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Cold start problem

Robin Brooke

Robin Brooke

Extended sabaticaal pursuing a passion to climb
Messages
108
Vehicle
T5 SE 180
Hi

I have a California SE 2015 owned since new, which has developed an intermittant cold start problem.

When I turn the ignition key the engine cranks for maybe 10 seconds before firing up and running. After this if I use the vehicle and stop for 1-2hours then when starting again it fires up almost instantly.

Looking for any advice on possible sources of the problem.
 
Hi

I have a California SE 2015 owned since new, which has developed an intermittant cold start problem.

When I turn the ignition key the engine cranks for maybe 10 seconds before firing up and running. After this if I use the vehicle and stop for 1-2hours then when starting again it fires up almost instantly.

Looking for any advice on possible sources of the problem.
Exact same symptoms on mine. It was the Starter Battery. The battery voltage was dropping significantly on first start if it had not been used for 24 hrs or more.
 
Also worth looking at the glow plugs.
 
Thanks both, yes it seems this symptom can be at least one of three things:

1. Starter Battery
2. Glow Plugs not working, or receiving current i.e. Repeater or Fuse
3. Fuel pressure.

I think mine might be number 2, as it appears there is no current reaching the glow plugs (however the Glow Plug light still comes on as normal when turning ignition on...).

I'm taking it to a garage next Monday (26th) assuming it will stil start Haha. Will try to remember to come back to this thread and update with what I learnt.

Thanks WelshGas & Yossarian for commenting.
 
Thanks both, yes it seems this symptom can be at least one of three things:

1. Starter Battery
2. Glow Plugs not working, or receiving current i.e. Repeater or Fuse
3. Fuel pressure.

I think mine might be number 2, as it appears there is no current reaching the glow plugs (however the Glow Plug light still comes on as normal when turning ignition on...).

I'm taking it to a garage next Monday (26th) assuming it will stil start Haha. Will try to remember to come back to this thread and update with what I learnt.

Thanks WelshGas & Yossarian for commenting.
This time of year, unlikely to need Glow Plugs in any significant way.
 
This time of year, unlikely to need Glow Plugs in any significant way.

Thanks again! :)

Today got the computer read and no error codes (which you might expect for Glow plugs issues or fueld pressure), so am getting the battery replaced today a Bosch AGM S5 A11 800a 80aH.

The vehicle is now 6.5 years old with the original battery.

Hopefully this will fix the cold start problem, if not, at least I'll know its not the battery and it needed replacing soon anyway.

Fingers crossed, and thanks for the replies.
 
Update:
With the battery replaced the cold start problem has so far dissapeared.

Thanks all for your comments and help.
 
Sadly, this cold start problem has returned...

So, its not the glow plugs or battery which has been replaced.

If anyone has advice let me know, I feel going to a dealer will just lead to more expensive guess work. Fuel filter perhaps?
 
A bad lead might behave like a bad battery? Just kinda thinking of loud here..
 
You could have a parasitic drain on the starter battery?
Will look this up thanks. Dealer fitted new starter battery within the last year when I first experienced this problem, would hope they may have checked for battery related issues before replacing.
 
Will look this up thanks. Dealer fitted new starter battery within the last year when I first experienced this problem, would hope they may have checked for battery related issues before replacing.
All depends what the Dealer were asked to do.

Have you got a multimeter? It would be worth getting one if not. Check the voltage of the Starter Battery 1 hr after driving or charging the battery. Recheck the voltage before you next start the vehicle. It should show very little variation over 1 week.
 
thanks for tip.
 
As soon as I read the first post I thought fuel pressure. Plenty of stuff on YouTube diagnosing long crank TDi
 
As soon as I read the first post I thought fuel pressure. Plenty of stuff on YouTube diagnosing long crank TDi
Thanks
 
Unlikely this is your issue but an interesting watch all the same.
 
sorry to hear your woes,

I resisted posting previously, particularly when you advised you were going to change the battery, and then the fault disappeared.

