DaveSIIA Posted January 13, 2009 Share Posted January 13, 2009 The 110 proved somewhat reluctant to start on Saturday morning, having stood since Thursday lunch time in sub-zero temperatures. Cranking was a bit sluggish as the outside air temp was ~ -7C, and I had been squeezing the last bit of life out of an 8 year old battery A DMM on the glow plugs showed no voltage. 60A maxi fuze was okay and the glow plug warning light on the dash came on, hinting the timer relay was doing something? Time to check the wiring, to find no connection from #4 glow plug back to the vehicle loom. A casual glance around the bulkhead showed the offending cable tucked up neatly behind the air intake duct, out of harms way. It must have been like that since I installed the engine 18 months / 30K miles ago, and certainly wasn't missed last winter. Reconnected, the engine sprung into life on the first flick of the key. I'd always reckoned that Tdi's didn't need the glow plugs, but maybe the short burst while cranking makes all the difference. More importantly, this incident highlights that a career hands on engineer, of many years experience, is not infallible. One learns by one's mistakes Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
western Posted January 13, 2009 Share Posted January 13, 2009 OOps, but of brain fade then Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Turbocharger Posted January 13, 2009 Share Posted January 13, 2009 I've never wired mine up - never really considered them necessary for a DI diesel, although based on the above, maybe I should reconsider. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveSIIA Posted January 14, 2009 Author Share Posted January 14, 2009 OOps, but of brain fade then Yes, too much haste with 'must fire up engine and go for a drive'! I still don't wait for the glow plugs when starting (same as I've always done since buying the vehicle in 97), yet it fires up that bit easier than before. The very brief use of glow plugs probably contributes a bit to ease of starting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jacks906 Posted January 14, 2009 Share Posted January 14, 2009 i think that a good battery also makes a huge difference just spinning it over that bit quicker makes all the difference and just a flick over can starts them up dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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