Access to the top of the engine is pretty difficult in Renault Traffics, so simple jobs can become very time consuming. Some models had problems with water sitting on the top of the engine and the resulting corrosion making plug and injector removal even more difficult.

Shop around for a couple more quotes locally and see if you get any wild variation. I’d say – given the issues that can arise – you’d want to be clear whether the price ‘quoted’ is a fixed price for the work and you’re not writing them a blank check to cover them snapping a plug in the head (or crack the head itself) and spending their way out of trouble. I’ve known traffic owners have bills in the 000’s for injector work.

Ewan – surely if the job takes a weekend, or even a day 400 is reasonable price – it’s only a rip off if you could do in an evening.

The only 2 questions with glows are, how hard are they to get to, and how likely are the little bastards to be stuck or snap. My engine was apparently designed by someone who’d also spannered on scabby diesels so it has big burly snap-free injectors and glow plugs that you can get real tools to easily and that thread in and out, great success. Not everyone’s so lucky

the joys of vivaros.

i must admit i felt a big sigh of relief when my ivecos F1A injectors came out without any dificulty .

apparently much like brakes many people use copperslip when fitting the things – this is entirely the wrong thing and when coupled with heat they get stuck – as well as if they have not got a good seal and have blow by – the gunge causes them to get stuck IE merc vitos and sprinters.

As for injectors – a good local specialist can be a godsed. i found airylea diesels to be really helpful when i had issues with the iveco – ran perfect but i was getting diesel in the sump and following some simple tests they give me i narrowed it down to a duff injector – and while i was there i stripped them down and gave them an ultrasonic bath. a single replacement cost 160 quid

Now she runs like a bought one.

I can understand their approach, I like to do the same when working on my cars. But having sheared a glow plug before and otherwise generally struggled with them I would be wary if changing them for the sake of it.

Live testing with a DC clamp ammeter on the individual wire to each plug to see what power it’s drawing is an option.

Otherwise a simple resistance test from the positive contact of the plug to earth with a multimeter is the way to begin. Make sure the glow plug being tested is isolated from the loom so that you’re definitely testing just the plug. Open circuit is obviously a failure, what the normal resistance is for your ones I don’t know tbh. But as it’s virtually inconceivable that all have failed a bad one will stick out.

If they all appear to be good then test for continuity from their contacts on the loom back to the relay socket. Once you know the loom is good the relay can be tested by checking for voltage at the plugs when they’re switched on.

This is all very generalised advice. The garage undoubtedly have more experience with Renault Trafics than I do but that is how I approach such problems as a home bodger mechanic. It may be that the hassle of just getting to the plugs is such that it’s the major part of the job and so it makes sense to do them all, I don’t know.

Replacing parts until the problem goes away is expensive and wasteful. Again, I’m not saying that’s what this garage would do, but it does happen.

yep sure sounds like the code readers right .

sounds like unburnt fuel from the cylinder being put out the exhaust when cold until the cylinders warm enough for ignition