Hi All,
I have recently bought a Ford Mondeo 2.0 Diesel Engine TDDi Duratorq, 2001 model. It's a German made. I was impressed with the car's handling performance, spacious and well cladded interior from the loud diesel engine noise compared to my previous Toyota Corolla 2.0 Diesel Engine 2001 Model.
I now have a few minor complaints, which some of you may have already encountered.
P1. Rattling noise from side door and now somewhere below dashboard (CD player's location). I went for my first service at 1,500km on the clock and they fixed the noise problem. But the rattling noise is coming back. The car is only about 2 months old, bought in April 2004.
P2.Few days ago, when I turned my key to position 2, prior to cranking, all illuminators lighted up as usual. Upon cranking, all illuminators will go off except for the engine illuminator which was not usual. I checked the User's manual and it says it should go off and if it wouldn't, it indicates an engine malfunction and recommends that the car checked immediately by Ford Agent. I read from a Subaru Impreza GX (2003 Model) car user's manual and it explained the exhaust emission problem when the engine illuminator wont go off. However, this is Ford. Maybe different case. Before I send my car to the agent, the car went back to normal. Illuminators all go off upon cranking, including the previous engine illuminator. Anyone experiencing this as well?
Also, maybe some useful advice from you kind people would be good especially when you are living in cold temperate countries in Europe. I am living in Brunei, hot and humid climate (Tropical). I've heard that the rubbers used in previous Mondeo models seem to be not durable to the weather here compared to Japanese cars. Not sure about this model. Insulation and cladding rubbers in engine become brittle and breaks easily, even in BMW and S-500 Merz.
Also, I try to service my car (changing Engine Oil and filter) for every 5,000km distance travelled. Book recommends 3,000 miles which is more or less 5,000km. And it recommends engine oil of grade 5W-30, but I cannot find such grades locally. I have chosen to use Castrol Syntron Fully Synthetic 5W-50. Or is this not suitable for Diesel Engines?
Turbo-timers recommended? This car is turbo-charged stock.
Hope to hear some useful experiences/advice from you guys.
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Try this link to a previous thread
www.honestjohn.co.uk/forum/post/index.htm?t=19094
These are all oils that are suitable for VW PD engines which should be suitable for your car. Use an oil which has been designed for diesels, it will be formulated for greater shear pressures which can destroy ordinary oils.
If you're changing the oil every 5k I'd use a decent non-synthetic - any decent diesel oil will last 5k, not much point in spending the extra money on a synthetic.
I'm assuming when you say turbo-timers you mean altering the ECU setting to increase the power? (known as chipping here)
Try East Coast racing, they do a plug in power boost box, should give you another 25% power with substantial torque boost as well.
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Turbo-timers usually refer to a device which allows the engine to continue running for a set time after you have switched off and removed the key. Usually recommended for tubo-charged cars that are driven hard by forgetful/careless owners who do not let the turbo "simmer" or cool down before switching the engine off.
You would only need one if you fit the above scenario, and I have only ever seen them fitted to petrol turbo charged cars so have no clue if turbo diesels reach the same oil-coking high temps. If you have money burning a hole in your pocket and quite fancy a new toy then fitting one certainly won't do any harm.
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Trancer, you are right. That's what turbo-timers do. Are they not a fancy thing in Europe? The sales manager here at the local Ford Agent said it was not necessary, but most turbo-charged drivers seem to recommend to prolong turbo life. Some even recommended an oil catch can and blow-off valve. The user's manual did not mention turbo-timers (if not Manufacturers would have included it, I assume!) but recommends that the car be left idled for 1 minute.
As for the Engine Oil, do you guys have experience with natural oils? I have been using Fully-Syn so far. CAn't find any mineral oil here with SAE 5W-30, as recommended in the User's Manual. I am using the Castrol Syntron Fully-Synthetic oil because it's SAE5W-50 and is the closest affordable match I can get here in Brunei. But it's still not cheap! It costs about B$60 per 4L bottle. £1 = B$3. So it is about £20 per 4L bottle ! And my engine eats up about 6L of engine oil.
I saw a recent post on Mondeo rattling noise. I have this problem too. And it doesn't need 2000-3000rpm to rattle. The rattling seems to be at the driver's door. It was fixed during my last service, they had screws all tightened up, silicon seals. But now, it's back. The mileage is only 6,300 km and it's only 2 1/2 months old !
Any experience to share?
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I wouldn't say that turbo-timers were "fancy", but they tend to be popular with the racer image crowd. That may not be a totally fair thing to say, but the only people I knew with turbo timers had them fitted to sports cars, along with the big alloys, and loud mouthed exhaust can. Aftermaket Blow-off valves fitted to stock spec engines also fall into that category.
Of course there is no reason why the timer couldn't be useful as a pure convenience item. I can imagine that after finally reaching your destination it would be annoying to have to sit in the idling car while you counted off the seconds in the recommended minute. Are you sure they can even be fitted to diesels?, I only ask because I have never seen a diesel with one.
The price you are paying for oil seems about right for UK prices, but then UK prices are double what you could buy it for in the USA so I have no idea what point I am trying to make with that statement. The best you can do is shop around, maybe try non-conventional sources like a supermarket or machinery supply place.
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