2007 Mondeo Mk3 TDCi Loss of power, white smoke, won’t start

[jeanbesin]

Vehicle: Ford Mondeo Mk3 – 2007 – 2.0L 115 TDCi (diesel)

Hello! I post here this question on the diagnosis of my car, a Mondeo Mk3 with 2L TDCi 115 hp engine, I hope you can help me! Here are the infos :

Background

Aug 2023:
While climbing the Mont Cenis pass (a steep mountain pass in the French Alps) after ~7 hours of driving, the engine overheated, went into limp mode, and shut itself off. Coolant was boiling.
- Ford diagnosis: cooling fan failure.
- Fan was replaced. At that time, the engine would still start even before replacing the cooling fan, and I could drive the car normally.

Aug 2024 – While towing a heavy trailer, I suddenly experienced:
- Loss of power
- White smoke
- Fast knocking sound
Restarted engine: it ran a few minutes, then died and would not start again.

Current situation

Recently started repairs.
With starting fluid, the engine will fire up but:
- Heavy smoke from engine bay
- Strong bad smell
- Runs very poorly for a few seconds then stalls
There is both blowing and suction at the glow plug holes while cranking.

Tear-down findings
- Cylinder head removed.
- No obvious cracks, warping, or damage on the head.
- Cylinder liners look normal.
Head gasket has no visible blowouts or breaks.

Question
Given this history — initial overheating on a steep climb, then a sudden failure under heavy load a year later, now with poor compression symptoms — what are the most likely causes?

Edited by jeanbesin on Friday 15th August 11:40