FL2 Engine Stopped While Driving - Dropped Valve, Engine Swap

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I have just realised that the seller whom you have got your engine from is not far from me, i have dealings with them when i first had MY07 bought some parts from them went to pick them up only to find they where not has on the listing, condition wise, very obnoxious people, never bought from them again, back the engine and get full refund if i were you.
 
Arctic2 said:
I have just realised that the seller whom you have got your engine from is not far from me, i have dealings with them when i first had MY07 bought some parts from them went to pick them up only to find they where not has on the listing, condition wise, very obnoxious people, never bought from them again, back the engine and get full refund if i were you.
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That is really interesting 🤔.

I'm going to sleep on it but I'm leaning towards returning the engine for a refund. After this debacle I'd rather buy from someone recommended if possible. In my experience I can't say for sure that the seller was dishonest, perhaps they did make an honest mistake... or maybe they didn't?!?
 
CaptainB said:
That is really interesting 🤔.

I'm going to sleep on it but I'm leaning towards returning the engine for a refund. After this debacle I'd rather buy from someone recommended if possible. In my experience I can't say for sure that the seller was dishonest, perhaps they did make an honest mistake... or maybe they didn't?!?
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Either way, you didn't get what you paid for so buggrem get your money back mate
 
Well having slept on it I've decided to get them to collect the engine and refund my money. There's no shortage of FL2 engines around, it's just a matter of waiting for the right one (hopefully from the right seller).

Going back to the idea of rebuilding from my old engine, Is there more to it than meets the eye? If I got a new block is it literally just a case of dropping the old crank, pistons, bearings etc back in and then working through the head and ancillaries? Or are there more complex assembly procedures in order to get a smooth running engine?

I spotted this on the Bay last night:


A fully refurbed block for £175 delivered seems like good value if I was going to rebuild 🤔.
 
CaptainB said:
Well having slept on it I've decided to get them to collect the engine and refund my money. There's no shortage of FL2 engines around, it's just a matter of waiting for the right one (hopefully from the right seller).
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Absolutely you should. You've enough on your plate without dealing with a less than perfect replacement being installed.

I had to wait for my replacement cylinder head. I cobbled together the old damaged head and ran it for about a year before a good head came up. At the time I needed it, all the heads available were either damaged, missing the cam ladder cover, or had a million miles on them (slight exaggeration there!!).

Eventually a complete low (9k) miles head came up on ebay with an offer option which was accepted, so I got a good deal.

Obviously you don't have the option of using it while waiting, but waiting might be your only option..

CaptainB said:
Going back to the idea of rebuilding from my old engine, Is there more to it than meets the eye? If I got a new block is it literally just a case of dropping the old crank, pistons, bearings etc back in and then working through the head and ancillaries? Or are there more complex assembly procedures in order to get a smooth running engine?

I spotted this on the Bay last night:


A fully refurbed block for £175 delivered seems like good value if I was going to rebuild 🤔.
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Rebuilding yout current block or getting a bored and honed replacement could be the way to go. If the block is bored oversized they normally come with matching oversized pistons. If it was mine, I'd replace the rod from that damaged piston, as it will have taken quite a lot of strain when the valve stopped the engine.

The crankshaft will be fine, it's a big beefy steel unit, very strong indeed. When I measured the bearings on my 119k engine, they were sill at the new specification, with absolutely zero measurable wear, so they were reused. I expect your 80k engine will be the same, with zero bearing wear.

It's up to you how much work you want to put into a replacement or rebuilt engine, so it's a matter of deciding on a complete and hopefully reliable replacement, or rebuilding yours where you know what the condition will be once finished.
 
