Technical Cold jerky engine

[matty23]

Hi,

I apologise in advance if this topic has been raised before, but I couldn't find one that relates to this.

My Panda 1.2 (60) manual Eleganza absolutely hates being driven on a cold engine. The engine is very snatchy under light acceleration, it's as though the fuel is being cut off briefly. Once the car has warmed up, the car is no longer snatchy and drives fine.

- Occurs only with a cold engine
- Only occurs in lower gears, primarily 1st & 2nd. 3rd gear and above with the cold engine is fine, but that's generally because I'm driving at higher speeds I assume.
- If I remove my foot off the throttle say in second gear, the revs drop quickly, the car jerks until it rolls into a steady idle. This is of course without the clutch being pressed.
- if the jerkiness becomes too much, I press down on the clutch which cancels out the jerky drive.

Upon speaking to someone online prior to this, they mentioned that it sounded similar to a failed engine mount (probably one situated at the back of the engine, on a 'rocker'). But then why does the car drive fine when warm in all gears. Also, car was serviced in January 2016 (oil and filter, plugs)

Matt.

 

[daveofkent]

My car does this too. I changed the engine mount you refer to, its mildly better but basically the same, I think it helps with the symptoms but definitely not the problem. I find changing up later helps a bit for me anyway. For me the temp is not crucial but its snatchy in the lower gears at low revs.

 

[muz379]

My 56 petrol panda is the same , been well serviced and looked after , and is perfectly fine on a warm start and drive .

But when cold , especially with really cold mornings it just seem quite jerky . I certainly have to be a bit more careful with my clutch pulling off from lights when it is extremely cold as it does stall a lot easier . I think it is just symptoms typical of a small petrol engine in the cold to be honest

If you have had the car serviced I would have expected them to check the conditions of the engine mounts , but then you can never be too sure with some garages so worth a look .

Also have you got a code reader checked for no stored fault codes ?

 

[peter123wallace]

My engine does literally the same when cold. But, it only does this for the first 3 shifts then it goes back to normal.

 

[daveofkent]

Update. After this getting worse over the last year. I changed the plugs, it's almost completely smooth again at low speed and no snatching or need to slip the clutch. I didn't change the plugs for that reason I just did it to schedule and is a bonus

 

[portland_bill]

This has been discussed on here before. General opinion is that this is a 'characteristic'. You get used to it, dipping the clutch when manoeuvring around slow car parks, etc. Better with new plugs, so check when last serviced.

 

[matty23]

Last service on my car was January 2015 and it appears to sometimes do it, more often than not. I've decided to get used to it rather than to look at any form of costly repairs.

Matt.

 

[portland_bill]

So the last service was over a year ago. If you want the engine to last and work properly, get it serviced.

 

[matty23]

oops!! It was last serviced January 2016 and prior to that Jan 2015 just before I bought it.

Matt

 

[portland_bill]

OK, just check that the last service included plugs. If it did, what you're finding is probably just as it is.

 

[daveofkent]

I changed the plugs after 30k kms and 2 years which I thought ok. The difference for me at least is quite a lot, its normally my girlfriend who uses the car so i only used it at the weekend after and it felt like a different car.


Previous Plugs NGK BKR5E
New Plugs GM06 GM/vauxhall plugs which are rebranded BOSCH - FR8DC+
My car is is '04 1.2

 

[AAB1992]

Hi,

I apologise in advance if this topic has been raised before, but I couldn't find one that relates to this.

My Panda 1.2 (60) manual Eleganza absolutely hates being driven on a cold engine. The engine is very snatchy under light acceleration, it's as though the fuel is being cut off briefly. Once the car has warmed up, the car is no longer snatchy and drives fine.

- Occurs only with a cold engine
- Only occurs in lower gears, primarily 1st & 2nd. 3rd gear and above with the cold engine is fine, but that's generally because I'm driving at higher speeds I assume.
- If I remove my foot off the throttle say in second gear, the revs drop quickly, the car jerks until it rolls into a steady idle. This is of course without the clutch being pressed.
- if the jerkiness becomes too much, I press down on the clutch which cancels out the jerky drive.

Upon speaking to someone online prior to this, they mentioned that it sounded similar to a failed engine mount (probably one situated at the back of the engine, on a 'rocker'). But then why does the car drive fine when warm in all gears. Also, car was serviced in January 2016 (oil and filter, plugs)

Matt.

The car needs a self-adaption reset. My car has done this from day one since I bought it and is most definitely related to the time of year and choice of spark plugs. It seems spring late March/early April and late September/October, when the ambient temperature is changeable and if I run NGK plugs as opposed to Bosch super 4's.

The self-adaption reset forces the ECU to relearn its self-learning functions on various parameters. It improves MPG and driveability. You need a registered version of multiecuscan and probably carryout the procedure every couple of months. When you hit execution on the reset, make sure the car is warm; you need to rev the car to 4500 RPM and hold it for 3 seconds, and do this 3 times. Then the engine management light will stop flashing. You may notice a slight increase in consumption for the first 30-50 miles but there after it improves. I usually take the car on a long run straight after carrying out the procedure.

The jerkiness you describe, to me, is related to the cars mapping in terms of air, fuel and throttle position during warm up, it’s something the euro 5 engines do not do but it is NOT something you should be worried about. It is most definitely a characteristic, albeit one that can be reduced with the right plugs and regular resets.

I've just noticed your in Manchester and I'm in Bradford. I don't mind showing you how the adaption works, as your not that far away from me!

 

[jrkitching]

I changed the plugs after 30k kms and 2 years which I thought ok. The difference for me at least is quite a lot, its normally my girlfriend who uses the car so i only used it at the weekend after and it felt like a different car.


Previous Plugs NGK BKR5E
New Plugs GM06 GM/vauxhall plugs which are rebranded BOSCH - FR8DC+
My car is is '04 1.2

I fitted a set of NGK DCPR7EIX iridium plugs & found cold starting and running to be greatly improved.

They'll set you back around £30 or so, but once fitted, you can forget them for at least the next 50,000 miles.