Technical My car won't start
- Thread starter cheppi
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Technical My car won't start
cheppi
Have you checked this guide ?
https://www.fiatforum.com/stilo-gui...lt-message-stilo-jtd.html?151734=#post1603064
You might have to go back to basics. Is there any circuit at the injectors when the car cranks?
If you have a voltmeter, stick it in the connections of one of the injector connector blocks and see if it flashes a reading when you crank the engine over.
If you have no voltmeter get hold of one of those glass bottomed bulbs and bend the tangs straight. They'll fit into the connector block connections and the bulb will flash when you crank the engine over.
If you have no injection (i.e. no fuel) then that's why it's not starting.
Could be a dodgy TDC sensor - it's connected around that part of the engine so it may have been disturbed when you replaced the glow-plugs. Or it could have been faulty all along and the glo-plugs warning was a jumbled message from the ECU. You can test the glo-plugs by connecting them directly to a battery. They glow orange (i.e. hot, so don't set fire to your fingers/plastics/your best mate) while you're trying it.
Ralf S.
If you have a voltmeter, stick it in the connections of one of the injector connector blocks and see if it flashes a reading when you crank the engine over.
If you have no voltmeter get hold of one of those glass bottomed bulbs and bend the tangs straight. They'll fit into the connector block connections and the bulb will flash when you crank the engine over.
If you have no injection (i.e. no fuel) then that's why it's not starting.
Could be a dodgy TDC sensor - it's connected around that part of the engine so it may have been disturbed when you replaced the glow-plugs. Or it could have been faulty all along and the glo-plugs warning was a jumbled message from the ECU. You can test the glo-plugs by connecting them directly to a battery. They glow orange (i.e. hot, so don't set fire to your fingers/plastics/your best mate) while you're trying it.
Ralf S.
No catalytic converter will also almost certainly lead to an MOT failure.. not because you don't have one, but because an old JTD, if yours is like mine, is pretty much borderline for emissions even when it's running fine. No cat' is going to stick the emissions well into "fail" territory.
Other than that, no cat' will change the lambda readings and that could make the car more sluggish, if the ECU thinks there's too rich a mixture and tries to lean it out... but that might be fairly difficult to notice.
Fit a new cat' if yours is blocked. If you go the "new" route, then a Bosal cat' usually has a proper amount of the precious metal coating in there but as such they're a bit dear.. c. £300. If your motor is a "192A1000" then your Bosal part number is 099-773.
Cheaper cat's have less coating and so ultimately won't last as long (that might not matter on a 14-15 year old car) from around £120.
It may be worth looking up a second-hand cat'. The OE Fiat ones seem to be pretty much indestructible so you should (?) be able to find a good one for a good price (although OE cat's have a high scrap value, so don't quote me on that..
)
Ralf S.
Other than that, no cat' will change the lambda readings and that could make the car more sluggish, if the ECU thinks there's too rich a mixture and tries to lean it out... but that might be fairly difficult to notice.
Fit a new cat' if yours is blocked. If you go the "new" route, then a Bosal cat' usually has a proper amount of the precious metal coating in there but as such they're a bit dear.. c. £300. If your motor is a "192A1000" then your Bosal part number is 099-773.
Cheaper cat's have less coating and so ultimately won't last as long (that might not matter on a 14-15 year old car) from around £120.
It may be worth looking up a second-hand cat'. The OE Fiat ones seem to be pretty much indestructible so you should (?) be able to find a good one for a good price (although OE cat's have a high scrap value, so don't quote me on that..
)Ralf S.
The main job of a cat' is to reduce emissions;
Hydrocarbons (from incompletely combusted fuel)
Carbon monoxide
Nitrogen oxides
It turns these into water vapour and CO2 (which apart from its bad press, is better for the ennvironment than hydrocarbons, Carbon monoxide and Nitrogen oxides etc.)
The only problem is that higher amounts of these emissions (apart from adding to air pollution) will degrade your lambda sensor more quickly. A duff lambda sensor will upset the engine fuelling, which will affect how the car runs.. increasing fuel consumption, giving a lumpy idle and rough running. A duff lambda can be a leading cause of a blocked cat'... so there's some irony there... and a rich-running car will use more fuel and wear out its engine bores more quickly. But these are gradual/long term issues. Driving your car withourt a cat' for a few weeks won't be a problem.
I would fit a cat' (any cat' will do, if you can't find a Stilo one). Just weld the cannister part in place of yours, so you can use the existing Fiat entry and exit pipes... but make sure you align the flanges correctly in relation to each other and make sure the new cat cannister will fit in the Stilo recess and that you line it up with the flanges, so that it's horizontal when fitted, otherwise it'll touch the car or the ground.
Ralf S.
Hydrocarbons (from incompletely combusted fuel)
Carbon monoxide
Nitrogen oxides
It turns these into water vapour and CO2 (which apart from its bad press, is better for the ennvironment than hydrocarbons, Carbon monoxide and Nitrogen oxides etc.)
