Cold starting issues

[RichyMistral]

I'm hoping that some of you guys can point me in the right direction in whats wrong? When i start the engine when its cold it fires up first time and sounds fine for the first 5-10 seconds then the revs begin to drop and will stall unless its revved. When I rev it there is a tiny little splutter every now and then which goes once it has warmed up abit.
If i prime the fuel after its stalled its usually ok. I cleaned the mini filter afew weeks back.
Could it be down to the fact its due a service? (oil/fuel filter/glow plugs etc).
Any help appreciated.

 

[melissachels]

mine does this, but i have a choke, or hand throttle as i was corrected yesterday :augie i just keep the revs up for 5 mins whilst i arse about :lol haven't done glow plugs but got some coming today so hopefully that will help.

 

[RichyMistral]

I haven't tried adjusting the choke (mines broken with a piece of metal to twist ), does it make a difference or does it just sort itself out as it warms? Could you let me know if the glowplugs improve things? Does yours smoke as you rev it to stop it from stalling?

 

[makeitfit]

Check your glow plugs and g/p relay. They should stay on for a while after the engine has started till a basic temp is achieved I think.
PS it's not a choke :lol

 

[RichyMistral]

ok will do, cheers. oh yeh.... hand throttle. :doh

 

[RJL Services]

i have a mistral and when cold i start it with hand throttle in and once fired up and oil light out i then pull hand throttle out a few clicks then after about 1/2 a mile its warm enough to put back in i did have a couple of duff glow plugs which ment it did need a good crank to start but all replaced now and fires up instantly just one for thought is when you change the oil use 15/40 mineral oil as i used what the motorfactors say is what it needed and ended up with smoke pouring out the back and on advise from others on here changed it to 15/40 mineral and smoke cleared after a few runs and now even if i gun i dont see smoke like i say just for futre reference when you change the oil the oil filter is a bitch to get of but made easier if you use a strap wrench i take air box out and disconnect fuel filter of the bracket and let it rest on the engine then you will find it gives you more room oh:doh dont forget the steps so you can lean in easier:lol
regards
rob

 

[melissachels]

I haven't tried adjusting the choke (mines broken with a piece of metal to twist ), does it make a difference or does it just sort itself out as it warms? Could you let me know if the glowplugs improve things? Does yours smoke as you rev it to stop it from stalling?

yeah if you pull it out a click or 2 before you start her up, it shouldn't have a hairy canary & die. got glow plugs today but probs be sat before we fit them. yep! :augie:lol lovely to cover a nice new car after being in the college all day! :lol

 

[rustic]

It does sound like a couple of glow plugs have failed.

Best change them soon, as if another one fails, it will take a lot out of the battery, especially with the colder weather coming.

I sometimes use the hand throttle a couple of clicks if I am not driving it straight away from cold.

HOWEVER...

When using the engine for engine braking, the higher revs won't help, so push it in at the first opportunity.:thumb2

Engine braking will become even more important as we approach the winter and icy roads.
Sometimes on icy journeys, I don't have to use the brakes, just closing the throttle slows it down.

Rustic

 

[melissachels]

guess what.....i only had two working glow plugs :doh:doh:doh but now i have 4 shiney new ones and we don't citter our teeth in the morn anymore :thumb2

but now my clutch is about to pack up 110k so think it may be original since my wee truck's been neglected most of its days

but we'll sort her :thumb2

 

[RichyMistral]

Ive had alot on the past week and ignored the poor starting. But this morning whilst at work i had a call from the wife saying it won't start!
She called the breakdown cover as its free, the bloke says it the alternator not getting enough charge to the battery and it started it with his jump leads.
Could the glow plugs have caused this or is it likely to be the alternator? I have limited money to spend out and need it fixed asap.

 

[Lazy-Ferret]

This time of year, the battery takes a hammering, lights, windscreen wipers, heater motor, are all on a lot more... and a diesel engine takes a lot more to start than a petrol, not only do the Glow plugs take a huge current, but the engine is harder to turn over as well, resulting in it also needing more current.

