trouble brewing part 2

[carpy33]

Right as suggested I have changed the glow plugs on the terrano with success. The problem starting when cold however is still there??? I just don't understand what is going on with the old girl. Any ideas otherwise I'm going to have to take her to the mechanic whilst remortgaging the house.

 

[Fez_uk]

Not sure if this has been asked but is there 12v getting to the glowplugs?

 

[Barrbeast]

Like Fez suggests, I would be checking you're getting the full voltage to the glowplugs :nenau

I know that in the Mk2 Shoguns the glowplug solenoid operates through a separate ECU which is what keeps the glowplugs on longer when the engine is colder etc

This ECU would sometimes fail and as it was quite expensive to replace a common work around was to fit a button on the dash which hooked into the live feed from the ignition and operated the glowplug solenoid manually.

Don't know if the Terranos also use a seperate ECU? :nenau

 

[carpy33]

Not sure if this has been asked but is there 12v getting to the glowplugs?

Haven't tested that however on my previous topic (part 1) the problem I was having only appeared if the vehicle had been left for a period of time I. E more than a couple of hours or overnight. It turns over strongly but just doesn't catch for 10-15 seconds before suddenly going. A big plume of black smokes comes out the exhaust and then it is fine. Could it be a earthing issue with the starter motor or am I way off the mark? Don't really want to chuck loads of money at possible issues as so far it hasn't solved them.

 

[exosteve]

Relay

 

[carpy33]

Relay

Steve, is there anyway I can test this before I go out and purchase said part???

 

[Fez_uk]

Test for 12v at the terminals that attach to the glowplugs, I would of done this first before buying glow plugs.

 

[AlexD333]

Test for 12v at the terminals that attach to the glowplugs, I would of done this first before buying glow plugs.

Yes true, not the end of the world, it's an item that will need replacement at some time and with winter coming not a bad idea

 

[Lazy-Ferret]

Steve, is there anyway I can test this before I go out and purchase said part???

Do you have a multi meter?

As a quick test, if you go out to the car when it is dark, get in, and leave the door open, so the courtesy light is on. Turn on the ignition so the glow plug light comes on, you should see the courtesy light dim a bit. After a while, the glow plug light will go out. Normally a short time after that (Provided it is not too cold), you will hear a click from the off side front wing, just behind the head light, beside the battery, this is where the glow plug relay is located, and the courtesy light will get slightly brighter. You may then hear the relay click a few more times, with the courtesy light alternating brightness on each click.

If you follow this link, and scroll down to page 389, it explains the relay sequence.

http://bebrs.pie-dabas.net/Webs/Terrano/R20/ec.pdf

Basically, if you do not hear any clicks from the Relay, it implies it may be faulty, or worse still the controller is faulty. ( A multi meter will easily determine which)

If you do not see the lights dim, then it implies the glow plugs are not actually glowing, which could be either the relay or a fuse/wiring issue.

If you have a multi meter, it becomes a lot easier to work out where the issue is.

 

[Barrbeast]

Relay

That's what I meant, not solenoid :doh

You can check your relay is working by briefly touching a lead from the +ve terminal of the battery to the terminal on the relay. If its working you'll hear a click of the relay working.

 

[makeitfit]

All the above and from my experience the position of the relay and timer is aweful. It get caked in all road crap let alone offroading. Also the wires out of the relay/timer can corrode too, so if you don't have a multimeter, just hearing the clicking isn't the end of the story.
Failing a multi meter, a light bulb and some wire will do for this job

 

[elty001]

could air in the system cause it turn over for a while before it draws any fuel through:nenau

 

[carpy33]

Do you have a multi meter?

As a quick test, if you go out to the car when it is dark, get in, and leave the door open, so the courtesy light is on. Turn on the ignition so the glow plug light comes on, you should see the courtesy light dim a bit. After a while, the glow plug light will go out. Normally a short time after that (Provided it is not too cold), you will hear a click from the off side front wing, just behind the head light, beside the battery, this is where the glow plug relay is located, and the courtesy light will get slightly brighter. You may then hear the relay click a few more times, with the courtesy light alternating brightness on each click.

