Haynes has always been all about helping you, the home mechanic, to carry out your own repairs on your vehicles. Here, we celebrate those who use their spare time and Haynes Manuals to repair and improve their pride and joy.
DIY champion: David Brooks
Vehicle: 2005 Ford Mondeo 2.0 TDCi Ghia
A Mk2 Mondeo. What’s that, we hear you asking? It wasn't sold in Australia because the Mk1 didn't do that well here, but it reappeared in Mk3 guise. That's a real shame, because the Mk2 with its 'New Edge' styling still looks really sharp nearly 25 years after it launched in Europe. It also drove really well. Ah well, some things just weren't meant to be.
This one – or rather the car with the diesel engine shown here – is owned by David Brooks' son in the UK. David had bought it for him at a knock-down price for two reasons: it was in limp-home mode and would emit clouds of black smoke whenever the driver put their foot down. The worry was that the money saved in the purchase could end up being spent on spare parts.
So, David dug out his toolkit and began to take things apart.
His suspicions lay with the EGR valve, which he thought might be blocked, so he took it apart and cleaned it up. Matters improved, but limp-home mode was still a significant part of most journeys.
Next, he decided to carry out a clean-up of the air intake and turbocharger. The air-intake system was removed and degreased, as was the turbocharger, although this took a bit more time and ingenuity because David didn’t have the correct tools for the job. Nevertheless, perseverance paid off, and the turbo was removed, checked for cracks, cleaned and refitted.
While refitting the turbo, David noticed that a previous owner had removed and refitted an oil feed pipe, but had done so carelessly because the pipe was kinked. A new one was ordered and fitted. So far, the time taken was two days.
He took it out for a rest run and was thrilled that the clouds of smoke were a thing of the past. But then, as he put his foot down, the car dropped into limp-home mode again.
Frustrated? Well, if David had had a match to hand, that might have been the end of it. After much gnashing of teeth, he invested in the Mondeo Haynes Manual.
Faulty flow plug?
The manual suggested that the source of his problem could be a faulty glow plug, so investigations began. Off came the plastic engine cover, then the inlet manifold, which allowed access to the glow plugs.
The first three he checked were fine, but the last one (it’s never the first one, is it?) was in two bits. He took off the first bit, then set about the delicate task of removing the part that was still in the engine. After investing in a glow plug extractor, and displaying the delicacy and dexterity of a surgeon, David managed to get the remaining part of the faulty plug out. He decided it would be better to replace all four, and then it was time for test drive number three.
Boom! Perfection. The Mondeo ran perfectly, and has done so ever since.
David was a very happy and satisfied man, and that’s what Haynes manuals are all about – providing you with the feeling of satisfaction at doing a job yourself. That and saving yourself a whole heap of cash in the process.
Feelings of contentment and happiness are precisely why we want to hear your stories about getting your vital modes of transport back on the road when they’ve gone wrong. We also want to hear from those of who get satisfaction out of simply servicing and maintaining your pride and joy, and how you’re using Haynes to help you out.
Just send us a few details about yourself and your vehicle to yourrepairs@haynes.co.uk
Tell us about any issues you’ve encountered or any problems you foresee, plus a few pictures, and we’ll feature you on our website and social channels.
After all, fixing your car or motorcycle yourself means you save money and get a warm glow every time you start the vehicle.