I’ve got a 54 plate 2.0 dti with a starting issue.
If the weather is cold the glow plug light comes on and the car starts first time, every time.
If the weather is warmer I don’t get the light and I have to crank it 3 times before it catches. It always starts, usually on the third attempt but I’m worried that I’m over stressing the starter motor/battery.
I used to always get the glow plug light irrespective of temperature.
Any thoughts?
Vectra you say, is it green and yellow?
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Broken / loose connection to the glow plugs which is caused by expansion in the warmer weather?
Well, the glow plug light came on the other day when the temp dipped below 15°C.
I was wondering if it was the timing relay or a temp sensor.
Thanks for the input Bikebouy, I'll let you know if the village needs a new idiot. 😉
There is (on some cars, afaik) a temperature sensor, perhaps coolant based, that decides you don't need glow plugs above a certain temperature. Of course, it SHOULD start well above that temperature, so you've got two possibilities here.
1) The sensor's faulty and it should still be using glow plugs
2) Your compression is low.
It could well be the latter - if so, you could be in trouble. What was it like in the middle of winter?
What was it like in the middle of winter?
No problems in the cold.
If the glow plug light comes on it starts without fail.
Anyone from the day shift...?
The car will use its glow plugs regardless of outside air temperature. The light is just an indication for you to wait until they've pre-heated a bit in cooler weather.
Change the plugs to new ones.
Thanks. Narrowing things downa bit further...
Glow plugs are working. Just had them tested.
How is the wiring to the glow plugs? A multimeter between the exposed tip of the glowplug and the engine block when cranking should show if you are getting the full 12v to them.
Also check the resistance of the wire between the glow plug and the positive terminal on the battery.
Hmmm...
If it always fires first time when it is cold but not when it is warm would that point at a temp sensor fault?
Just because you've got power to the glow-plugs doesn't mean they're working. Did the tester measure the current draw at each plug?
They're so easy to change that I would have thought it would be more cost-efficient to swap them than test each one. And, of course, just because they're drawing current doesn't mean they're actually getting hot at the tip in the cylinder.
They must be working if it starts cold.
Plugs were checked a couple of months back and 2 were replaced. One was loose, so there was a loss of compression too. Then we had the cold snap so it worked!
As the recent weather has been much warmer the problem is back.
I want to be able to go into the garage with as much information as possible before writing a blank cheque for them to replace everything. I’m not suggesting that they will rip me off, but it would nice to be able to talk to the service manager with a bit of background information.