ford fiesta 1998

[Andy]

hi all its been awhile ….. i have a 1998 ford fiesta, 1.25 zetec engine, 5 speed manual transmission. just got it a few weeks ago. it has been chugging a little under load (when driving not in idle) and sometimes after a little chugging i hear a poof from the exhaust i’m guessing its a missfire causing a backfire?? not sure any way i don’t have money to send it to a garage here in ireland (cost to much)and i have a bit of experience repairing cars so and ideas would be a big help! and i can take photos and keep the forum updated as i go along …… please help :stick: PS I have changed the spark plugs, leads, oil, oil filter and air filter. ( gave it a service) but still the same problem

Andy in Dublin Ireland banana:

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Topic

[Charles]

Any check engine light? Might be fuel related.

[Andy]

thanks for the reply …. no check engine lights fuel seems to be fine from what i can tell as it doesn’t always happen ….?

[college man]

try doing a power balance test.

[EricTheCarGuy]

In addition to the above advice I would suggest checking the ignition system. Ignition systems often fail under load. Here is a test that I find works pretty well for that.

[Andy]

ok well first off thanks for the quick replys 🙂 i will do both tests tomorrow and let everyone know the results and also try to take a small video 😉 so you can better understand the problem. Thanks

[college man]

keep us posted.;)

[Andy]

well that was cool B) i started with a power balance test i had the same reaction with every lead that i pulled so while i had the cover off i tryed a ignation voltage leak test by spraying a little water over the leads WOW NOTHING HAPPENED 🙁 then i gave the engine a little rev and we had a cool little light show but only while the engene was at 2000 rpm or more. it was dark so it looked even cooler banana: , going to take a look at the leads in the morning and concider replacing them. thankyou agen for your help and i will keep you all posted

[college man]

most ignition components break down under load.
thats why it showed at the higher rpm. If it is
the plug wires.purchase a quality set.Don’t be
tempted to go cheap.cheap parts give cheap results.
keep us posted.;)

[Andy]

i went out got the leads connected them up and problen has gotten worse more sparks around the coil now. i will take a closer look in the morning and double check the connections ps the car missed so bad that it conked out stopped running

[Andy]

turns out one of the ht leads were faulty the clip that connects the wire to the sparkplug was missing so i returned to the shop explained the problem they gave me my money back and said i could keep the leads so i put a new connection on the end and it works perfectly.

problem solvedbanana: :woohoo:

i would like to thank college man and eric both for your help
thanks agen Andy

[college man]

Not a problem.We like happy endings. 😉

[EricTheCarGuy]

The best part is you found the problem and you were able to fix it. Thanks for the update and for using the ETCG forum.

[Author]

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