2.2 petrol, good or bad?

[MrRob]

Is the 2.2 petrol a good or bad engine?
Whats your opinion?

[Krusher]

I'm not too up on the 2.2 but I think I read somewhere that they can get through a few headgaskets.

[fogman]

i think its like any engine rob in that if its running ok then alls well with the world but if you get a problem then its a piece of crap
i dont think its the best engine available in a fronty & ive noticed that more likely that a fair proportion of any new members on the site who own a 2.2i & have a problem with their fronty they usually ask about overheating problems ! ive also noticed that the majority of 2.2s sold on ebay as spares or repairs are because of suspected head gasket failure, but then again theres loads of high mileage examples still going strong so perhaps good maintenance combined with an early head gaskett change before failure is the way to go

as soon as i got my truck i had it serviced which included a cam belt & tensioners change at the time, it had quite a bit of history but i thought better "safe than sorry" & i had fully intended to have the h/g changed this winter in advance before any failure, it had only 52k on the clock when i got it so i thought i had at least a 10k cushion before it would maybe pop, having already researched this site they tend to go 70-80k ish.
my plans all went outa the window in late june when the h/g failed [55k], knowing that theyre reknown for being a weak point i should of perhaps taken the age of the truck into question as well ! !
A week or so & a big bill later she was back on the road & back to her old self

but even if i take into account the initial purchase price + repair bills when compared with a landy etc of the same age im still in pocket

good maintenance is the key

[Road Hog]

[lloyd]

I changed my diesel Defender for a 2.2 Fronty. Obviously there is no comparison between the two, but the ('04) Fronty is a very nice motor, reliable, quality interior, well equipped etc. It is also slow, thirsty, and very soft suspension. It uses oil quite heavily and runs warmish most times of year. On balance though I like it a lot.

[jcv1968]

The 2.2 is a cracking engine, so long as its looked after. If it hasnt been well maintained its a bit temperamental to say the least. The gudgeon pins on the con rods seem to wear if the oil isnt good quality and changed regularly. Its quite spectacular if one goes though, normally a full rebuild and very expensive. Whene I rebuilt mine a few months back I had the block acid cleaned and the amount of sludge that came out of the waterways was pretty impressive, I suspect that there is a design issue with the waterways as overheating can be a problem with these engines. Apart from that I dont really think they are any worse than other petrol engines, they all have issues. The worst fault I find is the vast quantity of fuel the engine burns. 23-25mpg is very good, so a deep pocket is helpfull! If you want economy go for the diesel.

[paul4be]

I've had no bother with mine that i wouldn't expect from any other 10 year old engine.

I find it absolutely fine in daily use, but I don't use it for major off road stuff, not too sure how it would behave subjected to heavy off road abuse due to the fairly revvy nature compared to some Fronty engines.

Just keep on top of required jobs etc and look after it properly.

I'm getting low 30's mpg average in mixed daily use. It has been better on fuel than I was expecting.

[Drift]

I think Sir Doris will be along to post his thoughts, I know he had an engine change or re build early on in the cars life but since then the car has been back and forth to Ireland and London and fairly heavy off road use and it just keeps ticking along nicely.
Its just usual stuff like starters and immobilisers that haunt him

[lloyd]

My concerns are growing. my head gasket went at just over 30k on a 54 reg motor. The camshaft is also cracked. The exhaust manifold is cracked. "Cracking" motor indeed.

When this work is finished I may be tempted to change back to Defenders again.

[Sir-Doris]

Somebody say my name???

All the above posts are pertinent.

Got mine 7 years ago with 67,000 on the clock. Head gasket went a few thousand miles later and a year or so after that the bottom end gave up the ghost.

So on the original engine I managed about 9000 miles. Had a re-manufactured engine fitted from Ivor Searle which cost a pretty penny and the truck is currently at 135,000 miles or so without any mechanical problems.
As Drift said, most of my woes seem to be starter motor related and any other nonsense has been immobiliser or sensor related. mechanically its sound.
Personally speaking its not a bad engine. Regular oil and filter changes seem to be the key to longevity. Since the new engine went in 6 years ago Iv changed the oil every 4000 to 5000 miles. Takes a few minutes every few months for peace of mind.
Before the big tires went on it regularly returned 28 to 32 mpg but that has dropped substantially since. Higher diff ratios should help alleviate that somewhat.
Its torquey enough in its own way. Iv towed car trailers with big cars on the back with little trouble, approx 2.5 tonne. Slow admittedly but once at speed it will stay there. Constant 60ish mph from London to home in hilly wales with no problems.
Its been submerged completely on more then one occasion and just keeps going (having said that its probably not going to start tomorrow )

I think most of the damage to these engines is caused by over revving them. Due to the long stroke and high compression all the usable power seems to be from 2000RPM to 4000RPM. After 4000RPM there is a distinct 'rattle' from the engine, balance shafts were fitted to later models to alleviate this. I rarely exceed 4000RPM if I can help it as it doesnt get you anywhere any faster and doesnt produce any more power.

Rocker cover gaskets are prone to leaking but it takes minutes to change them and I discovered recently that the original VX gaskets are a bit thicker then aftermarket.

Exhaust manifolds are prone to cracking. Mine is cracked but I have a couple of replacements. Its just a matter of me getting round to fitting one. They can be welded but they will eventually crack again.

Head gaskets seem to be a common problem, usually between 60,000 and 100,000 miles. There may have been issues with the original gaskets as they seem to go towards the rear of the engine. It has been said this may be because the engine is tilted to the rear slightly.

