Removing `welded in' glow plugs.
Discussion
Has anyone here had the job of getting glow plugs which have welded themselves into the cylinder head removed? Apparently this is a fairly common occurrence, as in many cars glow plugs are apparently intended to be left alone, and deemed to be suitable for the life of the car. whilst some manufactures recommend they are changed every 40 thousand miles or so.
As usual any advice would be much appreciated.
As usual any advice would be much appreciated.
Edited by Pan Pan Pan on Sunday 10th March 11:17
I would suggest this scenario is one of those that is best solved by engaging a professional who has both the tools and, more importantly, the knowhow gained from regular experience of dealing with them.
A few quid spent is worth it IMO to avoid a possible fubared cylinder head.
Find a local diesel specialist.
A few quid spent is worth it IMO to avoid a possible fubared cylinder head.
Find a local diesel specialist.
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/GLOWPLUG-HEATER-PLUG-RE...
I've used one of these in the past with success.
The plug came out easily, but I can't say that it wouldn't have done so without the tool.
ETA
What Hammer said. /\
I've used one of these in the past with success.
The plug came out easily, but I can't say that it wouldn't have done so without the tool.
ETA
What Hammer said. /\
Edited by Jazzy Jag on Sunday 10th March 11:37
Jazzy Jag said:
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/GLOWPLUG-HEATER-PLUG-RE...
I've used one of these in the past with success.
The plug came out easily, but I can't say that it wouldn't have done so without the tool.
removing them isn't alone the problem - its removing them without damage. I've used one of these in the past with success.
The plug came out easily, but I can't say that it wouldn't have done so without the tool.
Some clowns damaged the cylinder head of a vw 1.9 of mine changing glow plugs, I literally got 10 meters before their bodge failed, of course they denied it was anything to do with them.
My current mechanic doesn't want to touch my vito and the glow plugs are chocolate, break and drop into the cylinder, and as it's a longitudal engine that goes under the bulkhead you can't take the head off without taking the engine out.
So yeah simple job with a s
t ton that can go wrongTeddy Lop said:
Jazzy Jag said:
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/GLOWPLUG-HEATER-PLUG-RE...
I've used one of these in the past with success.
The plug came out easily, but I can't say that it wouldn't have done so without the tool.
removing them isn't alone the problem - its removing them without damage. I've used one of these in the past with success.
The plug came out easily, but I can't say that it wouldn't have done so without the tool.
Some clowns damaged the cylinder head of a vw 1.9 of mine changing glow plugs, I literally got 10 meters before their bodge failed, of course they denied it was anything to do with them.
My current mechanic doesn't want to touch my vito and the glow plugs are chocolate, break and drop into the cylinder, and as it's a longitudal engine that goes under the bulkhead you can't take the head off without taking the engine out.
So yeah simple job with a s
t ton that can go wrongIt uses vibrations to break up the carbon deposits that cause damage to the threads as you unwind the plug.
I worked for a car manufacturer that had the same issues when a dealer, ham fistedly just unthreaded a plug or snapped it off, often requiring a complete new head as a consequence.
I was tasked with finding a fix.
Obviously every Neanderthal spanner wielding monkey thought that warranty should pay for his brutality and lack of skills.
Using a vibrating ratchet, which actually reverses direction to ease the plug out was a significant improvement.
IMHO the tool is invaluable and saved the manufacturer hundreds of thousands of pounds and, as I made it a mandatory issued tool, it didn't cost us a penny.
Modern common-rail diesel engines will start pretty readily in temperate climates with one (or even more) failed glow plugs. They're usually powered for some time after starting to help with emissions, so the engine might run slightly worse with a bad plug initially.
If it starts okay, then there's a case for leaving well alone - or entrust the work to someone else!
If it starts okay, then there's a case for leaving well alone - or entrust the work to someone else!
Jazzy Jag said:
If you read the link, the tool is not a simple air gun.
It uses vibrations to break up the carbon deposits that cause damage to the threads as you unwind the plug.
I worked for a car manufacturer that had the same issues when a dealer, ham fistedly just unthreaded a plug or snapped it off, often requiring a complete new head as a consequence.
I was tasked with finding a fix.
Obviously every Neanderthal spanner wielding monkey thought that warranty should pay for his brutality and lack of skills.
Using a vibrating ratchet, which actually reverses direction to ease the plug out was a significant improvement.