I had a starter battery replaced under warranty, would not hold full charge for a reasonable time.
Initially VW checked and returned the van to me with no fault.
Subsequently the van failed to start and the battery was flat.
VW assist advised the battery needed replacement. VW dealer carried out the required VW factory check (twice) eventually the battery met the “fail” criteria set by VW !
The starter batter was replaced (yah)

you may not want to know this next bit, but it’s worth checking to prevent potential longer term issues if not rectified.

I also had an intermittent cranking issue, there was no rhyme or reason as to why & when it would do it.
after the battery was replaced the problem seem to abate.

symptom initially presented as cranking for 10 seconds, not starting, turn ignition off, next crank the engine would fire up!
typically this would not present for a few weeks , possibly months At a time.

VW dealer initially said they could not find a problem & returned the van to me.
the problem persisted for some time (very intermittently)
when the problem presented, the starter battery would also drain because of the additional cranking. I kept the battery health 100% via a 240v smart charger as required (occasionally)

eventually I experienced one instance of rough running after starting. The van ran perfectly after this , no loss of power no warning lights etc.

I reported this to VW dealer, who said to keep an eye on it and bring the van in if it did it again

Shortly after (within a week) The van then failed to start. three or four attempts to crank 10 seconds each time.
VW assist attended and experienced the issue, the van was taken by flat bed to the dealer.

the VW dealer acknowledged the non starting,
they got it running but it was rough running they asked to keep the van to diagnose the problem.

diagnoses :
potential faulty HP fuel pump ? (i Raised this with the master tech when I reported the previous issue)
it’s a known issue the HP fuel pump (Bosch) the internal parts break up dropping minute swarf into the fuel system, eventually blocking injectors etc.

the Master tech had to get a bit of kit from VW:

effectively the equipment is an inline filtration system for the fuel, it traps any swarf in the system, (trapped on a inline filter) whereby it can be visually identified Confirming a HP fuel pump failure.

after the test, there was no swarf identified !

the Master tech asked if he could keep my Van for another day to repeat the test, particularly as he’d seen the rough running after not starting (Naturally I agreed) presumably the fuel filter was doing its job.

after the second test a minute amount of swarf was visually identified in the test kit filter.
The presence of swarf identified the fuel pump was breaking up.

the Bad news is the entire fuel system needs, fuel lines, filter, injectors, HP fuel pump, lift pump etc needed to be changed and the fuel tank needs to be removed from the van and flushed out. (fuel tank needs to be practically empty to enable it to be removed)

The reason the whole fuel system needed changing is that the unused fuel (from the high pressure side / common rail ) is returned to the fuel tank which means that swarf is deposited through the whole fuel system.

I sincerely hope this in not your problem as it is an horrendous cost (mine was under warranty).

I wish you luck in identifying and sorting your problem
 
sorry to hear your woes,

I resisted posting previously, particularly when you advised you were going to change the battery, and then the fault disappeared.

I had a starter battery replaced under warranty, would not hold full charge for a reasonable time.
Initially VW checked and returned the van to me with no fault.
Subsequently the van failed to start and the battery was flat.
VW assist advised the battery needed replacement. VW dealer carried out the required VW factory check (twice) eventually the battery met the “fail” criteria set by VW !
The starter batter was replaced (yah)

you may not want to know this next bit, but it’s worth checking to prevent potential longer term issues if not rectified.

I also had an intermittent cranking issue, there was no rhyme or reason as to why & when it would do it.
after the battery was replaced the problem seem to abate.

symptom initially presented as cranking for 10 seconds, not starting, turn ignition off, next crank the engine would fire up!
typically this would not present for a few weeks , possibly months At a time.

VW dealer initially said they could not find a problem & returned the van to me.
the problem persisted for some time (very intermittently)
when the problem presented, the starter battery would also drain because of the additional cranking. I kept the battery health 100% via a 240v smart charger as required (occasionally)

eventually I experienced one instance of rough running after starting. The van ran perfectly after this , no loss of power no warning lights etc.

