Citroen C3 Diesel - Black smoke

Bongedone

Hi,

I am no expert with cars.


I have a Citroen 2002 C3 1.4HDi.

What 1st starting the car in the morning a cloud of black smoke comes from the exhaust. This only happens on the 1st start of the day and only lasts seconds (e.g. Only when the engine 1st turns)

Is this normal?

Other than that the car is fine.

AdrianHi

It is fairly normal for a diesel.
If you put your foot down you'll probably see a puff of dark smoke produced too.
If you get black smoke all the time the car is overfueling and there is a problem.
Take the car for a long fast run and it should clear things out a bit.
You can reduce smoking by using a premium diesel fuel like BP Ultimate Diesel, Shell V-Power diesel. So long as you don't pay more than 5% extra for it it is cost neutral as you will usually see better MPG with these fuels after a couple of tank fulls.
You could also try adding your own additive like Millers Diesel Sport 4 for similar results at less cost.

Bongedone

Thanks for the info

goldspanners

does the engine turn over for a bit before it actually fires up?
as said above, it isnt much to worry about if it only does it on 1st start of the day.

Bongedone

It starts straight away.

goldspanners

i wouldnt worry about it then, if it turned over a fair bit before firing up it could have been early signs of injector or heater plug failure.

hewhoisnotintheknow

do you do lots of short journeys?

about once a week ( i do around 1000 - 1200 a week in my hdi) i drive along for a bit in a lower gear to sort of flush the system out, feels a bit more responsive after that

Never had any problems with the hdi engine

Bongedone

I do 11 miles to work then 11 back. I also use it for work. Quite a few 7 mile and 3 mile journeys visiting homes.

I do eco drive the car though. Hardly ever accelerating at full throttle and try to keep revs under 2000 except when I am going fast enough for it to go over.

AdrianHi

Half to 3/4 throttle and rev it to 4000 rpm+ every few days should also help keep the muck build up down, reduce smoke and it's not going to make a measurable difference to long term average MPG.

Petree

Silly question? Are you waiting for the glowplugs to heat up? When you switch the ignition to one before starter, there should be a little light (usually a little coil picture) which in cold takes up to 10 seconds, in warm only 1-2. It makes the cylinders really hot, but if you flick to starting too quickly they won't have chance.

hewhoisnotintheknow

Petree wrote: »

Silly question? Are you waiting for the glowplugs to heat up? When you switch the ignition to one before starter, there should be a little light (usually a little coil picture) which in cold takes up to 10 seconds, in warm only 1-2. It makes the cylinders really hot, but if you flick to starting too quickly they won't have chance.

i only see mine if its really cold