Another diesel non start problem...

[Mike Noc]

Originally Posted by FrenchMike

BTW ,off of subject ,my clutch is still working

Mike

Great news - hope it stays that way.

The Freelander is holding its own too.

Originally Posted by Johnny2R

The regulator is the more expensive, so my money's on that!

I only hope they do find something...

I'm sure they will get to the bottom of it Johnny - will be interesting to see what they find.




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[FrenchMike]

Originally Posted by Johnny2R

The regulator is the more expensive, so my money's on that!

I only hope they do find something...

The structure of the regulator is very simple ...How was the little O ring ?

I hope you haven't lost the ball ?

[Johnny2R]

Originally Posted by FrenchMike

The structure of the regulator is very simple ...How was the little O ring ?

I hope you haven't lost the ball ?

The O ring was apparently intact. The garage did replace other gaskets and seals which I hadn't asked them to, though, so I hope that hasn't caused other problems. I, too, hope the ball hasn't been lost but I was not involved with the O ring replacement so don't know what happened. The new garage clearly has some experience with such things, though, and works closely with a place round the corner who I know to be very good and who have reconditioned my injectors in the past and can repair the pump, etc., if a problem is found.

[Johnny2R]

One thing I didn't mention about this is that when I took my car to Phil-T4 to get the electrics for the seats sorted, he did a T4 check and no errors showed up, and this was long after the first manifestation of the cold starting problem (but before the much more serious worsening of the situation).

[Snagger]

Back to basics sometimes prevails.

When was the fuel filter changed last ? check it's not leaking. Check the leads to the fuel filter cap for chafing, and the plugs are set square fully home, and not under stress in their sockets.Pull them in and out a few times to friction clean an corrosion they may have accumulated.

These connections throw engine management faults up pretty regularly ie ABS as well, due to their link into the system.

Snagger.

[Johnny2R]

Progress at last, I think...The garage has determined that injector 1 is faulty and is not able to get up to pressure (or something like that). They're going to remove it and take it round the corner to the other specialist diesel place I mentioned which may be able to fix it, otherwise they'll fit a reconditioned one.

This would certainly fit the diagnostic path from French Mike's tests. I sincerely hope it is that, as it's a simple, straightfoward fix. I'll report back when the work is done.

[kathandryan]

Originally Posted by John H

Some people will tell say not to use Easystart regularly, as the engine becomes addicted to it. This of course isn't the case, but if you continue to use it to mask a fault then the problem often deteriorates over time and eventually the engine may fail to start.

I refuse to engage in any arguments over this, but have mentioned it before, neither SI or CI engines were ever designed to run on Easy Start. Initially for testing purposes I would say that it could be useful, but in very limited dose. The reasons for not using this are endless, but here are a few to consider:
Engine damage, piston ring cleaning. This increases the distance between the rings and the piston itself, and will effectively reduce compression. Assuming the engine refuses to start, we can also bring in to play bore wash, another life shortening exercise, In the event of the engine starting after extended dose of this idea, engine runaway is possible, even more damaging. The combined diesel and easy start will impact the crankshaft wear process as the design is strong, but not designed for a flammable liquid or gas in unmeatered doses and will provide shortened longevity.
So in a nutshell these are a handful of reasons not to use it.
BTW:
Hows the maf sensor doing with a pollutant running through it?
Hows your compressions, are they any good now?

I would strongly advise proper testing of the vehicle, possibly a T-4 or diesel specialist who has a good understanding of systems, and proper diagnosis strategies to prevent further damage, assuming your car has any value because it will be ruined doing the easy start thing over time.

I am not trying to belittle or rip it out of anybody here, I am making a point that has been missed or not considered.

Hope your car can be sorted out and returned to the road a happy beast soon and cost effectively.
Cheers, John H.

agree with john h, easy start is vicous!,i usealy use brake cleaner!,that hot potato aside,if a deisel engine is sound mecanicly it should fire when easy start/brake cleaner is used in the air intake? this is used to prove a fueling problem,if it doesent fire at all i would be looking at getting a compression test?,perhaps the tecky's can comment?

[Johnny2R]

Great news! Problem now completely solved. It was in fact a faulty injector, which would not allow sufficient pressure to build up when cranking to actually fire up. Not sure whether the existing injector was repaired or whether they fitted a reconditioned one (the cost for the injector was £120), but it cured the problem. The car now starts pretty well straight away and runs fine.

There was an unpleasant bang from under the car as I drove it back from the garage yesterday which made me think "Oh no, not again, what is it now!", but I can't find anything wrong, and I'm wondering whether it might simply have been something to do with the undertray moving or something - I had them fit a replacement undertray I got from a breaker's, kludging the fittings with cable ties where necessary. Still a little nervous.

The great thing is that they have also solved the problem I had with the ABS sensor, from a while back. As the original garage also replaced the alternator they had fitted (which whined) with a non-whining one, I am optimistic that I now have a largely working car again. Yippee!

I do have a slight sense that power is a little down on what it was before all this, but I may just be imagining that, and I can't think of a mechanism which might have caused that. If anyone has any ideas of something which I could look at, I'd be interested to hear, though.