Cordoba Vario '97 Oil Pressure Problem? Help!

barryTee

Active Member
May 17, 2016
7
0
Hi folks,
I've just had my Cordoba Vario 1.9 diesel's engine refurbished and now the engine cuts out now and then with the oil light flashing. I wait a few minutes and it starts again.
It's worse today though, wouldnt start at all. The mechanic who refurbed it says its an electrical problem so wont look at it (yeah I know!)

All the electricians around here are booked up for weeks so I thought i would ask on here.

There is plenty of oil and fuel. Although when I first got it back from the mechanic there was a serious oil leak, flashing lights and beeping and engine shut down on the motorway! No damge though (it seems) and the leak has been fixed.

Anyone have any idea what it could be? The oil pressure sensor? Or OIl pump?
And where can I find the oil sensor?

Any tips greatly appreciated :(
 

SEAT Rule

Active Member
Nov 19, 2019
188
62
Hello there,

I'd be inclined to get your oil pressure checked ASAP just to be safe, if you've already had that done, then no worries.
It's something at least your mechanic guy can check, just to rule out the oil pump or other oil circulation issue/s.
It does sound a bit worrying that you had an oil leak shortly after having your engine repaired.

1) check your oil level is correct.

2) check you have the correct oil for your engine.

3) like I say I'd be inclined to get your oil pressure checked, if it's not been done.

4) check your invoice for the engine repair work, was a new oil pump fitted, was the engine oil & filter changed ??

I repeat get your oil pressure checked, but if it 100% has been checked and is fine, then yes it's possible it could be a wiring/connection fault, or a faulty oil pressure switch.
Low oil pressure can bring on the oil warning light, and can result in an alarm or buzzer sounding from the instrument cluster, warning you.
Also a faulty oil pressure switch can cause issues of the warning light flashing or staying on incorrectly, and so can a wirring fault problem, or a faulty circuit board inside instrument cluster.

You might have one oil pressure switch fitted or you might have two ?
Could be one fitted in the back of cylinder head look at (1) in image, plus could be one fitted in the top of oil filter housing look at (3) in image.

I've listed below the part numbers for the oil pressure switches listed on SEAT Etka, plus have uploaded a photo image from Etka also, so you can clearly see the numbered items listed against the image.
This image shows two engine setups, (top one is petrol) and the (lower one is diesel)


SEAT Cordoba Vario 1.9 TDi year 1993 onwards.

(1)
Oil pressure switch (for Diesel)
Thread size M10 x 1mm
set to 0.35 bar
Colour (Blue)
Single spade contact
Part number 028 919 081H and 028 919 081J
From 1993 to 1998

(2)
Oil pressure switch (mainly for petrol)
Thread size M10 x 1mm
set to 0.4 or 0.6 bar
Colour (Green)
Single wire plastic plug connector
Part number 036 919 081D
From roughly 1998 onwards

(3)
Oil pressure switch (for Diesel)
Thread size M10 x 1mm
set to 1.0 bar
Colour (Grey)
Single spade contact
Part number 068 919 081C
From 1993 to 1998

(3)
Oil pressure switch (for Diesel)
Thread size M10 x 1mm
set to 1.0 bar
Colour (Grey)
Single wire plastic plug connector
Part number 038 919 081M
Up to roughly 1999

(3)
Oil pressure switch (for Diesel)
Thread size M10 x 1mm
Pressure range 0.55 to 0.85 bar
Colour (Brown)
Single wire plastic plug connector
Part number 038 919 081K

(6)
O-ring / washer seal for above oil switches
Part number N0138115
From 1993 onwards

***************************************

SEAT Cordoba 1.9 TDi from year late 1999 / early 2000 onwards.

(2)
Oil pressure switch (mainly for petrol)
Thread size M10 x 1mm
set pressure range 1.2 to 1.6 Bar
Colour (black) = single wire plastic plug connector
Part number 06A 919 081D and 06A 919 081J
From roughly 1999 onwards

(3)
Oil pressure switch (for Diesel)
Thread size M10 x 1mm
set pressure range 0.55 to 0.85 bar
Colour (brown)
Single spade contact or can be single wire plastic plug connector.
Part number 038 919 081C

(6)
O-ring / washer seal for above oil switches
Part number N0138115
From 1993 onwards

***************************************


Also I managed to find the wiring diagrams for petrol & diesel engines for the SEAT Cordoba 1993 to 1999
It's in PDF format and has 12 pages covering all electronic area's of the Cordoba.
I think page 6 shows the oil pressure switches. On page 6 look at numbered items 46 at the bottom of page, they're the oil pressure switches
(this symbol * = diesel models only)

Hope this helps
Si
 

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barryTee

Active Member
May 17, 2016
7
0
Hey, thank you SO much for that! I really really appreciate your taking the time to share that very helpful info!

