I havethe Fabia in Dominican Republic, you can not leave the car alone for a second because then the super genious mechanic do something.... creative...

Background: car had some bent valves and i had to do the cylinder head.

When installing back, i found that the mechanic used grease in the new head gasket.

Why? (If i asked him je will twll me that have beend doing that for years and that that is how must be done bla bla bla....)

Now, what can i expect? How long will it last?

I am really tired dealing with this (this is the fourth mechanic, it doesnt matter if it is the backyard mechanic, or the one at the dealer with all the knowledges updated... it is something to do with the culture of this country, everybody know way more than the manufacturer, they know everything and how everything must be done, thats the reason why this country is so perfect.

What can i expect?

Alright

The engine has already been assembled, but when the mechanic tried to start the engine, it started quickly but expelled a lot of oil through the coolant outlet, on the side below the vacuum pump, it spurted a lot as if it were an oil line.

Doesnt look good. Hopefully just waste oil in coolant passages but could be cracked head/block,head gasket perhaps wrong one? I wouldn't have thought some grease would cause the problem so soon unless its affected the heas bolts torque.

Alasdair

Edited 30 April, 20251 yr by Alasdair1

5 hours ago, Alasdair1 said:

Doesnt look good. Hopefully just waste oil in coolant passages but could be cracked head/block,head gasket perhaps wrong one? I wouldn't have thought some grease would cause the problem so soon unless its affected the heas bolts torque.

Alasdair

Hi, thabk you for the response.

No, it is not waste oil.

The flow of oil when we start the engine waa like if was an live line, lot of oil comming out of there.

I have a doubt, when i saw the car yesterday, the engine was hanging from the battery side mount/support. I dont know if the mechanic did install the head with the engine in that situation.

My suspects, if he installed the head with the engine hanging from one support, torque the head in tha t position, then when lifting the engine to hang in ita nornal position... wouldn'tthat cause extreme torsion forces that could deform the block and create gaps once lifting the engine to thwle proper position?

Is his tightening torque and order correct for my ASY engine correct?

Any help?

On 30/04/2025 at 15:44, Kharl said:

I have a doubt, when i saw the car yesterday, the engine was hanging from the battery side mount/support. I dont know if the mechanic did install the head with the engine in that situation.

My suspects, if he installed the head with the engine hanging from one support, torque the head in tha t position, then when lifting the engine to hang in ita nornal position... wouldn'tthat cause extreme torsion forces that could deform the block and create gaps once lifting the engine to thwle proper position?

Not sure but doubt it the weight of the engine even from one mount would distort the block. I have changed clutchs with engine lifted from one end and also removed engines with one hanger and had no problems. There are a couple of things I can think of. Cylinder head is warped and needing skimmed, Block itself is cracked or its the wrong gasket or gasket perhaps fitted upside down/back to front. Sorry I cant be of more help

1 hour ago, Alasdair1 said:

Not sure but doubt it the weight of the engine even from one mount would distort the block. I have changed clutchs with engine lifted from one end and also removed engines with one hanger and had no problems. There are a couple of things I can think of. Cylinder head is warped and needing skimmed, Block itself is cracked or its the wrong gasket or gasket perhaps fitted upside down/back to front. Sorry I cant be of more help

You bring me some peace, thanks.

The mechanick inatalled the head gasket wrong, upside down, and one of the oil holes was blocked, thats why the oil was diverted some how came from the water side.

We installed correctly but the mechanic didnt follow the right sequence for tightening the head bolts.

Is this the right order?

If that is for your engine it makes sense. They normally get tightened from centre outwards in stages. If loosening then in the reverse order. Make sure he cleans out the thread holes in the block completely. All it takes is some coolant or oil and you can crack the block when tightening.(end of engine). Also clean bolts of grease/oil as this will increase torque. If I remember you should always use new bolts as they are stretch bolts especially if they have already been torqued twice now. I gave away my fabia MK1 workshop manual as I don't have the car so can't check for you ut someone on here will be able to confirm that the above is correct or not.

Alasdair. When its all baack together I would drain and flush coolant system to get rid of any oil.

@Kharl I don't have a Fabia manual either, but what @Alasdair1 says above is basic sound mechanics for any engine.

Thank you guys, in a moment the mechanicleft me alone with the car i retightedthe engine how it should.

Now, The new issue isv

The engine feels rought, accelerate slow, he insist that it is an electronic or inyector sealing issues.

And i told him no, that it is a timing issue.

I insist the belt is not porperly installed, and i found it a little bit loose. I insist, when the engine was good, that belt was lightly tensioned, he insist the timing is fine because it start quickly when crank.

But i say NO.

THE BELT IS LOOSE and the fuel consumption when idling is 1.3 L per hour, when it was 0.3L per hour before damages.

Please Check this video

Edited 14 May, 20251 yr by Kharl

Also, it is leaking Diesel this area.

Looks ok to me re tension but did he use the tools for locking up drive sprocketstiming when fitting it. It might be 1 tooth out.

Alasdair

No way this could be normal

Pulled this from the Gates catalogue. Its for a 1.9 sdi ASY engine upto 2007. Has the mechanic got the belt fitted correctly and has the tensioner been fitted properly. Is it a new belt and the correct one if so.

Alasdair.

Meant to add is it a new tensioner etc as well.

11 hours ago, Kharl said:

No way this could be normal

I can tell you how to fix that; take the slack, wrap round the fitter's neck, and pull tight. 😏

16 hours ago, Alasdair1 said:

Pulled this from the Gates catalogue. Its for a 1.9 sdi ASY engine upto 2007. Has the mechanic got the belt fitted correctly and has the tensioner been fitted properly. Is it a new belt and the correct one if so.

Alasdair.

New belt and new tensioner, altoug i will confirm in few hours

Found this guide on here re changing belt etc. Might be of some help especially the tensioner and locking pins etc

Alasdair

Thank you. Another thing... the car ia extremely slow and weak

If the timing is out by a notch or two it will be down on power. I would not run car until the timing has been checked and the problem with belt has been addressed. If its slightly out it probably won't cause any damage to valves etc but if the belt jumps a few more notches then you could be back to square one.

Alasdair

Edited 15 May, 20251 yr by Alasdair1

Perhaps a silly question, but why not just do the work yourself?

You seem to know enough/be able to find the answers or, at the very least, more able than your local mechanics. I'm not sure where you are, but I can see one or two VW places in Santa Domingo.

+1 on what Alasdair said - one notch or two you'll likely get away with it, but any more and you can have some serious problems.

On a side note, the 1.9 SDI differs from the 1.9 TDI in that it has no turbo. From my understanding, while they are painfully slow, they are generally absolutely bomb proof and very good on fuel.

Buena suerte. ¡Valdrá la pena!

Edited 15 May, 20251 yr by OccyVRS

On 15/05/2025 at 11:06, Alasdair1 said:

If the timing is out by a notch or two it will be down on power. I would not run car until the timing has been checked and the problem with belt has been addressed. If its slightly out it probably won't cause any damage to valves etc but if the belt jumps a few more notches then you could be back to square one.

Alasdair

Yes, the car is extremely slow, it would turn off everywhere, when I put it in first gear.