1.9TDi (110) Cold Start Rough

[xavierx]

Hello Seat owning friends....

I am currently having trouble with rough cold starts on my 2003 1.9TDi 110 Toledo (97k miles)

Last 2 years it sounded a little struggling to start in very cold weather, but never any major problems.

Every time I have had the car in for a service or work I have told them that I have occasional cold start issues and each time they have checked and found no fault codes, the CEL has never come on in my car (except during ignition on diagnostics)

Also I told a mechanic friend of mine about the problem and he popped off the glow plug connectors and metered them while I flicked the ignition on and off, and he said he was seeing voltage at the connectors as well as good ground at the plug bodies.

This year it has just started getting cold enough to need glow plugs (I set off for work very early am) and the last couple of days it has sounded dreadful starting.

Only needs to crank for about 2-3 seconds to fire up, but now it sounds rattly and lumpy like hell for about 10-15 seconds like it is only running on a couple of cylinders and there is some smoke from the exhaust.... then it settles down and is fine.

Warm starts are perfectly fine.

Anyone any ideas as there is no clear fault to me unless plugs are just worn?

Many thanks

 

[sssstew]

certainly a first step is a new set of plugs, they arent that expensive.

 

[8x1]

Hi I am having simular problems with my 09 Ibiza 1.9TDI where it refuses to start on cold/damp mornings, it cranks and cranks for ages before it fires up (which it does without clouds of fuel smoke), most of the time it coughs as if trying to fire, othertimes it just cranks. This can go on for up to 5 mins at times! It has been back to the dealer 3/4 times but there only responce is that it throws out no fault codes (does nobody open a bonet and look any more?). its going back again on thursday!!!

Any ideas would be greatly appreciated!

Cheers

8x1

 

[8x1]

PS. its done less than 4000 miles since we bought it brand new in august!

again

 

[oldman]

glow plugs & harness are normally changed for this kinda issue, well that si what i have garnered from readign on here

 

[leontdisx]

hi. my 2003 leon is being really rough as well upon cold start up. the glow plugs were done when i got it i think as i remember one of the threads needing to be helicoiled. is there any other items i can check out? diesel pump, vacuum's?? cold start sensors etc?

james

 

[Wellsy]

8x1, get a courtesy car from the dealer and tell them you aren't coming back with it until they've sorted it.

Xavierx, this isn't going to be much help to you I don't think, but the machines we used to hire out (huge earthmoving stuff) some of the older stuff (4 or 5 years old) would run rough as for 10-15 seconds with clouds of smoke meaning you can't see through the windows for that time, but then run fine. And they did this for years and hundreds of starts. That was only when it was really cold.

Has it got the right oil in?

 

[coolypops]

There's a number of things it could be:

1. diesel that's not winterized-
solution: go to a different garage for your diesel.

2. 1 or more glow plugs worn-
solution: replace glow plug/glow plugs

3. starter motor tired-
solution: wait until it gives up then get a new one

4. battery on its last legs-
solution: get a new battery

5. MAF knackered- (this usually causes other symptoms though)
solution get a new MAF

 

[zeroSignal]

I had something similar with my TDI 110 ASV (cranking over and over and hesitating to start when cold), and the ignition timing turned out to be out of sync. Official VW service couldn't figure it out - they wanted to open up the engine head and clean it up, apparently due to soot build-up. (!!) I took the car to an independent specialist, they tracked down the issue within seconds and sorted it out quite quickly.

So have that checked out, it might just be it, and it's a quick and easy fix.

 

[sssstew]

yeah timing on the old non PDs can be checked with VAG COM easily.

http://www.ross-tech.com/vag-com/cars/tdi.html

 

[ja-mo4]

how much did this set you back to have the ignition timing sorted out? having the same problems

 

[Muttley]

Injection timing, not ignition

 

[sssstew]

shouldnt be more than a hours of a good garages time, so assuming they know what they are doing find out their hourly rate to estimate the cost.

 

[WK2010]

Sorry to drag this back up again but my Tolly has started really struggling to start from cold. It takes a good few minutes of start stop cranking to get it to fire up and when it does there are plumes of white smoke After this initial start and it's been running for a short time it starts on the button everytime. I have changed the glow plugs and relay to no avail. A friend said that it could be the head gasket on its way out, but the car has never over heated and is not loosing coolant or oil. He said it sounds like there is not enough compression on start up and then once things warm up it is fine

VAG is not showing any codes apart from an intermittent ABS sensor so I am stumped.

 

[sssstew]

did you get the timing checked?

Also have you tried a new battery? how old is yours?

 

[Seatmann]

Yeh get the timing checked, if it's very retarded it'd cause your problem, head gasket my arse lol. If the compression is down it's due to either worn cylinders, bent con rods or dodgey valves/lifters, the head gasket wouldn't leak till the car was warmed up unless it was really bad in which case you wouldn't be able to drive it very far.

 

[WK2010]

did you get the timing checked?

Also have you tried a new battery? how old is yours?

Not yet, it's booked into an Audi specialist next week to have it looked at. The battery is less than 6 months old.

Yeh get the timing checked, if it's very retarded it'd cause your problem, head gasket my arse lol. If the compression is down it's due to either worn cylinders, bent con rods or dodgey valves/lifters, the head gasket wouldn't leak till the car was warmed up unless it was really bad in which case you wouldn't be able to drive it very far.

Thats what I thought in relation to the head gasket! It drives ok after the initial starting issues. It's a bit lumpy in places and is not as pokey as it used to be so I am hoping it is just the timing, and a clogged EGR

 

[Seatmann]

Can you not find someone else with vagcom? The garage will just set it to within spec but ideally you want it up the top end of the timing graph for easy starts and slightly better top end.

 

[WK2010]

I could do it myself but I don't have a licensed VCDS just the freebie one and you can't do it in that. The guys at the garage are all very friendly so I am sure I could ask them to set it how I want it. Unless there is someone on here who would let me borrow there Full VAG for a day or two?

 

[Seatmann]

You could try a shout in the vagcom section, there's bound to be someone nearby but failing that you could ask the mechanic to set it up around the 60 mark on the graph.