I reported this to VW dealer, who said to keep an eye on it and bring the van in if it did it again

Shortly after (within a week) The van then failed to start. three or four attempts to crank 10 seconds each time.
VW assist attended and experienced the issue, the van was taken by flat bed to the dealer.

the VW dealer acknowledged the non starting,
they got it running but it was rough running they asked to keep the van to diagnose the problem.

diagnoses :
potential faulty HP fuel pump ? (i Raised this with the master tech when I reported the previous issue)
it’s a known issue the HP fuel pump (Bosch) the internal parts break up dropping minute swarf into the fuel system, eventually blocking injectors etc.

the Master tech had to get a bit of kit from VW:

effectively the equipment is an inline filtration system for the fuel, it traps any swarf in the system, (trapped on a inline filter) whereby it can be visually identified Confirming a HP fuel pump failure.

after the test, there was no swarf identified !

the Master tech asked if he could keep my Van for another day to repeat the test, particularly as he’d seen the rough running after not starting (Naturally I agreed) presumably the fuel filter was doing its job.

after the second test a minute amount of swarf was visually identified in the test kit filter.
The presence of swarf identified the fuel pump was breaking up.

the Bad news is the entire fuel system needs, fuel lines, filter, injectors, HP fuel pump, lift pump etc needed to be changed and the fuel tank needs to be removed from the van and flushed out. (fuel tank needs to be practically empty to enable it to be removed)

The reason the whole fuel system needed changing is that the unused fuel (from the high pressure side / common rail ) is returned to the fuel tank which means that swarf is deposited through the whole fuel system.

I sincerely hope this in not your problem as it is an horrendous cost (mine was under warranty).

I wish you luck in identifying and sorting your problem
Thanks for sharing all that detail - much appreciated.

Definitely got me more worried than a battery or fuel filter replacement!! Haha.

Can I ask which VW dealer / Master tech did the job for you, just in case it eventually comes to this could be useful as a reference?

So far I've never had an instance where the van doesn't start. And we are about to leave the UK in two weeks for a nine month road trip in Europe. I may have little choice but to see how things go...

Appreciate your time sharing the above.
 
Thanks for sharing all that detail - much appreciated.

Definitely got me more worried than a battery or fuel filter replacement!! Haha.

Can I ask which VW dealer / Master tech did the job for you, just in case it eventually comes to this could be useful as a reference?

So far I've never had an instance where the van doesn't start. And we are about to leave the UK in two weeks for a nine month road trip in Europe. I may have little choice but to see how things go...

Appreciate your time sharing the above.
Replacing the fuel filter will do no harm, it can only help & is relatively cheap

suggest that’s your next step.

Avoid fuel additives until you find your issue

good luck with your trip, hope to see lots of positive reports :cheers About Van life
 
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Thanks for sharing all that detail - much appreciated.

Definitely got me more worried than a battery or fuel filter replacement!! Haha.

Can I ask which VW dealer / Master tech did the job for you, just in case it eventually comes to this could be useful as a reference?

So far I've never had an instance where the van doesn't start. And we are about to leave the UK in two weeks for a nine month road trip in Europe. I may have little choice but to see how things go...

Appreciate your time sharing the above.
Sorry to hear of your issues @Robin Brooke. Good feedback from @Perfectos and thumbs up from me for Craig at Citygate (mine is in there on Monday).

Interested in your 9 month road trip. What route are you planning and how will you deal with the 90day limit set by the EU?
 
Sorry to hear of your issues @Robin Brooke. Good feedback from @Perfectos and thumbs up from me for Craig at Citygate (mine is in there on Monday).

Interested in your 9 month road trip. What route are you planning and how will you deal with the 90day limit set by the EU?
Something like this.

Chamonix -> Furka Pass -> Dolomites -> Ancona/Patras/Athens -> Kalymnos -> Datça -> Geyikbayiri -> Athens -> Leonidio -> Athens/Patras/Ancona -> Sardinia -> Chamonix

We are climbers all these are climber destinations also often very close to the sea.

re: 90/180
You can use Turkey/Croatia. My partner and I are both dual nationals (EU one, and NZ other) so we are fortunate to have more flexibility. For NZ bi-lateral agreements help provide more flexibility in schengen.
 
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