Ford 2.3 turbo question, mechanics step in

[AKguy1985]

Yesterday i bought an 84 tbird turbo coupe off a friend of mine its the 2.3 turbo motor. I got a good deal on it but it has an issue. The last time he had drove it, it had jumped timing on him while he was turning into his neighborhood, he replaced the timing belt and reset the timing three times but its making this intermittent popping noise through the throttle body. The sound doesnt speed up as engine rpm is increased and i was able to drive it home yesterday. Above 50mph it drives just fine and cruises at 65 but below that in lower gears say 1-2-3 it kind of bucks and jerks a little and intermittently makes that popping sound. I think its the timing is still off but i could be wrong.....any ideas???

 

[Danny Tanner]

Those cars are slick!

Can't help with the mechanical issues, but I can give you a thumbs up on the purchase!

 

[twotonevert]

Its easy get the chain off a tooth or too if he didnt have it TDC when put the chain on. I am not a mechanic but have worked on many fords over they years. My guess is the timing is still off. Those are running little engines.

 

[onearmedman]

I'd be wondering what else may have happened in the valve-train when it jumped time...

 

[Shoot Summ]

Since many want to point to the timing being off I thought I would share an experience.

We did the timing belt on my son's 95 4Runner, V6. I lined everything up, put it all back together, and it had a miss. I was certain I had the timing off so we took it apart and re-did it. Same result, so I made some access holes in the covers just to be sure it was on, still shows OK but a persistent miss. Finally stepped back, and checked everything, found 2 plug wires crossed.....

 

[smax]

If its popping through the intake it may be a bent intake valve. Jumping timing can be disasterous. Need to run a compression check on all cylinders.

 

[Shoot Summ]

The 2.3 is a non-interference motor.

 

[inactive]

The 2.3 is a non-interference motor.

This. I bet the timing is still slightly off, or a plug wire may be crossed or not secured. That old of a motor is only a 4 plug (not 8), right? Harder to do with only 4 plug wires but worth checking.

Disclaimer - I am no mechanic but owned a Ranger with a 2.3 (not turbo) and did a good amount of work on it myself.

 

[Bigjoe.45]

More often than not popping back through the intake is due to a camshaft lobe going flat. The 2300 pinto engine can be bad about this. The timing could indeed be off and cause this to a minor degree. The turbo timing is not the same as the naturally aspirated versions so make sure. Timing belts can be funny things so you may check again yourself. Compression check is the next step if this does not fix the problem but if the cam is going bad on the exhaust side this will not show the problem. It is note worthy that these things spit out head gaskets like a toddler with peas so that is the last check and hopefully not the issue.

 

[dieseltech09]

Check this

An access plug is provided in the cam drive belt cover so that camshaft timing can be checked without removal of the cover or any other parts.
Remove access plug from cam drive belt cover.
Set crankshaft to TDC by aligning the TC mark on the timing belt cover with notch on crankshaft pulley. CAUTION: Always rotate crankshaft clockwise, which is the normal direction of rotation. Reverse rotation (counterclockwise) may cause the timing belt to jump time due to the arrangement of the timing belt tensioner.
Look through the access hole in the belt cover to be sure that the timing mark on the camshaft drive sprocket is aligned with the pointer on the inner timing belt cover assembly.
Remove the distributor cap and check that the distributor rotor is facing the No. 1 position on the distributor cap.
If belt timing is satisfactory, install distributor cap and belt cover access plug. If belt timing is unsatisfactory, continue on to "Adjustment or Replacement" procedure