Vauxhall Astra Turbo Diesel starting problems
russell morrell
I own a 1997 Vauxhall Astra TDS 1.7 diesel. (Isuzu engine). With
210,000 miles on the clock I am expecting some problems....
The engine is fine with the exception of starting first thing in the
morning. On attempting to start the engine first thing it will take threee
long turns on the start motor before it fires. For the rest of the day the
engine then starts straight away? The glow plugs were changed about 18
months ago. The problem appears to be getting progressively worse with a
concern that as we approach the winter months and colder weather the problem
will be amplified. Does anyone have any ideas as to what I should check
first? Any honest advice most welcome...... yes we are contemplating buying
a new car - but not just yet....
Thanks
Russ
Guy King
from "russell morrell" <russell...@btconnect.com> contains these words:
> The glow plugs were changed about 18 months ago.
With cheap ones?
I'd check them first before going any further. If you've got a meter
they should appear as a few ohms each. If you haven't, a bulb on a wire
between the battery + and the plug should light up near enough normally.
Bet you'll find at least one dead plug.
--
Skipweasel.
In the beginning was the word.
And the word was Aardvark.
Ralph Bayley
when the vehicle is left for a long period (overnight) then air gets into
the system then when you go to start the car the engine needs to drag fuel
all the way through the pipelines before it will fire.
My Astra a Y reg 1.7DTI had this problem and the leak was at the fuel filter
not enough to leak fuel out but enough to allow air in while the car was
stood overnight.
Hope this helps
Ralph
"Guy King" <guy....@zetnet.co.uk> wrote in message
news:3130303034323...@zetnet.co.uk...
Tim..
"russell morrell" <russell...@btconnect.com> wrote in message
news:dh2vk0$mt$1...@nwrdmz01.dmz.ncs.ea.ibs-infra.bt.com...
Check the glow plugs yes, but I am 101% sure your problem will be valve
clearances. Very well known on this engine after about 150k miles.
They tighten up when cold (yes opposite way around you'd think) and hold the
valve off their seats very slightly.
Alas you need acouple of special tools which your Vx should rent to you,
though some wont.
You can fashion the same from a pair of needle nose pliers (ground down to
extricate the shims) and a couple of modded G cramps (to hold the cam down
at various stages) and a decent micrometer. You then measure the gap you
have, and the shims you've got, and the ones you need. Backwards and
forwards to dealer to get new shims. Re-fit, re measure and adjust again if
necessary.
Personnally If you are not an enginneer and havent done it before, let your
vx dealer do it. About an hours work for them, roughly a morning for you.
Tim.
Bob Dodds
exactly the same symptoms of hard to start first time on a morning then
starting OK for the rest of the day. A new set of glow plugs made no
difference. It worked out that to buy a valve shim pack cost more than
getting a local garage to do the job so I let them do it. After that it was
a great starter until I sold it a couple of years later.
Bob
"Tim.." <the.farm....@btinternet.com> wrote in message
news:dh35ss$si6$1...@nwrdmz03.dmz.ncs.ea.ibs-infra.bt.com...
Dave
russell...@btconnect.com says...
so air leaks in rather than fuel out. This prevents the pump building up
enough pressure in the injectors to get a good spray pattern. It's a
good idea to do it anyway; the pipes get hot & crack after a while. The
big problem is getting the new one through without touching anything hot
or moving; tie a string to the old one, pull it through then use that to
pull the new one through.
HTH, Dave