sorry Mr Onion, didn't see this post till now, if you don't mind sending me your number via txt/PM I'll give you a bell to arrange handover of Guz's horns, and if haven't sorted this by the end of the week prolly beg for a look at your motor!

Thanks all, Al
0796 762 5619

Big Al,
To identify your wires:-
When you switch the ignition on, (Engine not running) the oil light should flash. (No buzzer should sound)

Disconnect the wires one at a time and the one that puts the light out is the one which should be attached to the low pressure switch (between the push rod tubes left cylinder bank.)

Grounding (Earthing) the other wire will stop the buzzer as a temporary measure (if you are sure of your oil pressure of course !!!) That assumes the wiring to the buzzer circuit is sound, any break in the wiring and the buzzer will sound even with the wire end grounded.

Mike

I have to say I'm somewhat less critical of the mechanic/installer reading the circumstances than others. It sounds a bit as if the engine wasn't the same; might not be in good condition; and if it was a complete engine, why would the water pump need changing anyway (and hence the suspected cause of the leak). As you say yourself, the wiring seems to be different.. just being a bit sympathetic with the situation he may have found himself in.

Maybe re-read the Wiki, as a lot more info in there now...

http://www.club80-90.co.uk/wiki/index.p ... and_causes

Sympathy for him? firstly he agreed to do the engine swap (2 weeks b4 bugjam - which was the DEADLINE) and therfor I didn't buy a recon 1.9 that Wedgedout was selling. He then turns round to me and says wants to swap it over, but then wants his engine back after bugjam!!? So I contacted Wedged out asap but the engine had been sold.
So he firstly lost me a cheap recon 1.9 I could have bought.

I booked the van into Busfreaks in Mansfield. It would be a pain getting it there but for a max of £425 I would have a swapped 1.9 running well and probably not leaking a litre of water a day!

The first guy then agreed to sell me the engine again for £250 and do the labour for £100. I advised him that it was booked in somewhere else but he perswaded me that he wanted to do the job and as it was a LOT closer and cheaper too I went for that and cancelled it in with Busfreaks (worst auto related decision I've made this year!)

Took it down on the monday as requested. (I was going to bugjam Thurs night ie DEADLINE) went back on the tuesday to see how he was doing, he only opened the tailgate.........THATS IT (regardless of how sunny it was) !!!!! So that evening I spent dropping the engine out with him so that he would have time to fit the other.

Now the engines had the different cooling pipes etc and I did ask if he knew what was doing, said yes. I also advised him to label the wires but insited he knew where they went. It then took till wed night to have the engine in and guess what? It won't start! I couldn't figure it out, neither could my dad so I (YES ME) ended paying another £50 for his mate to come have a look who was supposed to be a wedge expert) Got it started and turned out to be a wire that had been pulled out inside a rubber plug.

I go to collect on Thursday evening and he hands me the keys. Oil pressure light is flashing. Oil pressure buzzer is buzzing. water is pissing out of the engine. h20 temprature and presure guages not working. and I learn its the first time he has even swapped a h20 engine.

I spent the rest of that evening curing 2 of the leaks and making sure I had water temp and pressure guages so i didn't cook the engine on the way to bugjam, which turned out to be 2 more wires yanked out of their plugs! (and assuming the engine didn't have oil pressure problems as was running ok in his van have been driving round since with the buzzer and light going.)

He isn't interested in fixing these faults for me, saying I bought the engine for £350 and swaped is as mate, and "what do you expect me to do", well feckin fix it!!!!!!!

I now have to get it tuned up or have a go myself as is running crap advance etc. I've had swap my own original carb and manifold back onto this new engine to make it drivable round town. I've now got a water pump housing to seal which means stripping off (btw he admitted to not renewing the seal, and that it was damaged during removal! great) and an oil pressure warning light and buzzer problem to sort and I'm rubbish at leccy stuff.

So no, I won't give him any sympathy, any future business, won't be ever recommeding him to anyone again, have removed him from my club mech list as I don't want anyone else to have the same problem etc etc.

I'm not going to name and shame him on here however because I actually quite like the guy and don't want to lose what remaingin friendship I have with him, but I'm certainly not happy!




Anyways sorry for that rant!

THANKYOU to all the people that have helped above! I've swapped the carb and the van is now drivable, though lacking guts and rough mid rev range so think is the timing/advance thats now out. Thats getting checked next week when goes in for MOT and tune.
I'll be attempting to fix the water pump problem myself this weekend as I don't want him putting the £1 poundland mastic in my engine which he suggested and when I find my haynes, which I think is still at the garage will have another go at the oil pressure switches.

Cheers all

Found the water leak after taking the water pump off for a 2nd time, the housing is cracked been overtightened when was swapped over and cracked by the bolt furthest to the right!

Bet he won't be replacing that for me either! :rolleyes: