Mk3 Fiesta Scrapyard save.

[Angrydicky]

Ok, there's still loads around, but my friend casually mentioned on Friday night that she was scrapping her tidy N reg Fiesta 1.1 Azura because it had failed the MoT. In fact it had been due to be towed away earlier that day but the scrapyard had to cancel at the last moment and they had rearranged for Monday morning. I had a quick check of the fail sheet that night, nothing too major, so on Sunday we got it home and started the work. It failed on:Both front brake pipes corroded (done)Excessive corrosion on o/s sill (done)Rear brake pipe twistedRear brake application unevenRear brakes release unevenlyExhaust emissions CO content excessiveI reckon the CO content is down to lack of servicing - the air filter was pretty oily. It will have a full service before being sold on.Ok, the problem is the rear cylinders, one of which was found to be leaking. How the hell do you get them off the backplate? There are no visable bolts, just some sort of stud and the cylinder doesn't seem to want to shift. This is after struggling to get the hub nut undone and removing the stub axle etc :(It's probably pretty obvious, what am I missing? Oh and if anyone is interested, I'll take some pictures of the car. They might not be particularly rare now, but they are the sort of car the scrappage scheme is hoovering up quickly.Thanks.

[furqall]

do they have a large circlip holding the cylinder on?

[pogweasel]

So, but I am voting for

[Albert Ross]

You might find a small nut or 4/5mm allen bolt on the backplate, which is also rivetted to the stub mounting on the axle. If it IS an allen bolt, get another bolt to refit it, as the original will be totally fooked.

[Polystratus]

You might find a small nut or 4/5mm allen bolt on the backplate, which is also rivetted to the stub mounting on the axle. If it IS an allen bolt, get another bolt to refit it, as the original will be totally fooked.

^whs, they will be totally rusted up

[Father Ted]

I have had two Mk 3 Fiestas and n both cases death was too good for them. One went the way of the washing machine due to a holed block, the other because the engine started to pressurise the head and do weird things when starting.

[Richard]

I wonder if the Mk3 Fiesta engine problems were to do with Ford specifying the wrong oil for them.

[Angrydicky]

I wonder if the Mk3 Fiesta engine problems were to do with Ford specifying the wrong oil for them.

Dunno, 10w/40 is what's specified and what I've bought to put in it. When bought there was a tiny drop of filthy oil in the bottom of the sump :roll:One of my friends had an L reg Mk3 which suffered bottom end failure 3 months after he bought it.There doesn't seem to be much Mk3 Fester love here

[dollywobbler]

Well, I like them!

[Rod/b]

I don't. Horrible bloody things.

[Spottedlaurel]

One of my least favourite cars of the era. Horrible rattly, rusty things. Sorry.

[HillmanImp]

Quite reasonable cars I think as an everyday mode of transport. Dont have any grumbles about my mates. Okay i cant think of anyhting really nice to say about it, but nothing really bad either. Her 1.1 is happy chugging her from Leeds to Eastbourne every couple of months with few issues. They are not the most glamorous mode of transport, but thats why we are on Autoshite. Hopefuly will rattle and clack along for a few years yet. Is perfect 1st car material for someone who will ultimately be happy you have saved it. If they break down the scrappys are FULL of them so spares are a doddle.From my experience they suffer from rot though (like most Fords that age). I am due a weldathon on my friends on in the next few weeks as its MOT time. I had to do shedloads on it last year and it looks twice as bad this year. Might sell her my Scirocco instead.

[Guest]

Dunno about you lot, but around here MK3 Fiestas are incredibly rare indeed. The equivalent age Corsa is still abundant though. I reckon fuel filler rot has claimed a lot of them.Probably decent cars if you get a good example of one, someone on RR turned up a mint injection one with something like 20K on the clock. Can't see that being much of a problem!

[Conrad D. Conelrad]

I have defended MK3 Fiestas on here before, but I can't be bothered this time.

[meggersdog]

As Albert Ross said.The stud will be an allen bolt covered in cack.Only one bolt secures the wheel cylinder.Replacement cylinders have two threaded holes so they aren't handed just use the hole that lines up with the backplate.Try not to re-use the allen bolt because if it doesn't shear the head off when removing it will when you tighten it up.

[Angrydicky]

As Albert Ross said.The stud will be an allen bolt covered in cack.Only one bolt secures the wheel cylinder.Replacement cylinders have two threaded holes so they aren't handed just use the hole that lines up with the backplate.Try not to re-use the allen bolt because if it doesn't shear the head off when removing it will when you tighten it up.

That's exactly what I found today. Unfortunately they were both rounded so I had to resort to drilling them out and fitting new bolts. Now all that is left to do is sort out a slight rear brake imbalance and service. Then hopefully MOT on Monday.My daily transport is a 1957 A35, so not quite in the same league but they're fairly easy to work on and very reliable. I like them!Hirst, there's still quite a few around here, but they have certainly got rarer since the scrappage scheme was introduced Rustwise, there's a bit round the rear arches, and a small bit on the front and rear valances. The paint (metallic) is pretty flat as well, but the interior is like new and the car drives very well, nippy for a 1.1. Not bad for 102k miles :)I'll get some photos up tomorrow, this is Autoshite after all, the best place for festering festers in my opinion

[MrRegieRitmo]

My interest in Fiestas basically runs from mild interest in the MkI & generally peters out from there through the rest of the Fiestas, generally fading out by the time we get to the modern day ones...

I always said that if I'd own something as mundane as a Fiesta there'd have to be something a little bit different about it. As far as I'm concerned I've never had a completely 'ordinary' car & that's a record I aim to maintain.

