Help! Cupra TDI cutting out when cold.

[Ema-Lou]

I have an ongoing problem with my Cupra, every morning when i go to back off my drive
Keep revs level, raise the clutch & start to reverse then all power goes, revs drop & engine nearly stalls. Have to give it a right good rev first then back off, even then its a bit sluggish. Once its warmed up goes like stink!!!
Any advice??
I have replaced the fuel filter & only use v power diesel. No warning lights on dash.

 

[st10587]

let it warm up for 10-15mins before you head off

 

[woza135]

You may not of realised it before but when diesels are cold they tend to need a bit more revving for some reason they just dont have the low down power untill they have a few minutes of warming.

You may have a problem with the car but this is pretty comon on all diesels, just a characteristic

 

[Leigh15]

That doesn't sound normal to me at all - you definitely have a problem.

My car will drive fine immediately from cold - even when the temperatures are below freezing.

My guess would be a faulty sensor - possibly a temperature sensor that's causing the fuelling to be off when the car's cold.

You certainly shouldn't be warming the car up for 10-15 mins before driving it as suggested above - the best way to treat a car is to get it to normal operating temperature asap, the best way to achieve this is to drive it straight away

 

[Ema-Lou]

Thats what i originally thought, but when my local dealer lent me a 1.9tdi sport, it had no problem whatsoever getting off the driveway. Wierd.

 

[Leigh15]

As above - a lack of power when cold is definitely NOT normal behaviour

 

[Ema-Lou]

It doesnt lack power once im off the drive & driving. Literally when im backing off the drive, just wants to cut out!

 

[Leigh15]

I'm on my second 1.9TDI and neither of them has EVER done what you're describing, and I do a LOT of mileage - your car definitely has a problem - you need to get it looked at - whereabouts are you based?

 

[Ema-Lou]

lancaster, will take it to my local dealer up the road, they're really good.

 

[st10587]

That doesn't sound normal to me at all - you definitely have a problem.

My car will drive fine immediately from cold - even when the temperatures are below freezing.

My guess would be a faulty sensor - possibly a temperature sensor that's causing the fuelling to be off when the car's cold.

You certainly shouldn't be warming the car up for 10-15 mins before driving it as suggested above - the best way to treat a car is to get it to normal operating temperature asap, the best way to achieve this is to drive it straight away

the oil in your engine works best when it warm, if you have a cold engine then go flying up the road then it is going to cause damage as the oil is thicker when cold there fore is not being pumped around the engine as easily.

i was mearly suggesting if its running fine when its warm then let it warm up before driving it

 

[st10587]

hence why turbo timers and other product like this were invented

 

[Ema-Lou]

i know not to go driving like a nutter in it before its up to temperature (although it is sometimes hard to resist!!) Have sat on my drive before letting it idle for about 5mins or so, depending on how late i am for work, doesnt really make much difference.

 

[UncleFester]

You won't warm a diesel up by sitting on the drive on tickover, it needs to be driven ... carefully until temperatures are up to normal. You definitely have something wrong with it if it won't work from cold

 

[Leigh15]

the oil in your engine works best when it warm, if you have a cold engine then go flying up the road then it is going to cause damage as the oil is thicker when cold there fore is not being pumped around the engine as easily.

i was mearly suggesting if its running fine when its warm then let it warm up before driving it

Thanks for that - you'll notice I never once suggested 'flying up the road' with the car, however sitting on the drive idling isn't going to do you any good as -

You won't warm a diesel up by sitting on the drive on tickover, it needs to be driven ... carefully until temperatures are up to normal. You definitely have something wrong with it if it won't work from cold

 

[kriso]

You won't warm a diesel up by sitting on the drive on tickover, it needs to be driven ... carefully until temperatures are up to normal. You definitely have something wrong with it if it won't work from cold

+1

These diesel engines are too efficient to warm themselves up by letting them tickover. Best thing is to drive them straight away, just give it a few more revs. But still sounds like a problem...mine never behaved like that

 

[idge]

Is it noisy when you turn it on? My cupra TDi feels like it wants to stall when i back out of my space in the morning, its friggin noisy too. I read in the manual that it was due to something not reaching pressure yet, but its fine to drive, just rev it a bit more.

 

[pow]

Tried backing it onto the drive and going off forward, does that make any difference?

 

[CupraOl]

FWIW, my Cupra Tdi is exactly the same as the OP describes for about the first minute after starting. I just give it a few extra revs when pulling away for the first couple of times and after that it's fine. Mine was fine all summer, so it's definitely a cold weather thing. If you try and drive it as if it's warm, it will stall when pulling away, which is fun at junctions...

When it first started happening I did a search as I had no such problem with my old 130, and found that a couple of other Cupra drivers were having the same issue but describing it as 'an unpredictable biting point when cold'. If you don't rev the car slightly more than usual when pulling off, you can stop it stalling by slipping the clutch, but this obviously isn't good for the car.

ETA Found the thread I mentioned earlier: http://www.seatcupra.net/forums/showthread.php?t=157047&highlight=biting+point+tdi

My 2p.

 

[RichieRich]

im on my 3rd vw diesel and none of them do this either, and as said above the car doesnt even warm up unless u go over 2000rpm ive done a 10 mile trip last year without the needle moving! lol

 

[ChrisGTL]

let it warm up before driving it

Dear god! You might aswel get a bike and ride to work....

I'd try a new temp sender, cheap as chips and pretty easy to fit (make sure engine is cold when changing it)