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Poorly Renault Kangoo. Fuel pump or headgasket ?

4K views 8 replies 7 participants last post by  ours2012 
#1 ·
Spare car from the wifes work is poorly. Kangoo 1.9D, Lucas pump.

When driving it has almost no power (i had to find a flat route from where it was to our place so i could have a look at it!), when stopped at lights there are clouds of white smoke billowing from the exhaust, bad enough the people were doing their windows up to stop the smoke from going into their cars. The engine knocks heavily if you let the revs build up.

On first inspection, the water bottle is empty, the alternator is loose (the pivot bolt didn't have a nut on it, it was being held in line with the aux belt tension) and the timing seems to be way out (took details from autodata and the timing marks don't point to where they should (badly fitted belt maybe?)

Fill the water bottle to just over the max mark.

Pulleys marked up, belt off, timing set to "normal", belt back on, doesn't run, set back to original settings, doesn't run...

Boost pack and jump leads and after lots of cranking, it starts, lots of smoke, knocking, won't rev, etc.

Change TDC sensor. Still hard to start, smoke, etc.

Plug in my code reader, no power to the OBD socket. Odd. Engine warning light doesn't come on either ...

Strip the clocks out, some *** has chiselled the LED off the board so the engine won't flash up .....

Try moving the pump timing back and forwards 1 or 2 teeth in either direction but it will only start in the "original" position (which doesn't match up with the usual timing markings on the cam belt)

I notice that the pump pulley is twisted, looks like a wobbly wheel trim when the engine runs, has somebody had the forced the pulley off and damaged the pump internals? Is the Lucas Epic pump on a keyway, could they have refitted the pulley "wrong"?

After running the engine for about 2 minutes in total (too embarrassed by the smoke and smell to run it any longer), the water bottle is empty again.

It takes about 10 seconds of cranking to get it to start.


Soooo, is it a duff fuel pump, Lucas Epic aren't the best of things when they're working anyway, and/or is it the head gasket? The water level dropped 6 inches in a couple of minutes and the exhaust is putting out LOTS of white smoke.


Any ideas? (my preferred option is to weigh the damn thing in)
 
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#2 ·
Maybe they removed the fuse or power lead to the OBD connector as well, for what its some years back we had a tractor come in it had a Lucas pump, what had happened was they had left it parked outside and the engine had partly filled with water down the exhaust, when they tried to start it they got a hydraulic lock, we got the water out but it would not start the pump shaft was twisted, maybe with the cylinders hydraulically locked it puts back pressure on the pump through the fuel system and bends the shaft, I must admit I find it hard to believe and always thought it was just one of those things but your post made me think.
 
#6 ·
The easy way to confirm whether head gasket is gone is to do a block test. Google blocktester.

Wobbly injection pump pulley could be due to worn internals of RAM pulley if fitted, see photo.

RAM pulley, Megane with Bosch injection pump.
 
#7 ·
hi,sounds to me that you may have a head gasket gone.
if your loosing that much water,it has to be going somewhere,and if its not leaking through a split pipe or leaking radiator,or something similar,i would say its being lost in your cylinders.
could be why yur vans not starting,also why theres so much white smoke,blue smoke is burning oil,white smoke is water,
one way to easily tell is to take off yur oil filler cap on top of engine,if you are loosing water in yur engine through a blown head gasket,your oil will look lice creamy caramac chocolate,and youll have cream like substance in top of engine and cap.
also check inside water bottle,check for signs of oil in the water.
 
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