Peugeot 307 - 2 litre Petrol (2002) - Engine runs roughly 20 secs after cold start

Honest John Back Room » Technical matters
View Threaded
Mon 25 Jun 2012 14:49
Peugeot 307 - 2 litre Petrol (2002) - Engine runs roughly 20 secs after cold start - PNH59

Hi, I have a Peugeot 307 (2002) 2 litre petrol automatic. My problem is as follows.

On a cold start (first thing in the morning) motor start fine, after approx 20 secs the motor then starts to chug as though it is running on 3 cylinders. At this time the engine dash light comes on and an anti- pollution fault and catalytic convertor fault message are displayed on the screen.

Once driving for approx 1 km the engine then starts to again run on 4 cylinders and no problem then occurs till the next mornings cold start. After driving for a while the engine light goes out and messages disappear and every thing is OK for the rest of the day till the next cold start.

What i have tried so far - I have replaced the coil pack with an original Peugeot unit, I have replaced the 4 spark plugs. this made no difference.


Next I had the car analysed and the error code states " misfire on Cylinder (1)". Knowing that the coil pack and spark plugs have been changed I suspected a fuel injector. To isolate this I swapped the injector unit from cylinder 1 to cylinder 2 but the problem remains in cylinder (1), so I believe I have potentially eliminated the fuel injector.

When the car is missing I remove the injector wiring plug connector from cylinder (1) and no difference was noticed to how roughly the engine is running so I suspect that during the engine missing phase injector (1) is being disabled.

I have been told to suspect the wiring to injector (1) but feel if this is were the case how come the problem is so predictable each cold start and not random and why does the engine start perfectly for that first 20 seconds before the missing sets in.

I have also run engine flush through the engine and changed the oil, all after this was fault was occurring as I was told it could be potentially a sticky lifter, however this did not correct the issue either .

Does anyone reading this forum have any idea why the power is being cut from injector (1) for the repeatable period after a cold start?

Is there anything in the engine management unit that would shut Cylinder (1) down until the engine warms up a little? Some mechanics tell me the ECU can cut power to an injector if it detects a sticky lifter. Can anyone validate this for me?

Thanks , I appreciate any feedback or advice

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Sat 11 Aug 2012 09:46
Peugeot 307 - 2 litre Petrol (2002) - Engine runs roughly 20 secs after cold start - antar

I got exactly the same problem on the same model. I have tried different thing such as cleaning up the throttle body and change spark plugs, but nothing helps so far. Please keep me updated if you solve the problem. So I will do. Thanks

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Sun 26 Aug 2012 12:52
Peugeot 307 - 2 litre Petrol (2002) - Engine runs roughly 20 secs after cold start - redlaz

I'm in the exact same situation! I also had the coil pack and sparks replaced and had motor cleaning. I experience exactly the same symptons. The cars starts ok for 10-20 seconds and then only runs on 3 cylinders. The car shakes a lot. I can smell that the fuel is poorly burned. I get anti pollution error ones in a while. After rainy nigths the motor goes crazy. Sounds like it only runs on 2 cylinders. Stops shortly after.

I'm desperate. Are there no one with solutions?

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Sun 30 Sep 2012 13:20
Peugeot 307 - 2 litre Petrol (2002) - Engine runs roughly 20 secs after cold start - robwill

Hi, I have also got a similar problem! Same model, same year. Car starts and runs ok for around 20 secs and then misfires and runs on 3 cylinders. It is the same hot or cold and will not run above 2000 revs. Fault codes showing are 1112, 1153, and 1160.

Have any of you found an answer to this problem yet?

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Thu 11 Oct 2012 20:19
Peugeot 307 - 2 litre Petrol (2002) - Engine runs roughly 20 secs after cold start - aj2703

I have the same, except mine shakes on start, sometimes i can't get it to start (battery going) but when it does start it shakes and rattles revs are very unresponsive.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Fri 12 Oct 2012 00:28
Peugeot 307 - 2 litre Petrol (2002) - Engine runs roughly 20 secs after cold start - bathtub tom

This almost seems like a temperature sensor's sending a signal that the engine's warm before it's not, or it's cold when it isn't?

