Technical Lumpy idle with cold start - now fine?

[EJ192]

Been a while since I was last on here. Mainly because my car has been trouble free...until now!

Started my car, cold start, as normal today and soon after it fired up the idle went a bit crazy. Kept going up and down, between 500rpm and 1200ish rpm. I revved it slightly to try and equal it out but it kept carrying on. In panic I turned engine off.

I did have my lights on, radio and fan on. I turned all but the fan off and started it again. The same happened but settled down soon enough. I got out of the car and the fumes smelt very rich. Never noticed it smelling as much before.

Had no issues apart from 'stop/start unavailable' message which was constant after driving for 5 minutes and using stop/start once. Drive back home was fine. No warning lights were on during all of this.

Since it's got colder my car has been struggling to start slightly. It was like this last winter but it always started and ran smooth. I got the battery checked last year thinking it was low but it was fine. This puzzled me but after driving it to be checked, I think this charged the battery back up.

I've got to wait until tomorrow to take it to my usual garage. Would appreciate some ideas of what the problem could be but I know it could be various things.

Oh, it's 1.2 by the way.

 

[zanes]

It'll be the battery.

 

[MrDerv]

Ours has done it a few times, and the battery is absolutely fine.

What i've observed is, it happens if you move the steering wheel within 1-2 seconds of starting the engine. Fine if left alone, but you get a hell of a cloud of smoke if it's left to idle rough.

 

[jrkitching]

Lumpy, smoky starts with the 500 are relatively often reported here and are usually a sign that the plugs are on the way out. From personal experience, fitting iridium plugs helps considerably with smoky start issues.

My own experience is also that this issuew is much more likely if the engine is run when cold for a very brief time, stopped and then restarted - something best avoided.

Turning the steering wheel immediately after starting will increase the load on the engine; it's not surprising that this makes it worse and the car is probably best left to idle undisturbed for a minute or so, just until the oil is circulating properly.

After that, it's better to drive the car gently to bring the oil up to temperature more quickly; prolonged idling with a cold engine leads to increased wear.

 

[EJ192]

Car started fine this morning. I've noticed no smoke when starting.

Taking it to garage later. They're keeping it overnight to try and replicate what I experienced yesterday morning.

 

[306maxi]

After that, it's better to drive the car gently to bring the oil up to temperature more quickly; prolonged idling with a cold engine leads to increased wear.

Yup, the people who idle their cars on winter mornings are screwing their cars up nicely

 

[UFI]

I would consider the possibility of bad fuel.

 

[EJ192]

My car is left no longer than a few minutes idling from cold start. More than enough time to lock my garage door

I would consider the possibility of bad fuel.

Yeah, could be that too.

My bet though is on the battery. I thought it wasn't quite right last winter and it can only get worse from then. I'll let you all know what the garage thinks tomorrow.

 

[EJ192]

Car back from garage and guess what...everything is fine!

Might have been bad bit of fuel but that doesn't explain why the stop/start unavailable message was on constant afterwards.

Going to fill up with premium unleaded to clean it through somewhat.

 

[UFI]

Might have been bad bit of fuel but that doesn't explain why the stop/start unavailable message was on constant afterwards.

Stop/ Start is a funny beast and I've had that message a bunch of times. For example if you nearly stall the engine (ie cause it to sputter like it was on bad fuel). Once the message is activated S/S won't work until a restart.

 

[MrDerv]

Stop/ Start is a funny beast and I've had that message a bunch of times. For example if you nearly stall the engine (ie cause it to sputter like it was on bad fuel). Once the message is activated S/S won't work until a restart.

I've had the Stop/Start unavailable message before, but only if the engine stops, and you open the drivers door while the ignition is still on (which is perfectly normal according to the manual)