dcbridgers

Hello,

This is my first post here & I would appreciate any help that anyone can give me. I'm a Honda/Acura tech by trade, so forgive me if I don't use the proper Ford terminology.

Working on a 1994 Escort with a 1.9L & an automatic transmission. Car was towed in with a cranks/no start complaint. Quick check out shows that I have fuel pressure, but no spark. I have no pulse to the coil from the ignitor. Further diagnosis showed that I was not getting a signal from the crank angle sensor to the ignitor to fire the coil. I verified that the wiring was intact & sold the customer a new crank sensor. And guess what, the car still wont start.

Same problem with the same symptoms & I look like an idiot.

So I take a deep breath & dive back in. I still suspect a crank sensor problem, so I look there first. I immediately notice that there is almost a ¼” gap between the crank sensor & the crank pulley. This looks odd to me, but I haven’t worked on many Fords, I commit this to memory & start to look elsewhere. Later, everything else looks okay, so I’m back to the crank sensor.

The sensor is not adjustable, so I can’t move it closer to the crank pulley. Then I remember that I have a friend that has an old escort, I call her & convince her to drop by. Hers is a 1995 with a 1.9L, so basically the same car. The sensor on the ’95 is right up against the pulley, just like I thought it should be. So I’m wondering what’s going on. The wrong crank pulley??? So I pull her pulley & they look the same. I take the old sensor & pulley, put them on her car & it starts right up. Her sensor & pulley wont start the old car & have the same ¼” space. I put her car back together, thank her many times & send her on her way. I tore off the timing belt & covers to look for any damage to the front of the motor. Everything looked fine, so I went home & wondered how I spent a whole day on a no spark complaint & didn’t fix the car.

After a mostly sleepless night, I decided that we needed to talk to the customer & see if they could shed any light on the problem. The customer revealed that the car was “somewhere else” & that “they” had replaced the cylinder head & timing belt. After they finished, the car wouldn’t start. The cylinder head is used & the timing belt is a cheap aftermarket belt. We had the customer call “them” & explain the situation, they were less than helpful.

So, I have a ’94 Escort with no spark & no pulse from the crank sensor. A new/used head & timing belt from “them” & a ¼” gap between the crank sensor & the pulley. The front of the engine, possibly the oil pump, looks to be 1 piece & is in good shape. It does not look broken, bent, stretched, or otherwise distorted. I don’t know what to do here & I am asking for your help. I feel I know what is wrong, but I have no idea how to fix it.

Thanks in advance - Darren

backlash1

Hi Darren
Did you verified that there was voltage getting to the sensor? Backprobe the connector of your friend's car CKP with the ignition on/engine off and while cranking and compare these voltages to the car you're having trouble with.
marc

dcbridgers

Marc,

All is well now. A used oil pump moved the sensor just close enough to work. Voltage was verified in the initial diagnosis. I also used an ohm meter across the sensor & there was no change in the sensor readings as the engine was rotated. If I passed a metal object in front of the sensor, I had a reaction from the sensor. I cant explain the oil pump, the old one looks fine. But there is something strange about the car. The new/used pump fixed the car & it drove out of my shop & that is the important thing. All is well now, but I hope to never have a problem like this again.

Thanks - Darren