xantia 1.9l td, problem with starting and smoking

wonderd · Unread post by **wonderd** » 30 Jul 2008, 10:00

maybe a little slower then when cold, i do have problems with battery connections once in a while.
I will fix that today and check again. thanks.

XantiaMan · Unread post by **XantiaMan** » 30 Jul 2008, 10:54

Check for air leaks particulary the injector leak off's. As said 1.9TD's with the bosch pump are not rapid starters from hot, its to do with tolerances in the pump and fuel viscosity when it gets hot. Running veg oil it starts normal from hot!

I would not expect excessive smoke from a hot start though and it is usually glow plugs that cause this. Even if it starts well from cold dont rule out a dead plug or two.

wonderd · Unread post by **wonderd** » 03 Aug 2008, 20:54

ok, found out that the relay of the glow plugs is making all the noise, how do i check to see if it's faulty?

wonderd · Unread post by **wonderd** » 05 Aug 2008, 17:57

I took off the relay, there is a loose part in it, put it back together and the noise stopped (go figure..), today i came home from work, at work the car started easily, then i stopped on the way (wife gave me chores), the car took 10 minutes to start.
Then i got home and decided to check the voltage in the battary; guess what - the car started on the spot. twice. son of a bi***.
12.4V before starting, 10.8V during and 14.5V with engine running.

Could it be that the battary is messing with me? could it be giving me low voltage only sometimes?

Unread post by **CitroJim** » 05 Aug 2008, 21:05

On those figures, it is a little on the weak side if you're measureing at the battery.

Before condemming the battery though, do check the connections, especially the battery negative down on the bellhousing. It can corrode and/or work loose.

Also, check the battery terminals. Not unknown for the clamps to crack and not make good contact.

wonderd · Unread post by **wonderd** » 07 Aug 2008, 12:36

Well, things are getting worse; yesterday and today the car doesn't start at all, even when cold.
Yesterday i managed to start it by using alcohol spray in the air intake, after that the car started ok the whole day.
This morning it wouldn't start again so i just left it and went to work using another car.

My prime suspects right now are the glow plugs relay and the stop solenoid. This evening I will bypass the relay to exclude that (or not).
How do i check the stop solenoid?

jgra1 · Unread post by **jgra1** » 07 Aug 2008, 13:35

hi Wondered..

your stop solenoid should be buried under the protective casing at back of your pump..

I would have thought if it was failing , the car would never start or run... doesn't sound like your problem...

John

MikeT · Unread post by **MikeT** » 07 Aug 2008, 13:59

I don't know what spray you used but if it's anything like easystart, I'd avoid it like the plague. I'm actually wondering if it's use on my engine is what caused my current problem and if it did, I'll be looking to the AA for an explanation.

The stop solenoid - if it audibly clicks - can be unplugged and fed directly off the battery to test it. I suppose they can stick intermittently but have not read of anyone suffering failure of these items.

The glow plugs are relatively easy to test but if you found your relay is broken, you might want to replace that first.

wonderd · Unread post by **wonderd** » 07 Aug 2008, 20:08

Hello guys,

I bypassed the glow plugs relay, the car started on the spot.
Guess i found the problem.

Tomorrow i will go looking for a replacement one.
Should i look for a new one or will a used one be good enough?