Anyone having to pre-heat their 300tdi *three* times each morning??

Genuine parts glow plugs are made by a company called BERU . It is always a good choice to change all 4 and double check earth leads to engine block and to clean the connections on the top of the plug . Put copper grease on the thread when you fit them . If you battery is OK and your engine cranks OK it could be several other things . Your car will have EDC so cold starting is also controlled by Air temperatue , coolant temperature and fuel temperature sensors any of whcih could be faulty . I am not sure but if your Air flow meter is faulty this could cause problems as well . It could also be a recent split in a fuel line ie air in the fuel line , leaky around fuel filter etc and you need to turn the engine over longer to get fresh fuel around the system etc .
Regards Jonathan

Mine behaves exactly as you describe, three preheats and it starts instantly, its a 1997 auto, and therefore has edc, wonder if this is common senario with edc. Oh new bateery, starter and glow plugs, all earths fine etc.

Now its turned cold mine wont start with out a jump start, then its instant.

I have never heard of this 3 preheats, does that mean you turn the ignition then wait for the glowplug light to go out, turn it off and onto ignition again and wait again, then do it a third time?

I will try it tomorrow, I charged the battery last night but still would not start without a jump earlier.

Was gonna get a new battery, but I also did not know the glow plugs were so cheap and needed changing so often.

I will try the 3 times tomorrow morning, then order some glow plugs.

Cheers

Brian S said:

Now its turned cold mine wont start with out a jump start, then its instant.

I have never heard of this 3 preheats, does that mean you turn the ignition then wait for the glowplug light to go out, turn it off and onto ignition again and wait again, then do it a third time?

I will try it tomorrow, I charged the battery last night but still would not start without a jump earlier.

Was gonna get a new battery, but I also did not know the glow plugs were so cheap and needed changing so often.

I will try the 3 times tomorrow morning, then order some glow plugs.

Cheers

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Yes, that's it. Does your turn over OK but just not fire? If so then that's what mine does and three heats sorts it. If it turns over slowly then it could be battery, engine earth or starter motor problems

That's what mine does.

rubythursday said:

Mine behaves exactly as you describe, three preheats and it starts instantly, its a 1997 auto, and therefore has edc, wonder if this is common senario with edc. Oh new bateery, starter and glow plugs, all earths fine etc.

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Mine doesn't have EDC and needs it's three pre-heats in the cold, so its not a problem particular to EDC models. If you do have EDC then you have an extra temperature sensor in the top of the cylinder head, if this is faulty it will cause starting problems, or you could have dodgy glow plugs like the rest of us, or any of the other causes

Mine turns over fine just would not fire and eventually run down the battery.

I have just gone and tried it (4 glow plug hearings to be sure) and it fired on the first crank. Though it was cold I had been out at 5pm so will try in the morning while it's frosty.

I wasn't suggesting bump starting would solve your problem - but as another post said if the engine gets a quick spin the compression doesn't get as much time to leak away ( especially on an older engine with some wear ).
I had VW dsls for many years and heating them 2 or 3 times in cold weather made a big difference to starting - (they had a pre combustion chamber whereas the Tdi doesn't ). Its really a matter of heating up the air/fuel mix to the point where it ignites - and heating the glow plugs a few times obviously helps here .
I often wondered about the RPM's - and will try to see where I came across it .
The 2 important points I have found about glow plugs is what current they draw ( the VW about 22-24 A each ) and also that it was the tip that was glowing . Its only the very tip thats in the combustion chamber - I have come across glow plugs which were glowing well up from the tip while the tip remained black .
As mentioned Beru are a good brand - would be very wary of cheap ones .

I had the same problem, fitted new battery last month (still had starting problems), checked relay was working (which it was), So fitted new NGK plugs yesterday - fired up first time today after a very cold night.

I fitted a new set of glow plugs today.

I first brought a set of ****part ones for £25 and they don't come with new nuts. When I fitted the first one the old nut was a bit stiff and as I tightened it the top bit started spinning.
So back to the shop and another £33 got me a quality set.

I tested the first 2 Old ones and they did not even get warm and they were wet and oily. Could have been old diesel.

I will find out in the morning if my starting issues are fixed.

Regarding fitting new plugs...

Am I right when I say the rubber cover on top of the engine has to come off, the oil filler cap has to come off, the aircon thing has to be unscrewed and moved aside, and then all 4 of them just come out kind like a spark plug would?

Will a normal socket be OK, or will i need an extended one? Also, how many ft-lb would I tighten them back up to?

Just move the aircon pump from the mount and the oil catch pipe off the head and a deep 1/4" socket on a short extension should do the job.

I don't know the torque but I just nipped them up without force to a point I felt was ok.

Be carefull putting back the small nut, if possible buy new ones, then t
Screw them on by hand and nip them up carefully looking to see if the thread is trying to turn.

I've got the same problem,only that i glow mine 4-5 times.I've got a new battery and fitted 4 new glow plugs but the problem is still there.

I had to on me 200tdi this morning but its only got a small battery on it

My 200TDi fired up with just one glow plug cycle!

Mine did not start earlier. Was minus 2 or 3 though and the battery did not last long.

So £99 later I have fitted a new battery.

I only hope it starts tomorrow.

Last year mine was firing instantly at -8C

This year having to crank for ages before it fires.

Will try 3 cycles on the plugs in the morning (only tried 2 so far). Guess I could be due new plugs, though I'm not convinced everything is all OK at the moment.

don't forget the cold start procedeure for the 300tdi is to press the throttle down then turn the motor over releasing the throttle as it starts ( this worked OK last year but I think I need new plugs to.. so off to devon 4x4 )

oooooh....... didn't know about the "cold start procedure for the 300TDi"!

I'll try that tomorrow

Interestingly, this morning (at minus 2 or so), I preheated it once, left the ignition on for 10 seconds after the preheat light went out, then turned the key and it fired instantly.

Do the preheaters stay on even after the preheat light has gone out??

i would guess theplugs will continue to release risidual heat after power has ceased. as they cool the heat gotta go somewhere?