IMHO the tool is invaluable and saved the manufacturer hundreds of thousands of pounds and, as I made it a mandatory issued tool, it didn't cost us a penny.
ah I've got ya, my bad.It uses vibrations to break up the carbon deposits that cause damage to the threads as you unwind the plug.
I worked for a car manufacturer that had the same issues when a dealer, ham fistedly just unthreaded a plug or snapped it off, often requiring a complete new head as a consequence.
I was tasked with finding a fix.
Obviously every Neanderthal spanner wielding monkey thought that warranty should pay for his brutality and lack of skills.
Using a vibrating ratchet, which actually reverses direction to ease the plug out was a significant improvement.
IMHO the tool is invaluable and saved the manufacturer hundreds of thousands of pounds and, as I made it a mandatory issued tool, it didn't cost us a penny.
Thank you for all your replies. The car starts quite well, but it does stumble slightly but only for a few seconds after doing so. So I am minded to take the advice to leave them alone at the moment, bearing in mind the problems that could arise if the job of removing them is mucked up. That might render a car that currently starts OK, gives circa 60 mpg on a run and is perfectly usable into an unusable lump of metal.
The glow plugs do seem to have a connection to the cruise control, which seems to turn itself off when the glow plug warning light starts flashing (possibly to protect the engine from
damage caused by an inattentive driver not noticing the warning light, and pressing on regardless?).
If the engine is stopped after the glow plug light starts flashing, the glow plug warning light goes out immediately when it is restarted, and from then on runs perfectly normally, )provided the cruise control is not engaged!).
Thanks again for your much appreciated replies.
The glow plugs do seem to have a connection to the cruise control, which seems to turn itself off when the glow plug warning light starts flashing (possibly to protect the engine from
damage caused by an inattentive driver not noticing the warning light, and pressing on regardless?).
If the engine is stopped after the glow plug light starts flashing, the glow plug warning light goes out immediately when it is restarted, and from then on runs perfectly normally, )provided the cruise control is not engaged!).
Thanks again for your much appreciated replies.
You can disconnect the plugs and test them with a meter to see if any are open circuit, you can also test them using a cable connected to the battery positive and quickly touching the plugs terminals with the other end of the cable to see that there is a spark if they are drawing current, you can also use a heavy duty ammeter to measure what current each plug is drawing and compare the readings to that of a new plug, heater plugs draw a high current when first supplied with 12 volts and the current draw reduces as the plugs heat up
Pan Pan Pan said:
Thank you for all your replies. The car starts quite well, but it does stumble slightly but only for a few seconds after doing so. So I am minded to take the advice to leave them alone at the moment, bearing in mind the problems that could arise if the job of removing them is mucked up. That might render a car that currently starts OK, gives circa 60 mpg on a run and is perfectly usable into an unusable lump of metal.
The glow plugs do seem to have a connection to the cruise control, which seems to turn itself off when the glow plug warning light starts flashing (possibly to protect the engine from
damage caused by an inattentive driver not noticing the warning light, and pressing on regardless?).
If the engine is stopped after the glow plug light starts flashing, the glow plug warning light goes out immediately when it is restarted, and from then on runs perfectly normally, )provided the cruise control is not engaged!).
Thanks again for your much appreciated replies.
You probably know this but some cars flash the glow plug light to indicate faults that are not connected to the glow plugs. The glow plugs do seem to have a connection to the cruise control, which seems to turn itself off when the glow plug warning light starts flashing (possibly to protect the engine from
damage caused by an inattentive driver not noticing the warning light, and pressing on regardless?).
If the engine is stopped after the glow plug light starts flashing, the glow plug warning light goes out immediately when it is restarted, and from then on runs perfectly normally, )provided the cruise control is not engaged!).
Thanks again for your much appreciated replies.
What you describe would tend to indicate a problem elsewhere.
Worth checking and getting the codes read before changing the glow plugs.
Hammer67 said:
You probably know this but some cars flash the glow plug light to indicate faults that are not connected to the glow plugs.
What you describe would tend to indicate a problem elsewhere.
Worth checking and getting the codes read before changing the glow plugs.
Diesel Mondeo's do this when the injectors are on the way out.What you describe would tend to indicate a problem elsewhere.
Worth checking and getting the codes read before changing the glow plugs.
Gassing Station | Home Mechanics | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff