hi help please , my 200tdi has just on the odd ocassion making a nasty clunk then whirring sound and then turn the key again and straight away it fires as it normally does first touch , its as though its not engageing properly but as i said its been fine starting first touch and then this last 2 weeks i get this odd noise at random intervals , i dont use it everyday if that makes a difference and i do have a constant niggle with the earths on the lights , please tell me its not the starter ring and its the starter Even better would be a loose wire thanks for any guidence atb gerry

good be poor connections before and at starter,might be worth removing starter and checking dog can move out freely

I'd just take it off, spray Wd40 (or whatever you use) in it/over it... Give it a good soak. Put it back on after making sure all the connections are clean. Job done.... Mine was doing similar but I had the gearbox off last week so I sprayed wd40 into it while the box was off and it's been fine since.

Thanks , yes that sounds the way to go , ive had a quick look but it looks a sod to get at , i did notice the earth connection from starter to a bottom bracket of the down pipe has snapped , but looks old so not sure if thats the problem wd40 and hope to find a easy way in to it

Would advise replacing the earth strap - starters draw a huge current so reducing any resistance is always a good idea