Diesel cold start problems, glow plugs?
Discussion
Having trouble starting the car this morning. It was cold overnight and there is still and nip in the air.
I've had the car a fortnight and have had to warm the glow plugs 2 or 3 times early morning to start.
Would glow plugs be the first change or is there something else that could be acting up.
Car is Avensis mk2 2.2 d4d
I've had the car a fortnight and have had to warm the glow plugs 2 or 3 times early morning to start.
Would glow plugs be the first change or is there something else that could be acting up.
Car is Avensis mk2 2.2 d4d
Check supply first, check it's actually getting voltage/current.
If not, check fuses, relays, Earths, wiring (that order).
If it is then it could be temperature sensors, the duration of the glowplugs is generally based on the coolant temperature.
Most modern engines have 2 sensors.
You'd need a readout from the diagnostics to confirm.
If it was battery, it wouldn't start.
Glowplugs pull around 100A for a short period and drop below 50A quickly after.
The starter on a diesel will pull around 350-400A.
If not, check fuses, relays, Earths, wiring (that order).
If it is then it could be temperature sensors, the duration of the glowplugs is generally based on the coolant temperature.
Most modern engines have 2 sensors.
You'd need a readout from the diagnostics to confirm.
If it was battery, it wouldn't start.
Glowplugs pull around 100A for a short period and drop below 50A quickly after.
The starter on a diesel will pull around 350-400A.
annodomini2 said:
If it was battery, it wouldn't start.
I'm not sure about that.I had similar symptoms to OP which a battery replacement fixed.
It might also be worth checking that the battery currently fitted is correct. High cranking requirements of diesel engines make some batteries expensive and its not unknown for people to fit unsuitable batteries due to lower cost.
Edited by trickywoo on Thursday 19th December 16:55
Thanks for all the suggestions.
I'm ruling out the battery. The number of times I've started the car over the last few days, a faulty battery would have shown itself by now.
I've checked the relay and fuses, all seem ok.
I've just had a warm start incident where the car wouldn't idle, it was trying to catch itself on the 800rpm idle but kept dropping through and stalling. Happened 4 or 5 times.
Could the starting issue be a side effect of a different issue??
I'm ruling out the battery. The number of times I've started the car over the last few days, a faulty battery would have shown itself by now.
I've checked the relay and fuses, all seem ok.
I've just had a warm start incident where the car wouldn't idle, it was trying to catch itself on the 800rpm idle but kept dropping through and stalling. Happened 4 or 5 times.
Could the starting issue be a side effect of a different issue??
trickywoo said:
I'm not sure about that.
I had similar symptoms to OP which a battery replacement fixed.
It might also be worth checking that the battery currently fitted is correct. High cranking requirements of diesel engines make some batteries expensive and its not unknown for people to fit unsuitable batteries due to lower cost.
Ah, I'll check it's the right size battery tomorrow then. Didn't think of that one.I had similar symptoms to OP which a battery replacement fixed.
It might also be worth checking that the battery currently fitted is correct. High cranking requirements of diesel engines make some batteries expensive and its not unknown for people to fit unsuitable batteries due to lower cost.
Edited by trickywoo on Thursday 19th December 16:55
I used to do a lot of diesel diagnostic training work - writing procedures for techs to follow to diagnose and repair trucks as economically as possible. So I have a reasonable idea of how it should be done.
It might be most cost efficient to take the car to a dealer to get it diagnosed correctly, because there should be a clear way to rule out the various issues that could lead to a non-start condition.
It might be worth removing the glow plugs and then connecting them electrically to their harness - and see if they actually glow. If you can do this it's one item the dealer won't charge you for.
Sadly, unless you have the ability to read what's going on in the engine and have the diagnostic routines, you are only going to get frustrated.
It might be most cost efficient to take the car to a dealer to get it diagnosed correctly, because there should be a clear way to rule out the various issues that could lead to a non-start condition.
It might be worth removing the glow plugs and then connecting them electrically to their harness - and see if they actually glow. If you can do this it's one item the dealer won't charge you for.
Sadly, unless you have the ability to read what's going on in the engine and have the diagnostic routines, you are only going to get frustrated.
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