Due to it being a long stroke, high compression engine the con-rods and crank are under more stress then the 2.0 litre version so the bottom ends can be finnicky.

As mentioned Gudgeon pins can wear causing the pistons to go through the side of the block, regular oil changes will alleviate this problem. VX originally quoted 10,000 miles between services. I personally think this is too many miles between services on any engine.

Timing belts should ideally be replaced a bit sooner then the quoted 36,000 miles. Say 30,000 instead. The belt guide rollers are plastic and can disintegrate in spectacular fashion. Although, having said that I went for a tad over 40,000 on mine before I remembered to change it. The bearings in the rollers were worn and rattly so I wasnt far away from breakage.

They do burn a small amount of oil (mine uses about 200ml every 2000/3000 miles) but this is largely dependent on the type of oil used and the overall condition of the engine.


Thats about it really. I reckon if you find a car thats got 100,000 miles or more on the clock it going to be a good one.

[FRONTY 4 X 4]

i can honestly say i have had 2 2.2's and i have had nothing major other than a cracked manifold
on 1 of them and 3 snapped manifold studs on the other one
and the normall run of the mill stuff as of brakes etc etc
the one i have now as done 100,000 miles and purs like a cat with no rattles or shakes
and i will have another & another
ok i like the defender 110 but i dont like it when i have to buy parts for it

so i will stick to the frontera

i cant belive at so low milage its gone wrong does the motor have any history and as it been serviced reguler

i change the filters and oil evry 6 months regardless of millage

p.s its still clean when itake it out

i hope you get it done ok and you decide to keep it

[bigdazz]

i love my 2.2 yes it has problems but makes me love her more wanted a 2.8 but happy with old girl

[jammywagonwheel]

just got back with the new 2.2 X22SE sport - (swb ) - managed 5.7 miles before engine let go - big time - 55 mph Junction 10 M20,

Kerrrr -f boom - plumes of smoke! boom - and Tin Man from Wizard of Oz falling down the stairs noise from under the bonnet - ... overpressure in crank case, pressure blew out of dipstick, methinks piston - ring(s) - gone.

86k (indicated) on speedo, paid £400 - fleabay, some bits dont ring right - but then again.. car in good nick, surface rust drivers door (lower)

thinking of the "if it is broken fix - if it isnt - mod it!" route -

first things first - need wheels to turn - sooooooo - a regrind & rebuild is £750-ish +VAT labour and ar$e ache, in the world of Gregster / Wilberforce / Houndog.. a shortblock V8.. might fit.. flip rad fans to the front side (push not pull) and theres about 1 1/4" between a small block V8's shortened pulleys and rads.. shoehorn in the beasty.. or break for bits.. "Real Steel" cowley, middx

Project or Operation "Knuckleskinner" is a go... its a she - tempremental - but loveable - budget 2K - on top of the purchase - (on road - MOT, Tax + insurance) Martha's sale in the spring- dont tell her she'll get grumpy and earache me and cause bolts to strip. nuts to round off etc..)

If operation Knuckleskinner goes t*ts up - Martha stays, hunka chunka gets broken for the B series chaps. Easter weekend - deadline

let the fun begin.. tomorrow - drain & drop engine...

spring - easter weekend is the potential launch date of - err - unnamed - so far.

John

PS - I can HIGHLY recommend Green Flag for breakdowns Mark, Andy & Matt were brilliant, (phone, recovery and get you home), 20 mins from phonecall to arrival, top guys!

going for a beer.. needed...

[lloyd]

Just done another head gasket change due to leaking exaust down the back end. Doing this every 18 months is a bit silly. Particularly given that I've only done about 6000 miles in that time and the car is only up to 43k.

[fogman]

after reading about your latest failure lloyd especially with the head bolts being loose when it was stripped down again i think that probably caused the 2nd failure, if your mechanic friend had done the work on the first h/g change it would more than likely still be going strong

[lloyd]

Very true. The puzzle is, if the head bolts were that loose, how did it perform ok for so long?
Given the other common issues such as EML light always on, the cracked exhaust manifolds, and so on, I still think it's hardly the best engine in the world when compared for example with Isuzus of similar age, or the ancient British Leyland A series which was totally bomb proof.

[fogman]

[vauxsqueeks]

HI,
For me its a good car. I bought my 2.2 from a work collegue as a project for £400. It did have a blown head gasket at the time. I fixed this - it was amazing how many parts were either missing or loose even the head bolts were loose. There was a bodged coolant pipe fix and all sorts wrong.

Unfortunately I didn't know that the oil pumps were a weakness after the head gasket goes ( if the mileage is high ) consiquently after running brilliantly for 3 days the oil pump failed and the bottom ends died. So a full rebuild happened which cost me about £900 and has run brilliantly until a couple of months ago where the cambelt slipped a tooth and I bent 8 valves.

After a head repair its been no problem anf has been nothing but reliable,. As others have stated - regular oil & filter changes / servocing and you shouldnt go too far wrong.

though if you dont know the history of the oil pump, for the sake of £80 part, my advice would be to change it.. even with the rebuild I still paid less than going rate for it and it should last another 50-100k withoug issue. Personally, I think the car is brilliant, I would like a 2.8 "B" series diesel but for now am very happy with the 2.2.

[CJ1]

[justdan]

Iv had 2 2.2s ! Both bottom ends have gone with in 3/4 k of getting them ! Bought vauxhall replacement engine for the 1st (£1700, I was young and minted at the time ) I have now put that engine into my new truck whos engine managed less then 2k before going bang !
The new engine has been services every 5/6k , she doesn't miss a beat !
Service them very very regular and you will be fine