Lot's to go on there which helps me out massively! I tried to give your post multiple likes but sadly....

The manual is a great help too, although my head swims looking at it!

The problem now seems to be, although Im not sure, that the fuel shut-off valve is being closed by the safety systems. It looks like this is due to a relay/solenoid which is attached to a non-standard fuel primer pump that was fitted by the previous owner, for reasons unknown!

This might explain why, before the engine refused completely to start, it was cutting out and stalling, only to start again after a few minutes, perhaps after the relay cooled down a bit. Now Im assuming its stuck completely. So perhaps it is being overloaded somehow. Probably still a job for an electrician but like I say they are all booked up for weeks!

Im going to buy a new relay today and see how that goes. I supsect the engine will start again but the problem will remain if the relay is getting overloaded. Ive attached a pic of the primer pump addon. Perhaps that could be removed entirely? You can see it top left in the photo, with the relay/solendoid to the right. Strange setup really and several mechanics have been puzzled by it.

Any thoughts appreciated and thanks again Si for taking the trouble to help, that diagram and manual and other data will really help when I show it to someone who actually knows what they are looking at!!

All the best to you :)
 

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SEAT Rule

Active Member
Nov 19, 2019
188
62
Hey, thank you SO much for that! I really really appreciate your taking the time to share that very helpful info!

Lot's to go on there which helps me out massively! I tried to give your post multiple likes but sadly....

The manual is a great help too, although my head swims looking at it!

The problem now seems to be, although Im not sure, that the fuel shut-off valve is being closed by the safety systems. It looks like this is due to a relay/solenoid which is attached to a non-standard fuel primer pump that was fitted by the previous owner, for reasons unknown!

This might explain why, before the engine refused completely to start, it was cutting out and stalling, only to start again after a few minutes, perhaps after the relay cooled down a bit. Now Im assuming its stuck completely. So perhaps it is being overloaded somehow. Probably still a job for an electrician but like I say they are all booked up for weeks!

Im going to buy a new relay today and see how that goes. I supsect the engine will start again but the problem will remain if the relay is getting overloaded. Ive attached a pic of the primer pump addon. Perhaps that could be removed entirely? You can see it top left in the photo, with the relay/solendoid to the right. Strange setup really and several mechanics have been puzzled by it.

Any thoughts appreciated and thanks again Si for taking the trouble to help, that diagram and manual and other data will really help when I show it to someone who actually knows what they are looking at!!

All the best to you :)

No worries ?

yeah that does look kind of strange having another relay there, plus you've mentioned another electronic fuel pump has been fitted close to relay.
Unless like you say there's an alarm/immobilizer fitted to car, and last owner had a fault with it and was cutting power to fuel solenoid cut off valve on diesel belt driven fuel pump, so they bypassed it ??

Or they might have fitted that extra electronic fuel pump, due to the main belt driven diesel fuel pump seal was warn/leaking, basically this is the seal directly behind the belt pulley on diesel pump, this applies to most diesel engines, when that seal leaks it can draw air back in, resulting in engine cutting out or poor starting or poor running engine, I think as a temporary fix you can sometimes fit an after market electric fuel pump, to help keep the diesel flow consistent going into belt driven diesel fuel pump, this temporary fix will last a little while possibly, until the fuel seal is just too warn in which case that extra fuel pump will be no good then, due to loads of air being drawn in.
I'm not saying this is your problem but is a possibility ??

According to the wiring diagrams I uploaded up, on page 3 is for the diesel pump and fuel solenoid cut off valve, plus there's a power relay for ECU which needs to power the electronics on the belt driven diesel fuel pump. There can be a few sensors / solenoids on the belt driven diesel fuel pumps.

Si
 

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barryTee

Active Member
May 17, 2016
7
0
Hello and thanks very much again. So helpful to get ideas and feedback.

I changed the replay/ solenoid. No difference. So not sure where to go now.
There isnt an immobiliser fitted and the diesel pump is not fan belt drive. In the phot i posted above it is the cylndrical shaped/ round thing to the left of the relay, with the 3 tubes coming from it. That all seems fine, no leaks there, nice and dry.