A MkIII Fiesta was the first car I owned / drove after passing my test & I maintain that it was quite a nice / good looking car for me to have as my 'first.' It was a 1.6 Si, only 7 yrs old at the time & I was pretty chuffed with it. Once I'd got used to it though, I decided it was a bit of a sheep in wolves clothing with only 90bhp it wasn't exactly exhilarating! At the time, it was rarer & more interesting than an XR2 or RS Turbo but I accept it wasn't a substitute for them in the thrills department. Group 8 insurance should have given the game away there I think.

 

 

[Whoop Whoop Pull Up]

A mate of mine had an L-reg mk3 when we all first started driving. It was impressive in that the engine didn't make the farty sound that the mk2 did. Fuel filler rot eventually did for it though.A girl at our 6th form had the rare XRV version - has anyone else ever seen one?

[Cavcraft]

I've had a pretty good history of Mk3 ownership and didn't mind them too much at all.There's one very near to me that's been festering a garden for bloody years, gradually getting greener and greener as days go by. Quite an old thing, I think it's about a 1990.Might knock 'em one day and see what they want to do with it.

[ashmicro]

IIRC they are a bit of a faff. Clamp the hose, trail out the shoes and disconnect the brake pipe at the cylinder union. As others have said, you'll need to drill out the pop rivets, and remove the single bolt.BTW, any mk3's I've done had a regular bolt, 10mm I think.Good luck, you're gonna get dirty.

[CortinaDave]

They're a bit crap really, but decent cheap transport - the MK4 sad face era festers were light years ahead in every possible way, and given that they are now in the couple of hundred quid territory i wouldn't even consider a mk3 now.

[ashmicro]

They're a bit crap really, but decent cheap transport - the MK4 sad face era festers were light years ahead in every possible way, and given that they are now in the couple of hundred quid territory i wouldn't even consider a mk3 now.

Yep, had a fishface example myself, and it were grand.

[Cavcraft]

Conversely enough I found the later fugly ones to ne not as good. They felt (even more) plasticky/nasty and didn't appear to have any real redeeming features that I could see.Mingebag spec early Mk3 would be the real winner in my eyes.

[Gompo]

They are not the most glamorous mode of transport, but thats why we are on Autoshite.

Great call - sometimes it does seem we forget why we're here.I dont want a Mk3 Fiesta (RS Turbo yes..), but I look forward to seeing them running around looking shite in a few years time.

[Albert Ross]

I swapped my S-Class Merc for one of these, fully ticketed (somehow) a 1.8 LX Diseasel in Silver. I got it to teach the wife to drive. She passed her test first time, and some little wanker stole it that very night. I used the insurance to buy a very last of the run "Chinese Eye" 1.25 Ghia whith all the bollocks in it...... In Purple, with cream interior.... It was like driving a plum. Then grew up and got a Focus.

[RichL]

I had a last of the line '96 1.1 Classic Quartz as my first car. Went everywhere in it and it sipped fuel, 20 quid would last forever. Got through plently of 10/40 though forever topping the thing up and it rattled big time. Started on the first touch of the key everytime even in snow and ice like we've just had. Arches started to rust and I got fed up of it's pitiful performance so I swapped it for a MK5 Zetec S

[MrRegieRitmo]

Conversely enough I found the later fugly ones to ne not as good. They felt (even more) plasticky/nasty and didn't appear to have any real redeeming features that I could see.Mingebag spec early Mk3 would be the real winner in my eyes.

Try & find an 'S' which has a big white S sticker on the rear, it will be about G or H reg with big spot lamps on the front, 1.6 engine & it must be 'a bit of a laff' because they're rated group 10 insurance when the later more glamorous Si like I had is only group 8!

[wilko]

They are getting pressed like there is no tomorrow at the minute...Mate who runs a scrappy saved an MOT fail 1800 Zetec XR2i weighed in with them recently - fairly clean just a small patch of welding on the sill and a couple of odd jobs for the MOT, amazing how the ticket effects the value with cars in their "wilderness years" when they are sort of old but not very cool - it sold straight away at £600 with a ticket, it was a £60 scrapper the week before. He's now driving a clean 120k mid-90's Golf VR6, sent for scrap by the previous owner due to lack of test and a worn out clutch.My mum has an 1995 Fiesta 1.3 injection - completely immaculate, FSH, lived 99% of it's time in a garage for the past decade & with just 28k on the clock & all 4 original wheel trims! Love them or hate them, it's going to be a bargain for somebody when she decides to get rid of it. It still drives like new, but starting to feel strangely "retro" on the odd occasion I borrow it!!!

[Pillock]

I used the insurance to buy a very last of the run "Chinese Eye" 1.25 Ghia whith all the bollocks in it...... In Purple, with cream interior.... It was like driving a plum. Then grew up and got a Focus.

My OH's grandfather has got this exact model, a T plated one. One one hand, I hate it because it's a Fiesta. But then I remember the 1.25 engine is a bit of a cracker, and it's fully loaded - heated windscreen, electric windows, remote locking.... not bad for what'd be a £500 car if he sold it.I had the use of a 1.8 Diesel on an L plate (ex-OH's mum's, but she also had a Porsche 914 so the Fester never got used). It was horrid in every way - heavy to drive, basic and starting to rust badly at 5 years old. BUT it took us everywhere and never missed a beat.And the newer ones drive really well, my mum's 56-plate Zetec is blinding through the bends. Really confident handling, can easily take bends 5-10mph quicker than our Saxo without getting the twangy bumcheeks.So then I wonder why I always say "I hate Fiestas", but I do.