PROJECT ESCORT PT2: WORK BEGINS
Our Escort is going in for a good deal of work, but the relatively simple oil change might end up being one of the most important jobs to do. It was the instinct of Quentin at Q-prep to simply check the oil level before we began on the compression test. It turned out to be a touch too high, and so our previous suspicions that valve guides or piston rings might be worn and causing it to burn oil were thrown into question. Could it simply be a case of oil being thrown up into the crankcase ventilation valve, then being evaporated in the combustion chamber from the intake manifold? That blue smoke could very easily be the excess oil in the sump being burned rather than it leaking through any other, more serious route.
The compression test would be more of a confirmation of this theory though, so we went ahead. A compression test is a relatively simple procedure to carry out, with the correct tools. Quentin set
