Mk 3 Diesel Mondeo Problem

bigchez · 2 Dec 2009 at 20:31

Went to start the car after work tonight and it wouldn't fire on first turn of key. Super. Tried again and it did fire after turning over for 3-4 seconds (its usually INSTANT) and then when I drove home the glow plug light was flashing and it feels a bit down on power.

I've had it break down due to cam sensor before and replaced this only about 10k miles ago, but when that was the problem the glow plug light wasn't flashing, it just died.

Anyone got any ideas please? You think replace sensor again for £16 and hope for the best?

[TW]Fox · 2 Dec 2009 at 20:32

I think you are being very optimistic hoping for a £16 fix.

Sounds like injectors perhaps? Looks like its time to say goodbye to the savings of driving a diesel

bigchez · 2 Dec 2009 at 20:38

[TW]Fox;15445057 said:
I think you are being very optimistic hoping for a £16 fix.

Sounds like injectors perhaps? Looks like its time to say goodbye to the savings of driving a diesel

You're probably right, but this time of year and not having made any commission for most of the year I'm clinging onto hope

. I'm loathe to spend much more on it really as its tatty, done 120k and is worth at best £1600.

Fingers crossed, eh!

Lashout_UK · 2 Dec 2009 at 20:45

Faulty EGR, duff turbo actuator, inlet metering valve on the pump, or the fuel pump itself, are just some of the things that can cause that.

A garage should be able to pull the code for you and that'll tell you right away for the most part

iaind · 2 Dec 2009 at 20:46

Cam sensor can trigger the glowplug light, I'd change that first before letting the doom and gloom set in.

I like the fact you've already been diagnosed with multiple simultaneous injector failure when we dont even know if its a TDDI, TDCI 115 or a TDCI 130....

Normally an injector will give bad smoke on startup, then flash the glowplug light when you push it (up a hill, lots of revs etc), at which point it will go into limp home mode. Has it done either of those?

If you narrow it down to an injector, you've got to be unlucky for it to be more than one. Find a local diesel specialist and get them to bench test the injectors, the place near me will do this for £150 - this will tell you which one needs replaced, rather than replacing all 4 for the sake of it. You can then replace/refurb the problematic one, even buy a second hand one off ebay if you want to take a bit of a risk - either way, a proper diagnostics and proper refurb shouldnt cost more than £250

bigchez · 2 Dec 2009 at 20:49

It was too dark to see whether it smoked a lot or not. Getting the code read is prob best way to go, then make decision from there.

Merry Xmas to me :eek:

MarkDavis · 2 Dec 2009 at 20:51

Welcome to the TDCi 'tear your hair out' club....

http://www.google.co.uk/search?q=TD...s=org.mozilla:en-GB:official&client=firefox-a

iaind · 2 Dec 2009 at 20:56

bigchez said:
It was too dark to see whether it smoked a lot or not. Getting the code read is prob best way to go, then make decision from there.

Merry Xmas to me

Leave it overnight - a failing injector will dribble when cold, so start it in the morning after it's sat for a night. If it doesnt smoke more than you'd expect, I wouldnt be looking at the injectors straight away.

Find someone who knows these engines (this normally doesnt mean a ford dealer!) and take it from there - it needn't necessarily be a huge problem if you take your time about it.

It could just need the injectors re-coding, which is 10 minutes with a laptop

Glowplug light is always something to do with the fueling, but it could be any manner of things.

Which diesel is it?

bigchez · 2 Dec 2009 at 22:13

iaind said:
Leave it overnight - a failing injector will dribble when cold, so start it in the morning after it's sat for a night. If it doesnt smoke more than you'd expect, I wouldnt be looking at the injectors straight away.

Find someone who knows these engines (this normally doesnt mean a ford dealer!) and take it from there - it needn't necessarily be a huge problem if you take your time about it.

It could just need the injectors re-coding, which is 10 minutes with a laptop

Glowplug light is always something to do with the fueling, but it could be any manner of things.

Which diesel is it?

Cheers dude for advice, it is the smooth sounding

o) TDCI 115. Will keep an eye on it in the am hoping it'll start!! Is it just wishful thinking it is just a one off?!

iaind · 2 Dec 2009 at 22:17

If it doesnt start it actually points to it being more like the cam sensor. Injector issues look more like this:

Being the 115, it eliminates the turbo actuation as a cause, although thats unlikely to cause starting issues anyway.

Gribs · 2 Dec 2009 at 22:22

There's also the lovely DMF problem that can cause problems starting. The glow plug lamps suggests otherwise though.

iaind · 2 Dec 2009 at 22:24

Gribs said:
There's also the lovely DMF problem that can cause problems starting. The glow plug lamps suggests otherwise though.

DMF would rear its head in other ways first - rattling or squeeling clutch primarily. It would be a laboured start or a completely jammed motor, doesnt sound like thats the case. As you say, the glowplug light is the big clue though!