Nodge68 said:
That block doesn't look very reconditioned to me. It looks like it's just a stripped block, in which case it's too expensive.
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:D I thought exactly the same when I saw the pictures. I think (hope!) that the pictures are pre-reconditioning. The description says:

"THIS CYLINDER BLOCK WILL BE FULLY STRIPPED DOWN AND CLEANED IN AN ACID BATH."

so I'd hope that it would look a lot better after it's various treatments and works. The company seem quite legitimate and looking through their other listings there are some gorgeous looking blocks and heads. Anyway, I've sent them a message to ask a few questions so I'll see what they say. If I can get a fully recon block for that sort of money it makes rebuilding look kind of appealing. I'll still have a piston and con rod to buy as well as all the gaskets and seals but I'll have an engine that should be good for a lot more miles ahead.

If I did rebuild how much work would you do to the head? Would you replace all the valves? What about valve guides, rockers and tappets?

I've spent most of the day today overhauling the rear brakes. It looks like the reason I couldn't move the car was because the shoes were stuck solid against the drum part of the discs. I managed to strip, wire brush, sand and clean all the parts before copper greasing all the contact points and reassembling. I also gave the back plates a coat of Hammerite in the vain hope that they won't crumble into dust in the next year or two.

I adjusted the hand brake to give appropriate travel on the lever and with the help of my son we managed to get the car to roll :vb-party2:. I think I'm going to make some room and try and get the car down to the workshop to finish the job now that the weather is starting to turn. That should be fun! Time to break out the Tirfor hand winch to slowly lower it down the steep, twisty, muddy driveway.
 
I’ve just come out to move the car down into the workshop (not a straightforward procedure!). I got the winch all rigged up, got straps fixed to anchor points, got a couple of pairs of hands to help out and began winching the car straight back out of the driveway and on to the road. Step 1 is a success. I connected up the battery, put the key in the slot and pressed the ignition button for a few seconds to wake it up. Obviously, not having an engine in there has upset it and it won't release the steering lock :( 🤔.

I've read a few threads on steering lock problems but they either relate to dodgy steering lock actuators or software "faults". I'm guessing that my issue is down to the BCM having a wobble because the ECM isn't present?

Short of pulling the steering lock module off of the steering column (shear bolts etc!!) is there any way to release the steering so I can get the car moved? I've seen steering lock emulators but that means waiting a few days for delivery and £30 for a piece of kit I'll use once (hopefully!).

Is it worth trying to plug the engine wiring harness back in to the fuse board and connect the ECM?
 
Is the ECM out of the vehicle? If so then try putting it back in. The key triggers a handshake between several modules, before the steering lock is released. So as long as the BCM, ECM, ABS, Ipack and door modules can communicate, the steering should release. Obviously the ECM will set a whole pile of missing sensor codes, but those are easily removed later.
 
Nodge68 said:
Is the ECM out of the vehicle? If so then try putting it back in. The key triggers a handshake between several modules, before the steering lock is released. So as long as the BCM, ECM, ABS, Ipack and door modules can communicate, the steering should release. Obviously the ECM will set a whole pile of missing sensor codes, but those are easily removed later.
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I've just put the ECM back in and tried it again but nothing doing. I'm going to disconnect the battery and let it have 5 minutes before giving it another try. It's showing "transmission fault" on the dash so I wonder if it's trying to prevent the car being moved to avoid A/T damage or something?
 
I left the battery off for about an hour but when I connected up again it still wouldn't let me steer. I'm going to try and plug in my cheapo diagnostic tool to try and clear some faults in the hope that that might release it.
 
After a lengthy conversation yesterday afternoon with a LR breaker in the North-East I think I have a new engine. It's (hopefully!) from an 88k miles car that was written off with minor front end damage. It's currently still in the car and the guy reckons that the car drives absolutely fine and that the engine sounds good. He reckons that there may also be the service log still in the car so he'll send that with the engine.

He's going to pull the engine out over the weekend and send it on Monday so I should have it mid-week and I can finally crack on. He's supplying the full engine with wiring harness and all ancillaries so I'm hoping it will be relatively pain free to fit and commission.
 
CaptainB said:
And now the diagnostic tool refuses to connect. I've thrown in the towel for today! 😁
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I had the battery on charge overnight so I tried the diagnostic tool again this morning and it's still not connecting, steering lock is still on.

