cdt diesel starting problems
 

right where shall i start, i purchased a rover 75 cdt with 82000 mile on the clock a couple of months ago and noticed that every so often it was a pig to start when it did start it ran fine,but if i used it for a short journey, then tried to restart it, it took ages,finally it wouldnt start at all and i got the rac man out to it after carring out several tests, he could not get it it to fire up,then he squirted some easy start into the air intake and it roared into life, he suspected that the fuel pressure sensor may be at fault.I booked the car into my local garage who carried diagnostics on the engine and concluded that the glo-plug relay was at fault,they duly changed the part,the car started "ok" ,but i wasnt convinced,any way i went to visit my daughter in glasgow at xmas and when we set off for home on boxing day had the same problem,luckily had had purchased some easy start from halfords and hey presto car started with the first turn of the key,yesterday same thing again, i am tempted to go back to the garage,but they said if the glo plug relay didnt work then i may have to get a new ecu, noticed that when i bought the car and got it homethat the towing eye was in the glove compartment.....very ominous, please, i would be very grateful for any advice:bowdown:

Hello John and :welcome:.

I'm not a diesel expert but I recall other members having a problem with the glow plug circuit. I'm sure one of them will be along shortly to help you.

As you've just bought the car, a full engine service might be worth considering.

Don't be persuaded to buy new ECUs at this stage.

Simon.

thanks for that, i have already had a service done when i got the car £180 !!, im not sure wether to take it back or to try some where else,does any body know of a decent diesel specialist in the hull area

I noticed that you say it wouldn't start after a short journey (ie engine warm).

The first thing I would think of is the cam sensor.

Sounds like it could be a cam or crank sensor. It's a fault i've seen at work where the sensor isn't reading the teeth on the cam or crank shaft correctly which results in the ECU not knowing how fast the engine is rotating or even if it's running backwards! The result is that the ECU intermittently decides to switch off the fuel circuit as and when the sensor misses a few teeth. The easy start will help because it will allow the engine to accelerate quicker from the few injections that it's getting during cranking.


If it's running fine after it starts, I would be incredibly surprised if it's the ECU that's at fault. Take the car to another garage if they push for an ECU change without checking other things. A fault code scanner isn't a substitute for proper fault finding!

Diesel non start
 

It will not be the fault of the glow plugs. These engines start perfectly well if in otherwise good condition without the glow plugs. The CAM SENSOR is used on start up and, if faulty is easy to replace(just in front of the oil filler cap). If it starts from cold but not when hot you can put the cam sensor in the freezer to cool it and then see if it starts. You would be extremely unlucky to need a new ECU which is about the last thing which should be considered. However, it could be suffering water damage if you have a blocked Plennum drain.
A search on here will give a great deal of advice on that subject.
Rover Rons site www.tuning-diesels.com has a lot of info on such problems and is worth a study. I don't like the sound of that garage.

exactly same symptoms i had in my last diesel conny, was the cam sensor

i agree with the others that is sounds like either the camshaft sensor or the krankshaft sensors ,as it does start i would go with it being the camshaft sensor,i would aso take it back to the garage as they have clearly not sorted the fault and charged you for something that wasnt the problem and of course in their diagnotics checks they should of hooked up to the sensors to look for any bad wave forms,

Make sure you study the following page before accepting any diagnosis

http://tuning-diesels.com/75Zt/R75serv.htm

Yes, agree totally, cam sensor.