Renault Espace (1985 - 1997) - 93 2.1 misfiring when starting from cold

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Wed 4 Nov 2009 15:02
93 2.1 misfiring when starting from cold - rakeman
my old faithful renault espace 2.1 diesel, is misfiring when I start it from cold. Blue smoke from exhaust but not oil smoke. No problem through the summer months but as soon as the temperature drops or it's damp the problem starts. Takes a while before it stops misfiring, usually after a couple of miles. Any ideas please. Can't afford a new car. cheers
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Wed 4 Nov 2009 15:25
93 2.1 misfiring when starting from cold - Peter.N.
If the problem clears within a minute or so its probably glow plugs, if it lasts longer the compression will likely be down on one or more cylinder.

Sorry, I missed the bit about a couple of miles, if its taking that long to clear low compression is the most likely cause, could just be that the valve clearances are to small.

Edited by Peter.N. on 04/11/2009 at 15:28

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Wed 4 Nov 2009 22:13
93 2.1 misfiring when starting from cold - rakeman
Thanks Peter. It does this every autumn/winter. Seems to coincide with the damp weather. Could it be the rings gummed up? Glow plugs not replaced since 2004! Sounds expensive if it's valves to be set, not like the old 'A' series engines we played around with back in the day! Cheers
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Thu 5 Nov 2009 11:27
93 2.1 misfiring when starting from cold - Peter.N.
I'm afraid nothing is as easy to work on as a Morris Minor, but if it is that its cheaper than an engine rebuild. Another thought, could your timing be a little retarded or the cold start advance not working?
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Thu 5 Nov 2009 21:08
93 2.1 misfiring when starting from cold - rakeman
It's very high mileage but will try all the simple options first. Is the cold start advance option tricky to adjust/replace? I noticed today that the misfiring stopped after only a couple of minutes on tick-over. Cheers
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