Interesting starting problem 300tdi

So this has got me confused. I went out to see if my turbo hoses were pressurising as I suspect there is a hole in one of them. I went to start the engine but there was nothing. The lights on the dash come on, the headlights work, the radio works, everything except the starter it seems.
It's never not started before but now there is nothing, no cranking noise, no starter motor noise at all, not even a click. I have no idea what it can be as I assumed it would be a battery related problem. But surely it can't be?
Any help greatly appreciated!

check the thin wire going to the starter solenoid first

I agree with trax, if everything lights up fine but you get absolutely nothing when going from position 2 to 3 then it suggests no connection to the starter.

I'm stuck without a voltmeter at the moment so I can't check that easily. It's been using a lot of electrical power recently and a mechanic friend said it might still be the battery as the immobiliser needs a fully charged battery. I will try giving it a jump start when a mate arrives!

AJJackson1 said:

I'm stuck without a voltmeter at the moment so I can't check that easily. It's been using a lot of electrical power recently and a mechanic friend said it might still be the battery as the immobiliser needs a fully charged battery. I will try giving it a jump start when a mate arrives!

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stick it in neutral. turn ign on.

go get a long screwdriver, and connect the starter big stud and the little spade that the thin wire connects to.

this will power the starter motor.. so be careful.

Ok, well there's power to the starter motor. It cranks and turns the engine over convincingly. But it still doesn't start.

Check battery terminals tight as well

I know basic, but took me a while to find the problem when mine wouldn't turn over a couple of years back

AJJackson1 said:

Ok, well there's power to the starter motor. It cranks and turns the engine over convincingly. But it still doesn't start.

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if the starter is cranking, then it's fuel. if you had the ign on, power should have went to the fuel pump. if it didn't, then it sounds like the usual immob issues.

get a wire, connect one side to the battery or the starter power distribution point and connect the other to the spade on the fuel pump. it will have a single spade connector already in it.

it will click as it gets power. now try and crank the starter.

I was fully ready to beg for forgiveness after findinga battery terminal looser than I would have liked, but no. That has made no difference either.

Very clever Trax. That worked a treat once I managed to hold it all together at the same time. So unfortunately it seems like an immobiliser problem?

AJJackson1 said:

Very clever Trax. That worked a treat once I managed to hold it all together at the same time. So unfortunately it seems like an immobiliser problem?

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either that or bad ignition switch/wiring. take dash off and look behind. (it's only a few screws)

but i'd say immob

btw, if it is the immob you can rewire to remove it from the system. it's crap anyway as you've just seen

Ahh balls! It seems strange that it should just randomly break but that's Land Rover I guess. I will look at the dash when I can. Is there anything particular you think I should be looking out for?

AJJackson1 said:

Ahh balls! It seems strange that it should just randomly break but that's Land Rover I guess. I will look at the dash when I can. Is there anything particular you think I should be looking out for?

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wire fallen out or burnt. or if you have a multimeter check the output.

least you can still use it by doing the above. it won't look dodgy at all in tescos carpark

Right, that sounds simple enough. Hopefully it's just a dodgy connection! You're not wrong there, sparks flying as I shove suspiscious metal objects in my bonnet haha.
Thanks for all the help. I will let you know how I get on!

trax said:

check the thin wire going to the starter solenoid first

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Thanks Trax, my 300tdi also decided not to start today, first time this has happened. Just had to close the crimp a bit on the thin wire where it fits to the solenoid. Glad I found this suggestion quite quickly.

KNine said:

Thanks Trax, my 300tdi also decided not to start today, first time this has happened. Just had to close the crimp a bit on the thin wire where it fits to the solenoid. Glad I found this suggestion quite quickly.

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glad it helped

i'd look at getting a proper crimp on it and then sticking some vaseline/silicone grease on to prevent rust...or always carry pliers!