January 2010
My 1.9 Non-Turbo Diesel van has refused to start this morning. It has been turning over slowly recently but hasnt failed to start once even in thick snow. This morning it turned over but didnt sound like it was even 'firing' (wrong terminology I know!).
A year ago I replaced the glow plugs so cant imagine they would need changing again.
I tried 'double preheating' it, given the battery a jump start and a charge but it still wont start. It was fine on Saturday, didnt use it yesterday, cant use it today.
Any ideas at all please?
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This might be better-placed in Tech Matters, but Motorprop has inspired me to ask a question I've often wondered about.
As I understand it, a petrol engine develops a vacuum on the intake manifold when its running. This vacuum can be tapped and used for other purposes; for example, the braking system. (Have I got this correct? Feel free to correct me if not.)
If thats right, why cant diesel engines do the same?
I'm sure this will seem shockingly ignorant to many.... Read more
BMW valvetronic engines do indeed have a vacuum pump, mine has been changed!
£2,600 is estimate from Jag garage in Kent for repair to my pride & joy.
How it all started : -
Car just cut out on me without warning. Re-started ok so thought no more of it. Next day did same thing. Re-stared ok but this time very sluggish [safe mode ?] in getting me home. Called AA next day who couldn't get it going but after continuously turning over the starter [the poor thing she didn' like it, white smoke everywhere] it did fire-up so on the 'very nice mans' suggestion I limped to the local garage 2 mins down the road, with him following. They plugged it into something after a couple of days but couldn't find the problem so suggested I go to main Jag garage.
Next day collected car from them, which started first time would you believe & she drove the 25 min journey like a dream.
After a few days Jag technician rang to say my fuel pump has broken-up & deposited bits everywhere, so will need replacing along with injectors, some rail thing or other, filters, fuel tank drained & goodness only knows what else. I don't like to mention the cost again so I'll skip to
my dilema ... how come it drove ok to the main dealer garage ? with this sort of money involved are there questions I should be asking so I am absolutely sure they have got the diagnosis right ? has anybody out there had similar problems ?
Well there's where I'm at ... a broken car & redundant. If I could get it home again I could just sit in it. It's got leather seats don't you know ! Do reply ... anybody.
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I am no fan of modern fuel injection systems, common rail diesel and direct injection petrol systems are built to NASA like tolerances to sustain the incredibly high fuel pressures these things run at - it doesn't take much to kill them. My advice for any car with a modern FI system would be to never let the car run low on fuel - and never ever risk running it dry. Sadly garages themselves often misfuel tanks and fuel distribution depots sometimes cross contaminate batches of fuel - so you can contaminate your car without making a mistake. There are also increasingly large numbers of bacterial infections in diesel with high biofuel content which can block or damage fuel filters.
Another problem is as a distributor you can add up to 5% biofuel to your diesel without disclosing it, the next link in the distribution chain could do the same thing - then Mr BP or Tesco can decide to sell this batch of fuel as biofuel and will add another 10% of rapeseed or whatever, the diesel is now seriously compromised as a lubricant as it could be 20-30% biofuel without anyone realising, this will reduce the life of your fuel pump or finish one of that has already sustained some damage, it also increases the risk of the bacterial contamination mentioned above.
For all the people knocking supermarket fuel - the fuel itself is the same as any other fuel, Tesco and Sainbury buy their fuel off the major oil companies and it comes from the same depots as the branded stuff. All the oil companies use whatever base fuel is the cheapest at the time, if petrol company A can buy base petrol or diesel cheaper from petrol company B than it's costing to produce their own then that's what they'll use at the point in time. the only difference is the additives pack that are added to the fuel in the final stages of distribution. the only exceptions are some of the premium fuels which are made in small quantities by the oil company themselves.
I recall a cold childhood winter (1981 I think) and diesel-fuelled vehicles started becoming stranded because the fuel was solidifying in the cold. Vague recollections of truckers lighting fires under their tanks... Minus 11 deg C seemed to be the waxing point.
Clearly diesel technology has since improved, but can diesel fuel withstand prolong temps of minus 18 or more? Read more
Diesel fuel will revert back to its original state once warmed up.
I think that your mechanic has probably left a slight air leak in the fuel system when he changed the fuel filter.
This is allowing the fuel to return to the tank when the level is low.
Try priming the manual fuel pump bulb under the bonnet until it gets hard & see if it starts ok then.
hi all,
I am thinking of buying a 2001 peugeot 307 2.0 hdi rapier and after researching into the common faults the same fault seems to keep appearing, "unblock diesel filter" and "Anti pollution system fault".......FAP regeneration???? how can you predict this problem occurring when buying a used car, is this problem really that common and how serious is it?
