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Ford WL engine: known problems
Used in 2 guides · 2499cc diesel · 4 known problems
Displacement
2499cc
Fuel
diesel
Known problems4
Everything our guides list for the variants with this engine: the engine itself plus the gearbox and ancillaries it's paired with. Each shows which cars it's listed for.
High
Cylinder head cracking / overheating
The WL family is known to crack heads, made worse by the marginal factory cooling system if run hard or neglected.
Fix: Keep cooling system in top order; replace/repair head and gasket if cracked. Heads are comparatively easy to swap on this engine.
Listed for: Ford Courier PC-PH · Mazda Bravo (B-Series) UF / UN
High
Timing belt neglect
Belt-driven; a snapped belt damages valves on an interference diesel, and cheap examples often have unknown belt history.
Fix: Replace belt, tensioner and water pump together if history is unknown; keep to ~100,000km.
Listed for: Ford Courier PC-PH
High
Timing belt failure
Belt drives both the camshaft and the injection pump; a failure stops the engine and risks valve damage. On older cars the belt history is often unknown.
Fix: Replace the timing belt, tensioner, idlers and water pump as a kit at 100,000km / on purchase if undocumented.
Listed for: Mazda Bravo (B-Series) UF / UN
Medium
Injector pump / injector wear
The mechanical injection pump and injectors wear at high km, causing hard cold starts, white/black smoke and lost power.
Fix: Diesel-specialist pump and injector service/rebuild; check timing of the pump.
Listed for: Mazda Bravo (B-Series) UF / UN
Cars with the WL2
From the FlamingCars guides for these cars. Specs are shown only where the guides agree and the value is verified.