The best clue is that a mechanic looked at it and said there was no power getting to the fuel shut off valve, he put a wire from the positive terminal on the battery to the valve and it started! See the photos for the wire and where it goes to make the car start.
Ive checked all the fuses and they are ok.
Ive got an appointment with the auto electrician near here but its not untll the 4th Dec, nightmare. This certainly seems electricl doesnt it?
What could be the cause of the fuel shut off valve not getting power if the relay is ok and the fuses are ok?

Thanks again for your help and ideas, so valuable!
 

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SEAT Rule

Active Member
Nov 19, 2019
188
62
Hello and thanks very much again. So helpful to get ideas and feedback.

I changed the replay/ solenoid. No difference. So not sure where to go now.
There isnt an immobiliser fitted and the diesel pump is not fan belt drive. In the phot i posted above it is the cylndrical shaped/ round thing to the left of the relay, with the 3 tubes coming from it. That all seems fine, no leaks there, nice and dry.

The best clue is that a mechanic looked at it and said there was no power getting to the fuel shut off valve, he put a wire from the positive terminal on the battery to the valve and it started! See the photos for the wire and where it goes to make the car start.
Ive checked all the fuses and they are ok.
Ive got an appointment with the auto electrician near here but its not untll the 4th Dec, nightmare. This certainly seems electricl doesnt it?
What could be the cause of the fuel shut off valve not getting power if the relay is ok and the fuses are ok?

Thanks again for your help and ideas, so valuable!

I believe your Diesel fuel pump is belt driven via the cam belt this belt is hidden out of sight behind a plastic or metal cover.
Your auxiliary belts (fan belts) these drive the power steering, alternator, air con, both the auxiliary belts are seen in your previous post photo at the bottom.

Ok so from what you've mentioned the mechanic put a live wire to the fuel solenoid cut off valve,
and your engine started up, this does indeed look like an electrical fault.
When you switch on your ignition the fuel solenoid cut off valve should be energised from the relay possibly via your ECU,
as you have no power at the fuel solenoid cut off valve the issue is either in the wiring or relay resulting in loss of power when ignition is switched on or when cranking the engine over.
According to the wiring diagram pin 53 from the ECU is for the fuel solenoid cut off valve.

I've attached below a photo of the main fuse box layout for your Cordoba from 1993 to roughly 2002 for petrol & Diesel.

FUSES N.o // AMPS // FUSE FUNCTION

1) = (10amps) LH dip beam and adjuster
2) = (10amps) RH dip beam and adjuster
3) = (10amps) Number plate light
4) = (15amps) Rear screen wiper
5) = (15amps) Windscreen wash/wipe
6) = (20amps) Fresh air fan, air conditioning
7) = (10amps) RH sidelight and rear light, engine compartment lighting
8) = (10amps) LH sidelight and rear light
9) = (20amps) Heated mirrors, rear window
10) = (15amps) Front, rear fog lamps
11) = (10amps) LH main beam, warning lights
12) = (10amps) RH main beam
13) = (10amps) Horn
14) = (10amps) Reversing lights, heated seats
15) = (10amps) Engine equipment
16) = (15amps) Instrument panel, clock, interior light, lights on buzzer
17) = (10amps) Indicators
18) = (20amps) Fuel pump, lambda probe, injectors
19) = (30amps) Coolant fan unit
20) = (10amps) Brake lights
21) = (15amps) Central locking, boot light, radio
22) = (10amps) Cigarette lighter


RELAYS:

1) blank
2) Rear window wash/wipe relay
3) Power supply relay (109)
4) ‘X’ contact relay
5) blank
6) Hazard warning lights relay
7) Headlight wiper relay
8) Windscreen wash/wipe timer relay
9) Lights on warning buzzer relay
10) Fog lamps relay, or plug bridge
11) Twin tone horn relay, or plug bridge
12) Fuel pump or glow plug relay (103)
13) **blank**
14) **Central locking, with remote control (160) or relay for 2nd speed of electric fan (80)**
15) **Inlet manifold relay (1)** // **Electronic terminal box relay for diesel engine control (144)**
16) **Electric fan 2nd speed** // **Electronic terminal box relay for diesel engine control turbo diesel (166)**
17) **Diesel glow plug fuse or ABS relay (178)**
18) **ABS relay (178) or relay for double light models (145)/(200)**
19) **Central locking, with remote control (160)**
20) **Electric windows fuse (53)**
21) **Engine relay (31)/electric fan 2nd speed (53)**
22) **Automatic transmission relay (150)**
23) **Diesel glow plug relay or ABS fuse**
24) **EDS relay (79) or Automatic transmission relay (150)**

