Ford/Volvo 5cyl Turbo Cylinder Liners

[mbwoy84]

After the success of the last engine semi-rebuild I sorted with a little help from this forum, I've moved onto something a little bigger and more serious/challenging.

I have a MK4 Mondeo 2.5T, which is fitted with the same Volvo engine as found in the MK2 Focus ST. It is found to have the common cracked liner problem, so I have stripped the engine down to a bare block. I can source new liners from Westwood Cylinder Liners, who make an uprated liner which a lot of the big power engine builder/specialists use. A lot of these offer a service for replacing the liners, but it is expensive! Now, I more than anyone appreciate the costs involved in specialist work, but at the same time I'm sure there must be engine machining companies that could do something now I have it stripped to a bare block and can supply new liners. I've tried a few I know, but they all want to shy away from it, with it being an alloy engine the reason given for this.

Does anyone know of anyone who could maybe do this? With new liners fitted I can take it from there.

Cheers

[Little Pete]

mbwoy84 said:

After the success of the last engine semi-rebuild I sorted with a little help from this forum, I've moved onto something a little bigger and more serious/challenging.

I have a MK4 Mondeo 2.5T, which is fitted with the same Volvo engine as found in the MK2 Focus ST. It is found to have the common cracked liner problem, so I have stripped the engine down to a bare block. I can source new liners from Westwood Cylinder Liners, who make an uprated liner which a lot of the big power engine builder/specialists use. A lot of these offer a service for replacing the liners, but it is expensive! Now, I more than anyone appreciate the costs involved in specialist work, but at the same time I'm sure there must be engine machining companies that could do something now I have it stripped to a bare block and can supply new liners. I've tried a few I know, but they all want to shy away from it, with it being an alloy engine the reason given for this.

Does anyone know of anyone who could maybe do this? With new liners fitted I can take it from there.

Cheers

The fact that your local machine shops don't want to do it should tell you something. Any machine shop that has the capability to do that kind of work will be expensive. I can recommend one in the North West if that is any use.

[Smurfsarepeopletoo]

I had a Focus ST that the liners cracked on it, its recommended to just replace the block rather than fit liners, as there is a risk that it could have the problem again in the future, there are companies that will do the work, but it might be worth just replacing the block, you could contact KMS Performance work on alot of mk2 ST/RS, there is also Collins Performance that have been around on the ford scene for years, as well as Demon Performance.

[mbwoy84]

There are a number of companies offering the service. BD Performance in particular claim to be the original company that offered it and they use the Westwood Liners and claim that they have never had a failure come back on engines running all power up to 800bhp and as they're not a million miles away that's who I would likely use. I appreciate that machining work on an alloy block is a specialist job, but at the same time it wouldn't be witchcraft, so I'm sure there must be places out there who can do it.

I would be interested in the details of the machine shop mentioned please.

I also would happily fit a good "new" used block, but finding one that you can be sure is good for a reasonable price is also challenging. There are a few advertised for sale which are sold with cracked liners, and a couple with no real details. Based on previous experiences I wouldn't trust Joe Average to be able to spot/identify a crack in a liner anyway!

[Smurfsarepeopletoo]

mbwoy84 said:

There are a number of companies offering the service. BD Performance in particular claim to be the original company that offered it and they use the Westwood Liners and claim that they have never had a failure come back on engines running all power up to 800bhp and as they're not a million miles away that's who I would likely use. I appreciate that machining work on an alloy block is a specialist job, but at the same time it wouldn't be witchcraft, so I'm sure there must be places out there who can do it.

I would be interested in the details of the machine shop mentioned please.

I also would happily fit a good "new" used block, but finding one that you can be sure is good for a reasonable price is also challenging. There are a few advertised for sale which are sold with cracked liners, and a couple with no real details. Based on previous experiences I wouldn't trust Joe Average to be able to spot/identify a crack in a liner anyway!

There is a guy based in Leicester called Tim (cant remember his surname) and he had been doing the liners on these engines since before they were in the focus. He seemed to be highly regarded in this.

If you have instagram follow Them all, But I have added some URL below, KMS will do the Block Mod for under a grand.

https://www.kmsmotorsport.com/index.php?route=prod...

https://collinsperformance.com/

https://www.demonperformancecentre.co.uk.

I spoke to BD performance when mine went, and didnt really get much help from them, and they seemed really expensive.

I used Collins for my remap when I had mine, and they went over the car checking bushes and stuff before they would look at remapping it, and I have also used Demon Performance with happy results.

Never used KMS but not heard a bad word about them.

[stevieturbo]

In general, fitting liners is not a simple machining task, and to do it well, is harder again, often requiring extremely fine tolerances, which without a CNC setup...just isnt happening.

Add in it being a performance applications, and most shops will just get it wrong.

If there is a specialist company out there who have done it with a proven track record, just pay them.

Or use a different engine that doesnt need such work.

