TIMING CHAIN TROUBLE

Don’t worry about worn Nikasil cylinder bores now as wellmaintained engines manage 200k miles plus. More important is timing chain and tensioner replacement – early plastic tensioners were fragile and were replaced with steel items – and if the chain lets go it’ll take the engine with it, so budget £1000 for a specialist to renew everything. Smoke or signs of compromised head gaskets are an expensive worry, so look for oil and water mixing and get a compression test done if you’re unsure.