I saw the 4mm hole mentioned on seatcupranet. Post 8 onwards http://www.seatcupra.net/forums/showthread.php?t=177771&highlight=4mm Post 91 the guy says the holes hasn't blocked on his after 30k
only thing i could imagine would be a higher pressure thought the hole, causing a higher speed of the exhaust gas. on the EGR valve opening you'll get more of a jet of gasses??
Ever since it's really got cold - last 3/4 weeks - the car's needed a few churns to get it to fire up from cold. Today was slooooow, battery running down slooow. Is this likely to be the EGR blank plate that's causing this, or do I need to look elsewhere, buy new glow plugs etc? (which I'm happy to do - 140k miles, and possibly glow plugs never touched?).
Test glow plugs + if it’s turning slower then the battery. Three ways to test the glow plugs….. 1. disconnect the power lead from each and use an LED circuit tester from the battery to the terminal on the glow plug, a closed circuit shows the plug should work 2. remove the injectors and then turn the ignition on, look down the injector thread and you should see the tip of the glow plugs glow in the combustion cap 3. remove the glow plugs and remotely supply power to them via something like a pair of jump leads assuming the glow plug relay is working ok, use a circuit tester to the wires for the glow plugs
mine is doing the same when i start it first thing but is fine for the rest of the day. at times i feel its not even gopnna turn over. if i attempt it twice and keep my foot on the gas it tuns over a bit quicker - bit frightened that its gonna die when i need it most. find it embarrasing too !
I've just put a new battery on. It turns better, but is still needs lots of turns to start. Might pull the blank off for a week and check for differences.
i take it you are waiting for the glow plug light to go out before you try and start it ? you must do this in cold weather. im sre you are but thought id check
also Chris keep in mind, untill the engines going there is no exhaust gas really...plus you have an old skool roraory injection engine, these are no where near the high pressure of PD and the new common rail units, so the fuel isnt as finely atomoised when its sprayed in, nor quite as warm due to it not being compressed as much, when its jock off freezing even a good battery struggles, what cold crank amps did you get? you need the highest you can to help spin the engine over as fast as poss, also try starting with the clutch down as this way you dont have to drive the gearbox too, whos oil will be nice and thick,
I've just noticed that it's a lot slower than last winter, so that's what makes me think it's the blank. Glow plugs / clutch - all no difference.
chris, when my egr first packed up on my pd130 lump years back, one of the first things you noticed was how much longer it took to start up. it would turn over and over. at the worst point the battery practically stopped turning the engine over. when the egr was stuck open the car was a lot slower too. id be tempted to check whether your egr is totally blanked.
Chris, I tried turning the ignition on and off 3 times (waited for glow plug lights to go off) before actually turning the engine over and it started straight away. See if that does the trick for you.
my 1z seems to take about 1 more rotation with the egr blank in place now its cold? its not really noticable tho.