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Fri 26 Apr 2013 19:38
Peugeot 307 - 2 litre Petrol (2002) - Engine runs roughly 20 secs after cold start - stevostyles

Hi i have the same problem with my xsi 2002 have you sorted this problem ?? Were are the temperature switches on these cars, does anyone know.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Fri 26 Apr 2013 20:04
Peugeot 307 - 2 litre Petrol (2002) - Engine runs roughly 20 secs after cold start - stevostyles

Ive cleaned the map sensor and was still the same so disconnected the plug and it ran horrid, ive just been on ebay as i disconnected the air intake and it made no difference so iam thinking its that air intake sensor on mine, will be delivered soon so i will inform if it works and sorts the problem out. Getting tired of the car shaking when cold.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Sun 16 Jun 2013 15:03
Peugeot 307 - 2 litre Petrol (2002) - Engine runs roughly 20 secs after cold start - stevostyles

well i fitted the air temp sensor and it isnt that, iam thinking icv stepper motor prob 60quid so its going to have to wait lol.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Sun 16 Jun 2013 19:13
Peugeot 307 - 2 litre Petrol (2002) - Engine runs roughly 20 secs after cold start - Collos25

How about changing the coils one fitted per sparkplug changing these on my 1.6 petrol cured all misfires and dropping onto three cylinders .

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Sun 7 Jul 2013 14:52
Peugeot 307 - 2 litre Petrol (2002) - Engine runs roughly 20 secs after cold start - brayer1

hi there all

i work as a master tech in a Peugeot dealer and this fault is very common on 2 litre RFN engine vehicles , its caused by the hydraulic tappets over pumping when the oil is cold and thicker , some sucess may be found by changing to a 5w30 oil for a while , the fault is usually worse in winter from a cold start but will be there all year round !!, bringing the revs up off idle usually stops it and as you have noticed only a few minutes of running the car will be ok , The permanent cure is to replace the hydraulic tappets with ones from the 1.8 litre engine (ew7) the peugeot part numbers for 2 litre engine has been superceded to the 1.8 ones, do not use pattern parts as some of our customers have found to their cost they do not cure the fault . hope this helps

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Sat 19 Jul 2014 00:23
Peugeot 307 - 2 litre Petrol (2002) - Engine runs roughly 20 secs after cold start - Rich V

just reviving this thread again! Ive got exactly the smae problem. Hw much does it cost to replace the tappets? Thanks

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Mon 4 Dec 2017 20:10
Peugeot 307 - 2 litre Petrol (2002) - Engine runs roughly 20 secs after cold start - btbt

Hi guys, Hi brayer1

Thanks a lot for the genuine info. I had the very same issue with our =/%! Citroen Xsara Picasso 2003 2.0 petrol automatic.

Changing the hydraulic valve lifters / tappets solved the problem.

Costs: ~400 EUR.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Thu 18 Nov 2021 14:46
Peugeot 307 - 2 litre Petrol (2002) - Engine runs roughly 20 secs after cold start - 350dave

Thank you for this excellent reply. I will try your suggestion with the oil to see if it has any effect. My own mechanic was clueless, which given the odd nature of the problem I totally understand.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Thu 18 Nov 2021 14:44
Peugeot 307 - 2 litre Petrol (2002) - Engine runs roughly 20 secs after cold start - 350dave

what an excellent description of the problem, and all of the (good) work you did to try to solve it. I have the exact same symptoms with my girlfriend's Berlingo 1.6 16v 80kw . I will try the switch to 5w30 as suggested by the mechanic, and if that helps perhaps replace the lifters. Such a weird problem, my mechanic has no idea... Thanks again for sharing.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link

Looking for a garage you can trust? Honest John's Good Garage Guide has thousands of reader recommended garages, plus how-to guides and tips on servicing.

The Good Garage Guide