What should I be looking for if I decide to buy? I don't fancy the idea of spending over 2k on a car for a warning light to appear the next day. how can I avoid this?
plese help
Mr Pink Read more
90 HP models never had an additive system from what I can recall.
Legal protection can add around £25.00 to the cost of a motor insurance policy.
Does this offer value for money, or is it a way of the insurance companies making more money?
How many backroomers bother taking this option out?
Does the insured generally benefit from adding legal cover and if I didnt have it what are the consequences in regard to trying to obtain from a 3rd party.
My insurance website states that Legal cover, 'covers any legal cost for any motor prosecution excluding drink/driving related offences. It also provides assistance to recover some excess such as any uninsured loss'.
If a driver is uninsured and crashes into my car, what is the reality that losses will be recovered? Read more
i didnt have it and the inevitable happened, i had to go through the MIB to get a result....i do have legal cover now and always will in future
Hi,
anyone come across a recall announced just before Christmas over Honda Civics having flat batteries after 3 or 4 days standing?
My dealer told me after our Civic was dead on the drive!
Anyone know where you can get details of the recall?
Durelli
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Check the Honda website link above and type in your VIN - that will tell you whether your car was subject of a recall or warranty recall.
Any thoughts?
We had the battery go flat a year or so ago on our car due to a device being left plugged in for a couple of days. Since then occasinally get a 'low battery' warning when it's left on with the CD player on for a few minutes, but no actual troubles.
Came back from holiday (car not used, took taxi to airport), drove to Waitrose (about 2 miles), stalled once along the way (got used to driving an automatic), left the wife and kids in the car with the cd player on, and when I came back (no more than 15 minutes), battery was dead, and had to be jump started.
I reckon that batteries that have gone flat are best off just being replaced, any thoughts?
Battery cost seems to be £65+. (Battery type is 096.)
And what's this stuff about 'calcium' batteries? Is that meaningful or marketing nonsense? Read more
Thanks. They are recommending a 70Ah Varta battery which looks just the job.
Hi Back Roomers,
I'm looking to purchase breakdown cover/insurance for the first time in a while as I haven't included it to my car insurance policy this year.
I only do 8,000 miles a year in a well maintained 7 year old Ford Mondeo Petrol.
Auto Aid seem to offer a great price for breakdown insurance, where you claim back the cost of calling out recovery/assistance.
Do any of you knowledgeable Back Roomers have any real world experience with them, or can you recommend another good value service.
Looking forward to your replies.
Many Thanks..... Read more
Nial,
I too can recommend Auto Aid. Been with them for over two years and called them out (for the first time) last summer when I had a front wheel bearing seize solid on me 65 miles from home. I was recovered at a cost of £264 - paid up front. I made a claim form out and was paid back in full within a week. Why anyone would belong to any other service beats me.
my 02 golf 150pd is giving me major problems, when it reaches 3000rpm it starts to judder (heavily) and throws out black smoke and wont go over 3000 rpm, i then have to change gears before any form of acceleration is possible, more recently their is sometimes a conplete loss of power, it then takes upto a few seconds (sometimes upto 30 seconds/sometimes longer) before it even accelerates normally in an idle state.
It also goes into 'limp mode' on motorways where I struggle to reach anywhere near 60mph!
I was told that it was my boost pipes, so I replaced 2 that a mechanic thought looked loose/worn but to no avail, took it for an mot yesterday and it failed on the emissions test!
Since the above, i have taken it to a VW specialist (VW trained) who hooked it upto the laptop, a tempreture sensor fault came up, which has been replaced, he also replaced my MAF with another one to see whether that was faulty, he then went to reset codes when a fault code came up
16688- injector 4 intrmittent misfire???
any idea's is it simply a case of replacing, or is there other possible trouble shooting i can do to rectify the fault??
Any help would me much appreciated
please take into consideration I am not very clued up on terminology or technically/ mechanically gifted when it comes to motors! So I apologise if I've missed anything or come across a but thick!!!
Thanks in advance for any suggestions Read more
hi all,
as i updated earlier, changed the injector with 2 second hand ones no joy, mechanic thought both of them were faulty (being second hand), went back to him and got him to change my number 3 injector (known to be working) with the 'faulty; number 4 injector, and at the same time replace the wiring loom.
But the vagcom still gave the 16688 injector 4 intermittent misfire code????
Since the work the car is smoking very heavily, especially when first started and when idle???
please help!!!!!!!!!!!
Browse
I have bought a replacement stop solenoid in the hope that I can at least identify where it is in the engine bay but I just cant see it at all??
Anyone know where the thing is please???