Technical Scudo glowplugs and service advice

[TheClemster]

Have just had to have my glowplug relay changed on my 54 Scudo van 1.9D as it had burnt out. The dealer recommended new glowplugs too as they are pulling a bit of resistance but quoted a fair bit to do it and i believe it's a fairly straight forward job. The Bosch plugs are relatively cheap but what are they like to fit. Any special tooling etc. I need also to have a service done and the belts changed so i need to ask you guys in the know what to expect i.e major pitfalls and again special tooling. I hasten to add that as a lowly plumber i will not be attempting this myself. My son is a qualified mechanic but not for Fiat's. He has asked me to get as much info as possible on the timing details (something about a floating camshaft :shrug and set up etc. I understand that i can get the service data from the main dealer on cd and i'll try that but aint nothing like asking the boys themselves. This will be done on road as such and it cant do any harm to be well prepared i reckon.
Any advice greatly apprecited

Steve

 

[kellys_eye]

Changing the glow plugs is a good idea if they are a few years old. The actual resistance of the plugs is VERY LOW (most meters show them as short circuits!) - it's only when they read OPEN-CIRCUIT that you have problems.

The relay probably failed due to dirty contacts. This creates resistance and resistance creates heat.... result = melting! This is not a fault of the glow plugs, rather of the relay.

Changing the glow plugs means taking the manifold off the top of the engine and accessing the bolts at the rear can sometimes be a pain - I've done the job myself (and I'm no vehicle engineer) and, after taking a while to suss out the bolt problems, changing the glow plugs was a breeze. Most of the removal process is self-explanatory as you get going.

As for the timing belt... sure, change it yourself - get the manual download from the link here:

http://rapidshare.com/files/35233963...anual.rar.html

it shows the process and tools required. The only arsey bit is having to work through the wheelwell as access to the 'front' of the engine is done this way.

 

[TheClemster]

Kellyseye :worship: Many thanks for the advice. I'll definately be having a go at the glowplugs. The relay they changed is a bolt on affair and must have taken them at least 5 minutes to fit. They did however diagnose the fault....at least that i have to suppose....so i'm not gonna complain too much. Got the manuals from the link and i'll be giving them to the guy doing the job as i couldn't make head nor tail of em TBH. Give me a condensing boiler manual and i'm on it but each to their own. Again many thanks and you know i'll be back

Steve