[Closed] Any Diesel fettlers in?

By only just starts. What do you mean.

Turning over for ages before firing (likely a fueling issue)

Or turning over slowely and only just turning over to a start. (Battery)

Or something else ?

Ah I see turning over fine- so I'm going to say look at the fuel lines - look at the returns / spill rail and return line to the tank , look around the injection pump for obvious leaks- but just because you don't see any doesn't mean there isn't any. Holes can mean fuel drains to the tank and your self priming eAch time you start

Battery possibly.
Takes plenty of power to start a diesel, an older engine may have compression issues and the battery may struggle to build compression.
Doesn't sound like a fuel issue as it bumps ok.

It sounds less like a battery issue than it does a fueling issue.

A leaking back fuel line will bump start easy - it'll self prime with the engine spinning off the gearbox much quicker than the starter will prime it.

My old engine in the pick up had 2 cracked pistons and very little compression , would still start. You'd be surprised how bad a diesel has to be before it won't start.

The majority of starting issues with diesel engines stem from burnt out heater plugs!

They are easy to test and change (just change all 4) except on engines where the intake EGR circuit is routed over the top of the engine!

Infact even quicker check. Does the engine have a manual prime pump ? If so manually prime it then try starting it.

Fuel pump pressure not popping injectors , have you tried on full throttle cranking as it is a tddi, not ci
Have you tried the full 1min glow plug burn? most glow plug relays open for 1 -2 mins to aid starting and lower emissions and smooth your initial get away off the drive , could be glow plug fuse or glow plug relay as it is an instant overnight fail and not gotten progressively worse. pop one out and see if it glows , then dulls after 2mins , quick, easy , free test

Does the engine have a manual prime pump ?

It's a Ford. My money is on no as it'll be an aftermarket accessory fitted onto the Schrader valve after the fuel pump/filter. You can use any hose with a female Schrader coupling to bleed it in conjunction with a priming bulb, vac extractor, syringe or whatever you have lying around.

That's speaking from the perspective of the 2.0 PSA block but I can't imagine any good reason why the same nonsense wouldn't apply to their own engines.

Thanks for all the responses.
It certainly feels as though it's having to self prime, spins over fast but for far longer than usual, then immediately runs absolutely fine, but will promptly struggle to restart, with or without full throttle.
I'll check the glow plugs and their supply tomorrow as it's an easy one to eliminate, though when it had glow plug trouble before it started really lumpily (is that a word?)
If it does turn out to be fuel lines leaking back to the tank which part will have failed or is it not that easy?

Check codes. Could be an engine sensor issue. I had the opposite problem - would start cold but not warm - that was the camshaft position sensor.

Definitely tddi and not a tdci? 2002 saw both engines in the mk1 I believe.

Dual mass on a tdci will cause poor starting by key.

With the dual mass going sometimes the only initial symptom is poor starting. As the flywheel breaks up swarf clogs the starter motor spindle so it doesn't turn over effectively.
Hence why bumping it works.

Definitately tddi, and unfortunately I've only ever got "link error" from the obd2 widget on this car.

FWIW these engines are usually robust and really dont need glow plugs unless its absolutely bollock cold. - id be very surprised if this was the ussie.

hell we successfully started one of these with petrol in it(without realising it).... it would idle but die under load.

as for lack of compression again unlikely in a modern engine but the symptoms do present similar to this case - so long as the engine keeps turning over on the battery it will fire eventually(which oldnicks does) but its unlikely to be an overnight thing.

Aargh, an enthusiastic child just deleted this thread, have I saved it?

Edit: seems I have.

Went to start it this morning, spins over great, but no hint of firing.
Nothing to lose, I'll try go turn the key until something happens/catches fire/quietly dies.

The car has been running really well recently, the weight of the new oil and filter in the footwell must have killed it.

Want me to take a look Nick? 😉

lack of compression again unlikely in a modern engine

Why is that (serious question)? It's an 18 year old engine that could have done big miles - why would a modern engine not wear in the same way as an older design?

My crankshaft sensor went in my old mk1 focus. That also cut out and wouldn't start at times.

Loved the mk1. Best driving family car I've owned

One or two injectors having a problem when Mrs S car wouldn't start but cranked over ok.

Thanks RRR, but the powerlink isn't at fault.
Sharkbait, it is only just run in at 275152 miles, has been running really well until it didn't start on Sunday.
Well, towed it back to life and then it died whilst idling.
So towed it again and huge clouds of grey smoke poured out of the exhaust but no life 🙁
Towed it to a local garage who were able to read the fault codes, something about an injection pump timing error which required more investigation, at which point my desire to spend any more time or money on the old girl was exhausted.
Fortunately my FIL has offered (out of the blue) to do me an interest free loan to replace the car, so it will make its final journey on Thursday to the scrapyard 🙁
I'm quite sad about it, I bought it after splitting with my ex 13 years ago, and it's seen me through quite a few life changes, holidays, been my 'van' for work and in the last 5 years become a family car, all whilst being much nicer to drive than it could be expected to be.

Why is that (serious question)? It’s an 18 year old engine that could have done big miles – why would a modern engine not wear in the same way as an older design?

You'd be surprised how bad an engine can be compression wise Nd still fire. - won't run well but it'll run.

Old nick that's bad news. It jumped timing perhaps ?

TR: I'm sure you're right, but you said that modern engines don't get compression issues and I thought that any engine can have low compression of it does enough hours running.

OP: shame, but at 250k that car has done a good job and it sounds like you've had your money's worth.

From experience these are a sod up bleed no primer. Self bleeding apparently.....

They like all modern common rails if they do a pump their toast.

Modern oils and better tolerances allow bigger mileage. One school of thought is it not miles it cold starts that cause the wear. One running all the bearings are hydro dynamic