Er, starting trouble...

[Steven]

Hi Ya,

Now, im not good mechanics so heres my question, maybe stupid and simple but we cant find out what would be wrong...?

Well lately since about christmas our 300TDi discovery (s-reg) has not been starting in mornings and where it is stored it is reallt shelterd so i dont think that the cold gets to it. Also i know that discoverys and other land rovers are not like this, they can start about anywhere(or can they?).

Anyway, and when we go to start it we turn the key and its trying (i dont know what to put...?) to start but just doesnt :?  :(

It will take about five minuits to start, i dont know what else to put...

Thanks, Steven  

P.S. i will try and answer any questions you ask all though i bet its something just perfetic what we havnt picked up on.  :lol:

[wing nut]

sounds like the glow plugs to me  :?  

[Steven]

...yer do you think so, parents thought about that, but there not really mechanics either :lol:

[solihull-mick]

Glow plugs could be the problem, but being a direct injection engine it should start with out them, are you running on cooking oil?

Also check to see if your getting fuel run back, this can be sorted by fitting a oneway valve in to the fuel supply pipe, there cheep from any parts shop,

[AbyssDJ]

it should start fine without the glow plugs but in this weather it wont be too happy about it. when you start it, are you letting the plugs heat up first?

[Disco Inferno]

even in the coldest weather a di diesel engine should start without heater plugs, it run a bit rough tilll it gets going.
I'd be looking at a fueling problem
lift pump possibly or a lkeaky fuel line, letting air int he pipe, hence after a while of cranking it eventually starts
check the unions on top of the tank under the boot floor, also around the sedimenter.
after that check the lift pump
also, might be worth pulling the stop solenoid out, make sur eits not sticking, the springs have a habbit of breaking, but this usually results in the car not turning off

[Ralph]

As said a di engine should start without heat in any weather no matter how cold.
Get someone to stand behind vehicle while you try to start it and see if there is any smoke coming from exhaust.

If there is no smoke of any description while the engine is cranking then there is no diesel getting into the combustion process.

If it cranks for a while and then some smoke while still cranking this points to possible leak in fuel line allowing air in or fuel to run back from pump.

If it smokes as soon as cranking starts then diesel is getting through but not igniting, the main problem here is poor compression.

I have kept this explantion as simple as i can , try it when you next start it and pm me with results and i will try to solve your problem!!

[Pete]

Sounds like air getting in somwhere. I would take a look at the sedimenter near the rear axle, they rot.
 Pete.

[Steven]

a few questions to answer...

we are not running it on verg oil

yes we let the plugs heat up first

yes theres a bit of black smoke which comes out when cranking

 :?  :?  :?

[datalas]

once you've got it running, (even for only a few moments) kill it and try starting it again.

if it fires up fairly quickly then I'd hazard a guess at either poo fuel, or probably the lift pump.

easist way of testing the lift pump is to unscrew the breather at the top of the filter and try priming the system.  Since nine times out of ten the manual pump dies before the other bit you should notice little or no resistance or pumping ...

from then on it's a couple of "not pleasant to get at" bolts to do ..  the lift pump itself is quite cheap too..

[DiscoCWK]

I've heard a lot of disco starting problems are caused by dry joints/burnt out tracks on the 'spider' unit, which has control over the stop solenoid (fuel pump). Is there someone with more knowledge out there who can shed some light on 'spider' symptoms!

[beatmasterdave]

howdy!
im no mechanic, had to ask the same question  :oops: because i had same problem, turned out to be glow plugs, i think they might be about £10each give or take.
good luck

[Tyke]

Fuel supply, compression or electrical . . . . . a systematic check of all these areas and only make one change at a time and you should eventually single out the problem.

If you're not confident about doing it take it to someone who is, it shouldn't be rocket science to sort it out. Direct injection diesel engines are relatively simple beasts that respond to relatively simple reasoning.


For my money, I'd check the fuel supply and lift pump, then swap out the glow plugs for a set of known good ones . . . . if that don't sort it then a compression check will indicate the condition of the valves, rings, bores, sealing faces etc.

If that turns out to be the problem, it's beyond the scope of the average 'home mechanic'. If it's electrical, it can only really be the supply to the glow plugs, the stop solenoid or the immobiliser . . . . but it will probably need someone with the right tackle to diagnose any problem.


Oh yeah . . . it might sound silly as the motor is cranking over on the key from what you describe . . . . but is the battery really up to scratch? . . . . . Tdi's need a good fast spin over sometimes.


Good Luck