I disconnected the battery and looked over the wiring loom to see if there was anything obvious that I'd forgotten... I had forgotten to connect the A/T plug! Plugged it in, hooked up the battery, pressed the start button, dashboard came to life, steering lock still on, diag tool still refuses to play - "linking error" - really hope the ECU isn't fried. :(

I'm going to spend the afternoon prepping an old laptop for SDD so when my Mongoose cable comes next week I might have more luck connecting.
 
Oh, and I found this under the car. It looks like copper, the holes are about 8 or 10 mm. Does anyone know what it is and where it lives please?

thingy.jpg
 
CaptainB said:
I had the battery on charge overnight so I tried the diagnostic tool again this morning and it's still not connecting, steering lock is still on.

I disconnected the battery and looked over the wiring loom to see if there was anything obvious that I'd forgotten... I had forgotten to connect the A/T plug! Plugged it in, hooked up the battery, pressed the start button, dashboard came to life, steering lock still on, diag tool still refuses to play - "linking error" - really hope the ECU isn't fried. :(

I'm going to spend the afternoon prepping an old laptop for SDD so when my Mongoose cable comes next week I might have more luck connecting.
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Every module needs to be connected, as they are all linked. I'm guessing you've not disconnected the ABS module, but if so that needs to be hooked up too. Basically anything other than sensors needs to be present.

CaptainB said:
Oh, and I found this under the car. It looks like copper, the holes are about 8 or 10 mm. Does anyone know what it is and where it lives please?

View attachment 302817
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I don't recognise it, but it's obviously a fluid seal, possibly from a banjo pipe connection on the gearbox fluid lines?
 
Nodge68 said:
Every module needs to be connected, as they are all linked. I'm guessing you've not disconnected the ABS module, but if so that needs to be hooked up too. Basically anything other than sensors needs to be present.
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I think that the only things I disconnected were the ECM and the A/T. They are both connected again. I'll check again in the morning. I've had a couple of days away from the FL and I really needed it. I think it's been getting on top of me and I question whether I've bitten off more than I can chew but I think that a couple of days rest should help me to straighten myself out.

Nodge68 said:
I don't recognise it, but it's obviously a fluid seal, possibly from a banjo pipe connection on the gearbox fluid lines?
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I think you might be right. The only banjo connector I can remember removing is on the oil supply to the turbo. This picture shows it as 2 individual washers but I can see how the mystery part would do the job just the same:

Screenshot 2023-11-19 at 17.16.44.png
 
:mexicanwave:

I have the steering lock released and the OBD tool is connecting again - I'm so happy!

It turns out that the fault was actually not with the wiring harness or the ECM but the tool... the 200lb tool on the end of the spanner!! 😁

I had connected up the ECM to the wiring harness, I had plugged the harness into the fuse box and then had completely forgotten to connect the wiring harness's sub-fuse box to the 12v bus bar. :homer:

With the possibility of snow this weekend I am really keen to get the car into the workshop and it looks like I might be able to now.
 
CaptainB said:
:mexicanwave:

I have the steering lock released and the OBD tool is connecting again - I'm so happy!

It turns out that the fault was actually not with the wiring harness or the ECM but the tool... the 200lb tool on the end of the spanner!! 😁

I had connected up the ECM to the wiring harness, I had plugged the harness into the fuse box and then had completely forgotten to connect the wiring harness's sub-fuse box to the 12v bus bar. :homer:

With the possibility of snow this weekend I am really keen to get the car into the workshop and it looks like I might be able to now.
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Hi Captain.
Great news you can now move the FL any news on the arrival of the engine yet.
 
Arctic2 said:
Hi Captain.
Great news you can now move the FL any news on the arrival of the engine yet.
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I've been trying to get hold of the guy selling the engine all week but to no avail so I was starting to worry that I was on another wild goose chase. Then this morning he called me to say he'd been ill all week and hadn't been at work. Anyway, he's pulling the engine out today and and it should be on it's way to me by tomorrow and I'll have it on Monday.
 
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