Before spending any money, take it for a good run, especially if you are doing short runs, all of the above will take out more than the alternator can put back in at this time of year, so you will be running the battery lower and lower every day... I read somewhere that in the cold, you need to run a petrol car for at least a half an hour, just to replace what energy was taken out of the battery by the starter motor on a cold day, so I would think it is more for a diesel.

Make sure you turn everything off before stopping the car, so that when you start it in the morning, only the glow plugs and starter are drawing power, once started, turn on the lights, fan, wipers, radio...

From what you are saying, It sounds like the glow plugs are not doing their job, which means that the starter motor is taking longer to start the car, and in the end the battery is just running out of power.

I would get the glow plugs tested, there is an easy to follow tutorial in the relevant section on here, give it a good run, and then have the battery tested, especially if it is a couple of years old, just to makes sure it is up to the task this winter. Clean the battery terminals as well, so you are getting the best connecting for both charging and starting.

 

[RichyMistral]

Having a look at the alternator a minute ago there seems to be an oil leak from the vac pump on the back of it. Could this have something to do with it?
I havn't got a multi-meter so cant check the plugs myself, I need to get one as they are cheap as chips on ebay.
I know what you are saying about short journeys, which makes sense as most of the journeys are short.

 

[Lazy-Ferret]

Short journeys could well be most of your problems then.

Having a look at the alternator a minute ago there seems to be an oil leak from the vac pump on the back of it. Could this have something to do with it?

Can't help you with that, I am fairly new to the Terrano myself, I read something the other day on here about a vacuum pump on the back of the alternator, and had a look at mine, but it does not seem to have anything on the back of the alternator, so not really sure what it is for. I would not expect it to affect the alternator though, other than if it caused it to not spin over properly, and you would know that by not only the alternator light being on, but the scream from the belts, so that is very unlikely... it may de the sign of some other problem though, which someone will hopefully point you in the right direction of.

If you do get a Multi Meter, and they are very useful things to have lurking around, you will need one with a resistance (Ohms) range.

 

[geoffdown]

Short journeys could well be most of your problems then.



Can't help you with that, I am fairly new to the Terrano myself, I read something the other day on here about a vacuum pump on the back of the alternator, and had a look at mine, but it does not seem to have anything on the back of the alternator, so not really sure what it is for. I would not expect it to affect the alternator though, other than if it caused it to not spin over properly, and you would know that by not only the alternator light being on, but the scream from the belts, so that is very unlikely... it may de the sign of some other problem though, which someone will hopefully point you in the right direction of.

If you do get a Multi Meter, and they are very useful things to have lurking around, you will need one with a resistance (Ohms) range.

some terrano/mavrick have the vac pump for the brakes on the back of the alternator and some have them under the injection pump so if ur vac pump like mine is not on the back of alterator itll be below the IP :thumbs

 

[RJL Services]

when i had to test my glow plugs i just held them with pliers and had a short bit of wire on the terminal of the glow plug and then held the body against the earth post with pliers then connected the wire to positive for only a few seconds and if it glows its ok i found two were faulty but replaced all four and kept the old ones for spares be carefull though as they get hot very quick:thumb2

 

[Lazy-Ferret]

some terrano/mavrick have the vac pump for the brakes on the back of the alternator and some have them under the injection pump so if ur vac pump like mine is not on the back of alterator itll be below the IP :thumbs

Cheers.. I am going to go and have another look now... I must admit, I wondered what the pump was for, I never thought about them needing a vacuum pump for the brakes, I forgot it is not like a petrol so no vacuum.. Doh..

when i had to test my glow plugs i just held them with pliers and had a short bit of wire on the terminal of the glow plug and then held the body against the earth post with pliers then connected the wire to positive for only a few seconds and if it glows its ok i found two were faulty but replaced all four and kept the old ones for spares be carefull though as they get hot very quick:thumb2

That only works if you take them out of the engine... the multi-meter allows a quick check with them in situ.. although it is not 100%

 

[rustic]

TIP
When starting any vehicle from cold, always press the clutch down.
It saves the starter motor having to turn the gears in the cold gearbox.

Also if you happen to leave it in gear, it saves it jumping forward or back.:thumbs