Common Problems with the AU??

[Pratty04]

Originally Posted by PG2

The inlet manifold gasket is a very common problem with these cars and the issues that you are experiencing point to this may be the problem.

The second most common issue is the coil pack.

See that’s what I thought as well but it doesn’t skip a beat at idle.it idles very smoothly and it’s not high or low…when I’ve got my next day off on Saturday I’m going to check it as well as tps and fuel reg…coil will be the next thing I look at after fuel reg…thanks for your suggestion I’ll let u know how my diagnosis goes.

[PG2]

Originally Posted by Pratty04

See that’s what I thought as well but it doesn’t skip a beat at idle.it idles very smoothly and it’s not high or low…when I’ve got my next day off on Saturday I’m going to check it as well as tps and fuel reg…coil will be the next thing I look at after fuel reg…thanks for your suggestion I’ll let u know how my diagnosis goes.

An AU can idle as smooth as a baby's you know what with a blown inlet manifold gasket.

I've owned a few AUs over time (three of them with now over 300,000ks) and not once have any of them had sensor and/or fuel reg problems. That is not to say that yours could be different.

I have had to change the manifold gasket on each and every AU that I have owned as well as the coil pack. An AU inlet manifold gasket will cost about $25. Even if that is not the problem, it will be good insurance, as it won't be if, it will be when the manifold gasket blows.

Let us know how you go. There are a bunch of us AU tragics on here that are always more than willing to help.

[fordomatic]

Yep, my sportsman would take ages to crank sometimes, not all the time. I let manifold gasket was the fix. Did plugs, leads, coils etc etc, chasing the problem.

[Pratty04]

Originally Posted by PG2

An AU can idle as smooth as a baby's you know what with a blown inlet manifold gasket.

I've owned a few AUs over time (three of them with now over 300,000ks) and not once have any of them had sensor and/or fuel reg problems. That is not to say that yours could be different.

I have had to change the manifold gasket on each and every AU that I have owned as well as the coil pack. An AU inlet manifold gasket will cost about $25. Even if that is not the problem, it will be good insurance, as it won't be if, it will be when the manifold gasket blows.

Let us know how you go. There are a bunch of us AU tragics on here that are always more than willing to help.

Cheers man for the help Inlet manifold gasket will be the first thing I’ll check tomorrow will keep you updated thanks again

[tony08]

Well here's one for you. AUII Fairlane 5ltr V8 I turned the aircon on the other day and all works fine I can adjust the fan speed etc but when I turn it off the display reads as it should off, the problem is the fan is still on and even when I take the key out of the ignition the fan is still working very slowly the only way to stop it is to disconnect the battery. I am wondering if there is a faulty relay something like that, that is still powder up. Any help or suggestions would be of a great help.

[Pratty04]

Originally Posted by Pratty04

Cheers man for the help Inlet manifold gasket will be the first thing I’ll check tomorrow will keep you updated thanks again

Quick update: replaced the intake manifold gasket turned out it was blown but still hasn’t fully fixed the issue also did a new throttle body gasket with it as well. I think my next go to is gonna be the coil pack is that what you’d would suggest or something else..
Cheers

[PG2]

Originally Posted by Pratty04

Quick update: replaced the intake manifold gasket turned out it was blown but still hasn’t fully fixed the issue also did a new throttle body gasket with it as well. I think my next go to is gonna be the coil pack is that what you’d would suggest or something else..
Cheers

Thanks for getting back to us. It allows others to read the outcome and possibly help them with a similar problem.

Yeah, I would be changing the coil pack next. Try and avoid the cheaper ones, they can be a little hit and miss.

[Pratty04]

Originally Posted by PG2

Thanks for getting back to us. It allows others to read the outcome and possibly help them with a similar problem.

Yeah, I would be changing the coil pack next. Try and avoid the cheaper ones, they can be a little hit and miss.