** = these relay positions may vary on diesel models.

From what I can see in your uploaded photo's and from what you've mentioned in your posts,
it does look like someone has added another relay to the far left of engine near your fuel filter,
looks like the 2mm or 2.5mm thick white wire from that relay quickly changes to a 1.5mm pink wire,
basically where the black insolating tape is seen wrapped over the joining between the thick white wire and thinner pink wire,
that might be a weak joining, broken solder, or water ingress affecting the connection between the two wires ?
That pink wire looks like it goes to the fuel solenoid cut off valve but doesn't look OEM ??
Normally I think the wire to the fuel solenoid cut off valve is (white and black) or (brown and white),
plus is neatly clipped/attached sometimes to the side of diesel fuel pump,
to help stop it from rubbing against anything until it goes back into wiring loom.
The OEM relay for the fuel solenoid cut off valve is I think relay 109 which is number 3 in the above relay list,
this relay I think is the main power supply to the ECU including the fuel solenoid cut off valve.


Hope this helps
Si
 

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Crossthreaded

Active Member
Apr 16, 2019
536
145
I had a '99 plate Cordoba Vario 1.9 tdi which I bought in late 2000 and ran 'till 2016 when I replaced it with a 1.0 litre 3 cylinder 95hp Ibiza estate - wish I'd kept the Cordoba! Somewhere around 10 years into ownership I had intermittent starting problems which started as an only very occasional fail to start and steadily got worse. I couldn't pinpoint it (I'm a retired motor mech but not great with electrics/electronics) so in the end I admitted defeat and asked the lads at AVW (our local indy). I'd barely got the question out before they said "fit a new 109 relay and it'll sort it" So I did, and it did! I took the top off the old relay and you could plainly see the points faces were burned. I took it in to show them and they said "typical". Apparently the current draw on this relay is pretty close to it's design limit so they tend to have a limited life span. So don't skimp on quality when you buy a replacement. Hope that was useful? Enjoy your Cordy - wish I still had mine instead of this complicated thing I've now got. I am wondering why you've got that additional fuel pump though? Surely if there was a problem with the original it should have just been replaced, not added another under the bonnet like that? Very strange! By the way, if that 109 relay fails completely you'll get a "failure to communicate" message when you attempt to plug in to the OBD port (I've got VCDS, or VAG-COM, as it was then) because, as mentioned above this relay also powers the ECU. Another wee "tip". there is a small vacuum pipe going into the ECU. be careful of it. It can become internally detached from the board inside. It's fixable, but not easily. Another thing to keep an eye on is for emulsified oil when you pull the dip stick or filler cap. These engines - which are great engines in my opinion - have an oil cooler which uses engine coolant to stabilize oil temperature. Look at your oil filter, it's the "tin can" like thing between the oil filter case and the casting on the side of the engine. These can fail/corrode internally and allow oil and coolant to mix. From the outside you see nothing though because it's all happening internally. The grey/brown/creamy emulsified oil on the dipstick is usually your first clue - Cleaning out the cooling system is really good fun!

I've always been "nervous" about oil lights showing so, in your place, I wouldn't be "happy" until I'd removed the oil pressure switch and checked with a proper manual gauge. I'll keep my fingers crossed for you! A flickering oil light can be very misleading because an engine will run for quite some time on a reduced oil supply before it expires so the fact that you are driving it about without everything going "Bang" doesn't necessarily prove she's getting a good supply of oil. Pretty much any garage should be able to check this for you, it's just a matter of whipping the sensor switch out, screwing a threaded adapter into the hole and attaching the pipe to the gauge to the adapter. Just a few minute's work if the pressure switch is accessible (I think its beside the oil filter if I remember).
 

barryTee

Active Member
May 17, 2016
7
0
You guys are fantstic! I got there in the end with your help!
It was indeed the 109 replay under the steering wheel. It took a sparky to find it and replace. Everything going great now.
Yes the fuel primer pump is still a mystery, why they fitted that I assume I'll never know.

At least everyting is working ok. Anyone else having this problen - check the 109 relay under the steering wheel!

Thank you both for all your help, it was much appreciated. I will riase a toast to your good health tonight :)

All the best to you :)
 

Crossthreaded

Active Member
Apr 16, 2019
536
145
Just to say I'm glad we were able to help, I've been deeply into my FIAT stuff just lately so haven't been on here for a while, sorry for posting late here.
 
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