Another win with Pico!

Ask for and share advice on using the PicoScope kit to fix vehicles here.
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grunf1976
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Another win with Pico!

Post by grunf1976 »

Hi,
Today a friend of mine called me to help him with a problem. He is automotive electrician. He had some old 1991 Opel Vectra 2.0 petrol towed in with no start condition and was asked to check the car. He did his job and checked everything and couldnt find the problem so after work i went there in hope of helping him out. And indeed the car had fuel and spark but wouldnt start. We noticed that the sparks were flooded. We put new sparks in and same thing... Each time you turn the key it floods the spark plugs.So it had fuel, spark but wouldnt start. So I took Wps and did compression test with second channel attached to nr.1 cylinder spark plug just to see if the timing was good as well . The compression was a bit low for that engine but was not the cause of not starting. The spark was few degrees early but it wasnt the thing that dew mu attention. I saw that exhaust valve was of by 22 degrees late. So we had found problem. It was the timing. So pulled the covers off to find cam of by one and a half tooth. So realigned everything and did the test again. Surprisingly the results were worst than before. Now the cam was 72 degrees of ???? Thinking that I missed something I rechecked timing and everything was as it should be but the evidence pointed in other direction. In the time I own Pico I learned to trust in it although results dont match with what Im seeing on a car itself. So i decided that something is wrong with timing marks on the crank an went about it old school :). Took a long screwdriver and put it through spark plug hole and turned the engine until the piston hit TDC. Placed everything back together and did compression check again. It was dead on!!! Tried to start the car and BINGO! It started right up and ran great!
After when we talked to the customer we saw that he didnt share all the facts. Couple days ago timing belt snapped and he had it changed. Since pistons dont hit valves on this one when that happens he had just the belt changed and then the problems started.
I assume that the mechanic did just what he was told to do ( and even that he didnt do right) and when he saw that car wouldnt start he gave up.
Yes this is an old car, but if you already took the job then you should follow through to the end and not give up as soon as you hit a bump!!
So anyway, although I got WPS just couple weeks ago Im already in love with the thing :)! It is a great tool and if you just use your imagination a bit there's no end what you could find and fix. Im still learning how to use it but so far it has been fun. It makes this job more interesting.
Ill be sharing the captures I made today as soon as possible .
All the best,
Mickey

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Re: Another win with Pico!

Post by STC »

Makes you wonder why everybody does not have a good scope and accessories.

I still wonder how these people get through the working day. It must be like working in the dark.

Dcunning35
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Re: Another win with Pico!

Post by Dcunning35 »

Well done Mikey !! . I don't own a wps yet but I'm seeing more and more uses for it, how many times a technians do we see problems like cam lobes knocked round etc obviously you need to get reading the patterns and interpreting them correctly but I'm assuming it saves any quesswork .
Danny

grunf1976
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Re: Another win with Pico!

Post by grunf1976 »

Thnx Dcunnin35,
Yes, you are right. It saves a lot of time and guesswork which is the whole point I think and that it is not that hard to interpret as long as you use logic. It allows you to see the malfunction ( that is how I see It :D )

@STC,
I found that small percentage of tech's want to use this way of fault finding( at least in my surrounding). They tend to stick to guesswork and simple stuff. For me thats ok if you want to be parts changer and scratch you head a lot. But If you want to be certain in what you do and mainly improve yourself than the path is very obvious.

Dcunning35
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Re: Another win with Pico!

Post by Dcunning35 »

Gruff can I ask which wpx 500 kit you opted for ,I've seen a full kit here but I've also seen ads(frank Massey) have another kit with different adaptors. I use a Sykes compression and cyl leak tester not sure if the adaptors will be compatible?
Danny

grunf1976
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Re: Another win with Pico!

Post by grunf1976 »

I use PP939 kit. It works for me, but I think if you use Sykes than you can use TA 250 adaptor kit B with WPS

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Re: Another win with Pico!

Post by STC »

Danny

Regardless of which kit you buy there will come a time when you will be making / buying adaptors to fit your Diesel Compression tester, Oil Pressure tester, Coolant Pressure Tester, Fuel pressure tester..... The list goes on.

The idea being that any testing kit you own with a pressure gauge fitted to it, you will want to have the option of using the WPS instead of the gauge for dynamic measurements.
It does have the potential to become a labour of love, but worth it when you get it all working together.

Dcunning35
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Re: Another win with Pico!

Post by Dcunning35 »

Thanks gruff and stc .
Danny

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