[gazza285]

I've always used Bradford Grinders for my engine work.

https://bguk.co.uk/

[anonymous-user]

Smurfsarepeopletoo said:

mbwoy84 said:

There are a number of companies offering the service. BD Performance in particular claim to be the original company that offered it and they use the Westwood Liners and claim that they have never had a failure come back on engines running all power up to 800bhp and as they're not a million miles away that's who I would likely use. I appreciate that machining work on an alloy block is a specialist job, but at the same time it wouldn't be witchcraft, so I'm sure there must be places out there who can do it.

I would be interested in the details of the machine shop mentioned please.

I also would happily fit a good "new" used block, but finding one that you can be sure is good for a reasonable price is also challenging. There are a few advertised for sale which are sold with cracked liners, and a couple with no real details. Based on previous experiences I wouldn't trust Joe Average to be able to spot/identify a crack in a liner anyway!

There is a guy based in Leicester called Tim (cant remember his surname) and he had been doing the liners on these engines since before they were in the focus. He seemed to be highly regarded in this.

If you have instagram follow Them all, But I have added some URL below, KMS will do the Block Mod for under a grand.

https://www.kmsmotorsport.com/index.php?route=prod...

https://collinsperformance.com/

https://www.demonperformancecentre.co.uk.

I spoke to BD performance when mine went, and didnt really get much help from them, and they seemed really expensive.

I used Collins for my remap when I had mine, and they went over the car checking bushes and stuff before they would look at remapping it, and I have also used Demon Performance with happy results.

Never used KMS but not heard a bad word about them.

I would steer well clear of Tim Williams. Total scammer. Had my Volvo block "replaced" by him with a block mod done and apparently he used the 2.4 engine which doesn't suffer the issue, also replaced the clutch. Was fine for a year, then cracked block again (assured that this doesn't happen on the 2.4 block especially when shimmed, clutch went after 20k miles of normal road driving.

The guy didn't want to know and stopped answering calls.

Sold the car for peanuts and the chap said it was still the original block that he had shimmed with a cracked liner and the clutch had been poorly fitted resulting in the plate shattering.

Such a good reputation for a total scammer. No wonder his number isn't advertised anywhere.

[westwood35]

mbwoy84 said:

After the success of the last engine semi-rebuild I sorted with a little help from this forum, I've moved onto something a little bigger and more serious/challenging.

I have a MK4 Mondeo 2.5T, which is fitted with the same Volvo engine as found in the MK2 Focus ST. It is found to have the common cracked liner problem, so I have stripped the engine down to a bare block. I can source new liners from Westwood Cylinder Liners, who make an uprated liner which a lot of the big power engine builder/specialists use. A lot of these offer a service for replacing the liners, but it is expensive! Now, I more than anyone appreciate the costs involved in specialist work, but at the same time I'm sure there must be engine machining companies that could do something now I have it stripped to a bare block and can supply new liners. I've tried a few I know, but they all want to shy away from it, with it being an alloy engine the reason given for this.

Does anyone know of anyone who could maybe do this? With new liners fitted I can take it from there.

Cheers

I think it may be best to get in contact with us again and we can give you some options on who is best for fitting our ST liners. Please note, there is a particular process to fitting these liners into the ST block to get correct fitting. There are only a few companies in the UK that we recommend to do this. We have two in particular who are doing at least 10 blocks a month between them!!! We do know of companies that offer cheap fitting, and not use the correct fitting process, which can lead to a failure.

I see that BD Performance have been mentioned. I'd like to make it clear that they did not have any involvement with the development of these Ductile liners for the ST. It was actually a gentleman in Sweden who kindly helped us.

As always, if you have any questions regarding our products or fitting, it's always best to give us a call and we can try and help as much as we can.

Regards, Duncan Andrews
MD, Westwood Cylinder Liners

[stevieturbo]

Can't ask for better than that.

[Krikkit]

Sounds like an absolute minefield. Awesome to have the guys in the know dropping in to recommend someone!

[Hashtaggggg]

Elatino1 said:

Smurfsarepeopletoo said:

mbwoy84 said:

There are a number of companies offering the service. BD Performance in particular claim to be the original company that offered it and they use the Westwood Liners and claim that they have never had a failure come back on engines running all power up to 800bhp and as they're not a million miles away that's who I would likely use. I appreciate that machining work on an alloy block is a specialist job, but at the same time it wouldn't be witchcraft, so I'm sure there must be places out there who can do it.

I would be interested in the details of the machine shop mentioned please.

I also would happily fit a good "new" used block, but finding one that you can be sure is good for a reasonable price is also challenging. There are a few advertised for sale which are sold with cracked liners, and a couple with no real details. Based on previous experiences I wouldn't trust Joe Average to be able to spot/identify a crack in a liner anyway!

There is a guy based in Leicester called Tim (cant remember his surname) and he had been doing the liners on these engines since before they were in the focus. He seemed to be highly regarded in this.