Plan is to replace it with a genuine vdo coil pack

[Pratty04]

Hi all, having a bit of an issue with my au thermo fans
Replaced thermo fan motors with tested used ones.
Now fans will cycle in before normal operating temp and will run continuously no cycle out.
Any suggestions?

Have already swapped relays

[nearlythere]

This thread is irrelevant.
Everyone knows that AU falcons are immortal.

[aussiblue]

This thread is irrelevant.
Everyone knows that AU falcons are immortal.

..and the most fugly car Ford oz ever made. Cockroaches have always been hard to kill.

[FTE217]

Originally Posted by aussiblue

..and the most fugly car Ford oz ever made. Cockroaches have always been hard to kill.

a proud Cockroach here looks are subjective and any Falcon is hard to kill when not chem sprayed haha

[oldie]

Originally Posted by elegance5

AU2 GHIA 2000 Tickford VCT 4 litre - oil leaks increasing ...
1. Behind power steering pump RH side of motor (supposedly to do with timing chain tensioner).
2. LH side of motor between head and block - approx location 2nd piston from front.
Long-existing oil leaks. Does not use huge amounts of oil but makes a mess. Have pursued this in the past with mechanics - seems it is in the "too hard" basket.
Have owned this car for 13 years, only done 220,000 km. Excellent order. Has had lots of money spent on it, want it up to scratch.
Any suggestions?

Regarding the oil leak behind the power steering pump, this is a common problem with AU six cylinder engine, and I have been trying to track down the source of an oil leak on the front of my engine for a long time. Turns out that it is usually one of two things: either the rubber O-rings that are on the outside of the timing chain tensioner where it is inserted into the side of the timing cover case just behind and to the left of the power steering pump have failed because tiny little rubber earrings obviously get hard and brittle when they’re subjected to big engine temperatures for a long time. I got my mechanic to take out the timing chain tensioner and replace the O-rings and put some sealant around it as well when you put it back in. I wasn’t confident of doing this myself as I’ve never done it before and he had to take off the power steering pump and the power steering bracket attached to The engine block to be able to get at the timing chain tensioner. That all went well, except that when I tested the engine again almost immediately it started spraying oil again all over the front of the engine like it did before. See next post.

[oldie]

Originally Posted by oldie

Regarding the oil leak behind the power steering pump, this is a common problem with AU six cylinder engine, and I have been trying to track down the source of an oil leak on the front of my engine for a long time. Turns out that it is usually one of two things: either the rubber O-rings that are on the outside of the timing chain tensioner where it is inserted into the side of the timing cover case just behind and to the left of the power steering pump have failed because tiny little rubber earrings obviously get hard and brittle when they’re subjected to big engine temperatures for a long time. I got my mechanic to take out the timing chain tensioner and replace the O-rings and put some sealant around it as well when you put it back in. I wasn’t confident of doing this myself as I’ve never done it before and he had to take off the power steering pump and the power steering bracket attached to The engine block to be able to get at the timing chain tensioner. That all went well, except that when I tested the engine again almost immediately it started spraying oil again all over the front of the engine like it did before. See next post.

Then it turns out that the major source of the oil leak was coming from another common area (which is a crappy Ford design fault), which is the bottom lower bolt that attaches the power steering pump mounting bracket onto the front timing cover. There are three bolts you can see looking at you at the front of the engine. Two of them are screwed into blind holes at the top, but the one at the bottom of the bracket screws into the timing cover and the bolt has oil floating around it. When we took this off and had a look at the back of the mounting bracket, you can see that Ford has used some cheap and nasty metalbush inserts where the three bolts go through the bracket and the bushes are not in a continuous tube but have an expansion gap in them. That means that when you put the bolt in to put the mounting bracket and screw it up against the timing cover the oil flows out through that gap in the bush and drips down onto the drive belt and gets flung around the front of the engine. So we had to use a JBWeld black RTV sealant and carefully block up that gapin the bush and coat the head of the bottom bolt as well before reassembling it and letting it sit overnight to harden up. If you drive it off straight away, it won’t get a chance to set. All that seems to have solved the problem so far. Time will tell.