Update time. Away from the boat last weekend, so no progress until yesterday. My brother came over for the afternoon and between us we managed to get the cylinder head lifted clear of the block. The nature of the engine problem then became self-evident. One of the pistons had burnt through and cracked. Presumably a piece of carbon dislodged from somewhere and stuck to the piston crown causing a hot spot and the piston to burn through. The FR engines have an access plate which allows you into the crankcase, and it is possible (just) to undo the big end nuts through this opening. The nearer one is relatively simple, but the far one is an absolute sod. I spent the best part of today swearing at it and scraping my wrists and knuckles on the crankshaft, but eventually managed to get the nut undone and the piston out of the bore. The crack in the piston runs from the crown right down the skirt, and has caused the piston rings to break. Fortunately, the cylinder bore looks undamaged. I've had a close inspection by torchlight and can see no signs of any scratches. With any luck, it will just be a case of replacing the broken piston and rings with a new set and bolting it all back together again.
Terry Streeter NB Arun - West Hyde
