Defender 300tdi keeps cutting out..

Hi All.

I posted on this forum last July regarding info on what defender to buy (just general questions), ended up buying a 110 300tdi utility which has been great to own with some work done on it time to time.

Everything was working fine until it cut out whilst driving yesterday, It started up right away and then cut out after 30 seconds or so. I initially thought it ran out of diesel as it was low (it wasn't that low), anyhow I filled it up with another 5 litres and it started up fine only to cut out again after another minute or so.

Called the RAC for vehicle recovery and their mechanic said it was the 'fuel stop solenoid' that had given in...there is definitely current in the cable, if the solenoid is disconnected, the engine doesn't start, when reconnected, the engine starts but after a few revs (30-40 seconds) it shuts off again, fuel starvation is obvious he said but I just want to know if that is the case or not because just by reading a few posts online it seems that if there was a problem with the solenoid then the engine does not start at all....

May I point out that the electrical wiring on the vehicle is in a pretty bad state, most of the things work but there are cables everywhere, don't know what they do, have lots of buttons inside too but they don't seem to do anything.

Cheers guys, would appreciate any help.

Hi Guys,

An update to the situation, I've checked the stop valve solenoid and it definitely is working as I can hear it move and the current doesn't seem to be interrupted either.

I have discovered the fuel filter had air in it so I blead it from the thing at the bottom...the defender starts up, runs a little then turns off again, I check the fuel filter and it's got air in it again...I opened it all up, everything seemed to be fine, put it back together again and the same problem, I thought there mght be air in the system so repeated this process of starting and it turning off, bleeding the air about ten times and then I gave up...all the hoses connected to the fuel filter seem to be fine, they are a bit stiff though but don't seem to be broken or cracked....

Any help will be great guys.... Cheers.

Haych said:

Hi Guys,

An update to the situation, I've checked the stop valve solenoid and it definitely is working as I can hear it move and the current doesn't seem to be interrupted either.

I have discovered the fuel filter had air in it so I blead it from the thing at the bottom...the defender starts up, runs a little then turns off again, I check the fuel filter and it's got air in it again...I opened it all up, everything seemed to be fine, put it back together again and the same problem, I thought there mght be air in the system so repeated this process of starting and it turning off, bleeding the air about ten times and then I gave up...all the hoses connected to the fuel filter seem to be fine, they are a bit stiff though but don't seem to be broken or cracked....

Any help will be great guys.... Cheers.

Click to expand...

You bleed the fuel filter from the small screw at the top of the filter housing. It could be water contamination in your fuel tank as releasing the tap at the bottom drains the filter the water and diesel separate in it with water at the bottom. Drain the filter from the tap at the bottom completely bleed it using the screw at the top opened a bit and the lift pump to pump the fuel through and see how long it lasts.when you drain it do it in to a glass jar so you can see how much water is in it.

chezvegas said:

You bleed the fuel filter from the small screw at the top of the filter housing. It could be water contamination in your fuel tank as releasing the tap at the bottom drains the filter the water and diesel separate in it with water at the bottom. Drain the filter from the tap at the bottom completely bleed it using the screw at the top opened a bit and the lift pump to pump the fuel through and see how long it lasts.when you drain it do it in to a glass jar so you can see how much water is in it.

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Hi and thanks for the reply,

The first time when I opened the tap at the bottom of the filter, air came out. I took the filter and the filter housing off, checked to see if there was any obvious gunk in there but it seemed clean (mind you the filter has done less than 1500 miles).

There was no water in the fuel, the RAC mechanic emptied the fuel filter out in a bowl last night and there was just diesel. Having said that as I thought there was air in the system I started the engine and kept the tap (a the bottom of the filter) open in the hope of releasing any air if there was in the pipe line etc to come out, a fair bit of diesel was wasted like this and every time the engine turned off, I would open the tap at the bottom and release more air from it...

Do you guys reckon changing the fuel filter might help? all the seals on it are perfect, the other fuel pipes have a strong connection with all washers etc in place.

It doesn't start up straight away any more, it just cranks for ages and I hold the gas down all the way until it fires up...

Could be an air lock in the fuel tank. Take the fuel cap off and see if you hear the sound of air rushing in.

Hi Guys,

After reading what you guys have said and what I have read online, I think the problem lies with the fuel line coming from the tank to the fuel filter, thats the only way there is air coming into the fuel filter (i think).

So tomorrow I will be installing a new fuel line in, I haven't had a chance yet to properly look at what I have there but I think there are two pipes, a thicker one and a thinner one. Any suggestions on what pipes/tubes to use, I was thinking of an 8mm plastic/rubber tube. Do I need to change the return line too?

Take the top of the lift pump off and check its not full of crap, they have a little filter to stop it going in pump.

sible88 said:

Take the top of the lift pump off and check its not full of crap, they have a little filter to stop it going in pump.

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Hi, Thanks for the reply..

Forgive me for my ignorance on this but from what I can see, the air ends up in the fuel filter which is before the lift pump so would the problem not lie between the fuel tank and fuel pump...? as I said I am just thinking out loud, you guys obviously know your stuff..

Haych said:

Hi, Thanks for the reply..

Forgive me for my ignorance on this but from what I can see, the air ends up in the fuel filter which is before the lift pump so would the problem not lie between the fuel tank and fuel pump...? as I said I am just thinking out loud, you guys obviously know your stuff..

Click to expand...

If there is air there, then there is air all the way through. Don't forget to update us when it's sorted

sible88 said:

If there is air there, then there is air all the way through. Don't forget to update us when it's sorted

Click to expand...

Hi Guys,

I opened the lift pump from the top in the morning and it was full of crap, absolutely filthy and I got SO happy thinking that its sorted now, all I got to do is clean it...so 15mins later its all cleaned up and put together, the engine started and done the same thing again..

I wasn't too sure on how to 'prime' it so I just moved the lever up and down a few times, after the first time the engine cut off, I opened the lift pump again to see if fuel was in there and it all seemed fine..

The problem is still there, still sucking air in from somewhere, didn't manage to change the fuel line as I had work.

Something else I wanted to ask, I looked at the fuel tank and where the pipes are connected to it, the actual connections look quite bad, corroded and rusted, how do I repair them, is a new fuel tank the only answer?

Cheers guys..

Haych said:

Hi Guys,

I opened the lift pump from the top in the morning and it was full of crap, absolutely filthy and I got SO happy thinking that its sorted now, all I got to do is clean it...so 15mins later its all cleaned up and put together, the engine started and done the same thing again..

I wasn't too sure on how to 'prime' it so I just moved the lever up and down a few times, after the first time the engine cut off, I opened the lift pump again to see if fuel was in there and it all seemed fine..

The problem is still there, still sucking air in from somewhere, didn't manage to change the fuel line as I had work.

Something else I wanted to ask, I looked at the fuel tank and where the pipes are connected to it, the actual connections look quite bad, corroded and rusted, how do I repair them, is a new fuel tank the only answer?

Cheers guys..

Click to expand...

you have a break in the fuel line,or a split it might be tiny but thats all it takes,when you find it it will probably be hardly anything causing the issues,had exact same symptoms on a sherpa found it fixed it cured all the issues,ps posting this in the defender or 300tdi section would be aq better option you get wider coverage that way