If you have instagram follow Them all, But I have added some URL below, KMS will do the Block Mod for under a grand.

https://www.kmsmotorsport.com/index.php?route=prod...

https://collinsperformance.com/

https://www.demonperformancecentre.co.uk.

I spoke to BD performance when mine went, and didnt really get much help from them, and they seemed really expensive.

I used Collins for my remap when I had mine, and they went over the car checking bushes and stuff before they would look at remapping it, and I have also used Demon Performance with happy results.

Never used KMS but not heard a bad word about them.

I would steer well clear of Tim Williams. Total scammer. Had my Volvo block "replaced" by him with a block mod done and apparently he used the 2.4 engine which doesn't suffer the issue, also replaced the clutch. Was fine for a year, then cracked block again (assured that this doesn't happen on the 2.4 block especially when shimmed, clutch went after 20k miles of normal road driving.

The guy didn't want to know and stopped answering calls.

Sold the car for peanuts and the chap said it was still the original block that he had shimmed with a cracked liner and the clutch had been poorly fitted resulting in the plate shattering.

Such a good reputation for a total scammer. No wonder his number isn't advertised anywhere.

My experiences of Tim Williams is the polar opposite of your comments.

Are you sure the purchaser of the car wasn’t the person trying it on?!

[Evoluzione]

You need to say where you are, there are several companies up and down the country that could do it.

[anonymous-user]

Hashtaggggg said:

My experiences of Tim Williams is the polar opposite of your comments.

Are you sure the purchaser of the car wasn’t the person trying it on?!

100% sure. The new clutch went after 18months of commuting driving and the engine started drinking coolant again at around the same time.

He actually suggested to put some steel seal in and try to flog it on before he stopped answering calls or texts. Literally suggesting I should scam someone else. Guy is a total bellend. Was a lovely chap the first time he was taking my £2500 but when there was a problem didn't want to know

[stevieturbo]

Elatino1 said:

100% sure. The new clutch went after 18months of commuting driving and the engine started drinking coolant again at around the same time.

He actually suggested to put some steel seal in and try to flog it on before he stopped answering calls or texts. Literally suggesting I should scam someone else. Guy is a total bellend. Was a lovely chap the first time he was taking my £2500 but when there was a problem didn't want to know

A clutch isnt new at 18months old ? lol

[anonymous-user]

Don't be a dick, how many clutches and engine blocks last just under18months after replacement?

Simply the engine block wasn't even replaced, chances are neither was the clutch.

[stevieturbo]

Elatino1 said:

Don't be a dick, how many clutches and engine blocks last just under18months after replacement?

Simply the engine block wasn't even replaced, chances are neither was the clutch.

Depends on the dick driving, building or tuning it.

A really big dick could destroy a clutch in a matter of hours. Or a good driver could make a clutch last say 500,000 miles or more.

[Boosted LS1]

There are plenty of bell ends out there who in their own ignorance can destroy an engine and blame another.

[anonymous-user]

I'm guessing you guys don't know Volvos at all.

For a start I had owned the car for 3 years prior to this alleged repair and the original clutch was fine and was only being replaced as it was cheaper whilst the engine was out.

The car was driven on road only after the engine was "replaced". It was driven to and from work and is not the sort of car anyone thrashes around on the redline everywhere, it was a comfy cruiser that was pampered and serviced regularly. I have had over 30 cars and never had to replace and engine or clutch before or after this one.

5cylinder Volvo engines and clutches do not die within 18months of being replaced especially when well serviced and new belts installed. The parts were simply not replaced.

To suggest putting steel seal in it and moving it along is the exact sort of thing only a scammer would suggest doing too.

If other people have other incorrect views then that is down to them but I know the circumstances exactly.

Edited by anonymous-user on Sunday 2nd August 07:02

[Hashtaggggg]

Elatino1 said:

I'm guessing you guys don't know Volvos at all.

For a start I had owned the car for 3 years prior to this alleged repair and the original clutch was fine and was only being replaced as it was cheaper whilst the engine was out.

The car was driven on road only after the engine was "replaced". It was driven to and from work and is not the sort of car anyone thrashes around on the redline everywhere, it was a comfy cruiser that was pampered and serviced regularly. I have had over 30 cars and never had to replace and engine or clutch before or after this one.

5cylinder Volvo engines and clutches do not die within 18months of being replaced especially when well serviced and new belts installed. The parts were simply not replaced.

To suggest putting steel seal in it and moving it along is the exact sort of thing only a scammer would suggest doing too.

If other people have other incorrect views then that is down to them but I know the circumstances exactly.

Edited by Elatino1 on Sunday 2nd August 07:02

From a person a point of view I have had plenty of Volvo's including a V70R with the same engine you are referring to.

You clearly feel wronged, 18 + months after the work was done, and have the crucial evidence to back up your position.

Why not take the matter to small claims. It only costs £105.00. Unless of course....