The only problem is that higher amounts of these emissions (apart from adding to air pollution) will degrade your lambda sensor more quickly. A duff lambda sensor will upset the engine fuelling, which will affect how the car runs.. increasing fuel consumption, giving a lumpy idle and rough running. A duff lambda can be a leading cause of a blocked cat'... so there's some irony there... and a rich-running car will use more fuel and wear out its engine bores more quickly. But these are gradual/long term issues. Driving your car withourt a cat' for a few weeks won't be a problem.
I would fit a cat' (any cat' will do, if you can't find a Stilo one). Just weld the cannister part in place of yours, so you can use the existing Fiat entry and exit pipes... but make sure you align the flanges correctly in relation to each other and make sure the new cat cannister will fit in the Stilo recess and that you line it up with the flanges, so that it's horizontal when fitted, otherwise it'll touch the car or the ground.
Ralf S.
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cheppi
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Hi guys
I know diesel cars struggle to start in winter but mine is wears, I replaces the glue plugs and my battery is working fine, but still I am straggling to start it in the morning and every time when it has stopped for 7 to 8 hours. May someone with any idear what may be the cause help me.
I know diesel cars struggle to start in winter but mine is wears, I replaces the glue plugs and my battery is working fine, but still I am straggling to start it in the morning and every time when it has stopped for 7 to 8 hours. May someone with any idear what may be the cause help me.
My old donkey used to start okay, even in winter, when two of the glow plugs weren't working, so it seems that the glow plugs only need to be "more or less" present and correct for the car to start.
If your beast is a bit lazy to start then one thing to check is the fuel pump pressure... since apart from a bit of heat, the only other thing the JTD needs in order to start is a spot of fuel and a lot of compression.
But.... if you've had a blocked up exhaust/cat' then I'm wondering if that's hinting that you have dirty, inefficient or worn injectors? If so, then obviously that's not "optimal" .. so it won't help when you're trying to start the car when cold/been sitting around for a while.
If you haven't changed the fuel filter for ages, then it's worth getting one of those. I ran one for about 40,000 miles before I found out they're supposed to be changed every 12,000 but I didn't have any problems. On the other hand, if yours is dirty/blocked then it might be impeding the fuel flow.
Next I would get the fuel pressure (in the injector rail) tested, since your car starts more easily when it's been used in the last few hours.. which suggests that the fuel pressure is falling away and that takes time (a lot of cranking) to build back up again.
While you're at the fuel injection place ^^ they can also check your injectors. If you've had a clogged/sooty exhaust, then that might have been caused by injectors that are dirty, clogged or blocked. If they're not giving the engine a fine enough spray of fuel, then it will be more difficult to start and not all the fuel will be burnt (hence clogged/blocked exhaust... possibly).
While you're thinking about it/saving up/waiting to be booked in.. get some Cataclean for diesel engines from Halfords and stick it into a 1/4 tank of fuel and then drive it around using more revs and revs variation than normal. This will clean out a lot of soot and varnish from the fuel and injection system, so it's worth a try if the injectors just need a small bit of cleaning.
More seriously blocked injectors will have to come out and be rigged up on ultrasonic cleaning gear... but that's a different topic.
Ralf S.
If your beast is a bit lazy to start then one thing to check is the fuel pump pressure... since apart from a bit of heat, the only other thing the JTD needs in order to start is a spot of fuel and a lot of compression.
But.... if you've had a blocked up exhaust/cat' then I'm wondering if that's hinting that you have dirty, inefficient or worn injectors? If so, then obviously that's not "optimal" .. so it won't help when you're trying to start the car when cold/been sitting around for a while.
If you haven't changed the fuel filter for ages, then it's worth getting one of those. I ran one for about 40,000 miles before I found out they're supposed to be changed every 12,000
but I didn't have any problems. On the other hand, if yours is dirty/blocked then it might be impeding the fuel flow.Next I would get the fuel pressure (in the injector rail) tested, since your car starts more easily when it's been used in the last few hours.. which suggests that the fuel pressure is falling away and that takes time (a lot of cranking) to build back up again.
While you're at the fuel injection place ^^ they can also check your injectors. If you've had a clogged/sooty exhaust, then that might have been caused by injectors that are dirty, clogged or blocked. If they're not giving the engine a fine enough spray of fuel, then it will be more difficult to start and not all the fuel will be burnt (hence clogged/blocked exhaust... possibly).
While you're thinking about it/saving up/waiting to be booked in.. get some Cataclean for diesel engines from Halfords and stick it into a 1/4 tank of fuel and then drive it around using more revs and revs variation than normal. This will clean out a lot of soot and varnish from the fuel and injection system, so it's worth a try if the injectors just need a small bit of cleaning.
More seriously blocked injectors will have to come out and be rigged up on ultrasonic cleaning gear... but that's a different topic.
Ralf S.
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