Re: Old Pugs
From: coupe404 (tippett@pacificcoast.net)
Date: Sun 24 Feb 2002 - 21:28:01 EST
--- In peugeot-L@y..., "Mike Aube" <maube@i...> wrote:
> The 404, the best car Peugeot ever built as far as I'm concerned
in any
> model. Roomy, comfortable, reliable and cheap to drive, also a real
> workhorse. The only drawback was the fuel injected motor, lots of
power and
> reliable but high maintenance compared to the other engines. A hard
driver
> would have to replace the crank bearings every 50,000 miles or so
and if the
> car was parked for any length of time, the injection system would
need a
> cleaning and adjustment, that was with leaded gas though, it is not
as bad
> with unleaded fuel. Fun to drive though.
Mike,
Glad to see that I'm not alone in 404-philedom ;-)
The 204 Diesel was a great car too, 55 MPG US is what you got, and it
was the first high-speed diesel engine, pre-dating the VW Golf/Rabbit
by 10 years. Remember the rear window stickers: "You are following
the leader"? Hah!
The early models of the 404 Injection with the 3 main bearing engine
were definitely weak in the crankshaft/bearing department, and
100,000 km was their usual lifespan. However, the KF1 and KF2 5 main
bearing engines with aluminium-tin bearing shells and (in the case of
the KF2) 11 more HP have a very good reputation for longevity -
usually good for 250,000+ km with no major issues, on crappy 1960/70s
oils. The carbureted 404s were more reliable still, it is true.
My Dad had a 404 Injection built in Québec in 1966 and it hit 70,000
miles before he sold it in the Netherlands - it was running like
new. In my own experience, the three injected 404s I've owned have
all been superbly reliable. The first one went 150,000 miles with no
engine work (the engine, still not rebuilt, is in someone else's 404
C now); when I built up an old engine from parts lying around the
garage, not even replacing liners/pistons, the resulting engine went
to 200,000 miles (from new) before piston slap indicated the
beginning of the end. The engine never blew up, and the piston slap
may have been caused by a severe case of overheating (my fault-
insufficient antifreeze when driving on a v. cold day in winter).
The 404 Coupé Injection I have now is only a baby, at 84,000 original
miles, though the prolonged storage and irregular use have done no
favours to the engine and a minor rebuild is in order before I start
to use it regularly again. The first two of these were thrashed
mercilessly too.
I have found the Kugelfischer parts to be very forgiving, especially
if they are stored properly. For example, the injecton pump, if not
on the car, should have kerosene in the injection plumbing, and be
properly capped off with plastic plugs. Same for the injectors.
Despite that, the engine I reassembled in 1987 had not been properly
stored (for 10 years) and still there was not a problem with the
injection pump pistons. Just about the only things that CAN go wrong
are seizure of the injection pump pistons, and sticking of the
injectors. The latter is easy to fix in most cases, but the former
can be grave if it is water in the gas that's caused the pistons to
rust into their bores.
About tuning, without the proper factory injection tools, or manuals
it is not very easy to set the car up properly. That's why I'm glad
I located a set of these tools in Germany, which are in transit to me
right now. The feeling of driving a 404 with KF2 injection is
superb, it's such a smooth car. I'm not picky - a sedan will do,
though the Coupé and Cabriolet are even better looking.
Mike Tippett
404 CKF2
405
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