If you follow this link, and scroll down to page 389, it explains the relay sequence.

http://bebrs.pie-dabas.net/Webs/Terrano/R20/ec.pdf

Basically, if you do not hear any clicks from the Relay, it implies it may be faulty, or worse still the controller is faulty. ( A multi meter will easily determine which)

If you do not see the lights dim, then it implies the glow plugs are not actually glowing, which could be either the relay or a fuse/wiring issue.

If you have a multi meter, it becomes a lot easier to work out where the issue is.

Right, I went out to the car today to start her up and to check the above advise. When you turn the key all the way to the point were the instrument lights come on I hear what sounds like a pump engaging however at no point do I hear a click or see the lights dim.

Today when I went to start her I noticed the abs light come on and go off whilst the engine was turning over. As soon as the car actually started the abs light went off?? The abs light coming on was intermitant if that makes any difference.

 

[makeitfit]

I don't do ABS so can't help there. The clicks and dimming may not be obvious if you're trying to start the car too. So try again by just turning the key to ign position but don't try and start it. Wait 20 seconds or so and then you should here the solenoid click off and the int light should brighten.

 

[Banshee]

Right, I went out to the car today to start her up and to check the above advise. When you turn the key all the way to the point were the instrument lights come on I hear what sounds like a pump engaging however at no point do I hear a click or see the lights dim.

Today when I went to start her I noticed the abs light come on and go off whilst the engine was turning over. As soon as the car actually started the abs light went off?? The abs light coming on was intermitant if that makes any difference.

The ABS light symptoms you describe are normal, mine does this, as far as I know it's the ABS in test mode.

You should see an orange coil light up that indicates that the glow plugs should be glowing, when that goes out, they are still warming up until you hear a click from the engine bay.

The easiest way to test if they are working or not is to get someone in the cab turning the ignition on/off while you have a multimeter hooked up to the top of each plug in turn.

When the ignition is switched on the multimeter should read 12v ish and will flitter about, you'll hear the relay click quite loud if you are in the engine bay, when you hear this click the voltage should drop to 0v, you will have a gap of about 10-20 secs and you'll hear a click again, the voltage should again climb to the 12v mark

Test each plug in this fashion, I always do this even when fitting new ones before I put all the InterCooler back on etc etc, I even do the jump lead test on brand new ones :thumbs

 

[carpy33]

I'm definitely not hearing any form of loud click as suggested. Think its time I got a multimeter and tested each glow plug as well as the relay switch. How long do people leave the ignition on before going in to the engine start? The glow plug light goes out on mine and then about 10 seconds later I tried to start the car. It just seems strange that once the engine has been started or driven you can go back to it some hours later and start her without any issues???.

 

[Fez_uk]

I wait till I hear the click before i start, I think the time it takes to click varies.

It just seems strange that once the engine has been started or driven you can go back to it some hours later and start her without any issues???.

Not really, The engine is probably still warm so easier to start.

Get the muiltimeter on them

 

[wildbri]

Have you tried making the glow plug light come on more than once before turning the key all the way to start? I had a broken plug and when it was cold l used to light up the glow plug three times to start. If you turn on the gp light and don't turn to start you should hear the relay drop out after some seconds as other posters have said. Regards. Bri

 

[Fez_uk]

Have you tried making the glow plug light come on more than once before turning the key all the way to start? I had a broken plug and when it was cold l used to light up the glow plug three times to start. If you turn on the gp light and don't turn to start you should hear the relay drop out after some seconds as other posters have said. Regards. Bri

He's changed all the glowplugs for new ones

 

[exosteve]

All the symptoms indicate the relay.
Mine was the same.changed glow plugs still the same.
Started from warm but not cold.I resorted to easy start for a while.
And it smoked like a bugger for a while and very lumpy.
I paid £25 for a relay.job done.not a problem since.