Citroen saxo 1998 1.5D wont start ? pls advise

alykhalil

just tried starting the car...right ! it did not start, i have to keep on at the ignition once or twice and then it started...probably engine cold...what could it be now ?

Dave_G_5

Did you say the glow plugs have been changed or not? Try this, turn the ignition on and wait for the glow plug light to go out, then turn the ignition back off and on again and wait for the light to go out again before trying to start the car. If it now starts then there is a good chance that it needs new glow plugs.

Another thing that might be worth checking, I think the relay for the glow plugs is behind the passenger side head lamp and sometimes corrodes from water ingress, might be worth checking that all the contacts are nice and clean.

If the starting problems are only when the engine is cold then it is probably related to the glow plugs or the circuit feeding them.

alykhalil

Dave_G wrote:

Did you say the glow plugs have been changed or not? Try this, turn the ignition on and wait for the glow plug light to go out, then turn the ignition back off and on again and wait for the light to go out again before trying to start the car. If it now starts then there is a good chance that it needs new glow plugs.

Another thing that might be worth checking, I think the relay for the glow plugs is behind the passenger side head lamp and sometimes corrodes from water ingress, might be worth checking that all the contacts are nice and clean.

If the starting problems are only when the engine is cold then it is probably related to the glow plugs or the circuit feeding them.

yes i have changed the glow plugs, put in brand new ones...the worst part is i dont have a gadget to check if the power to the glow plugs is reaching...i also used WD40 on the glow plug connections to release the corrosion.

this morning i removed the glow plugs and checked it with a rechargable battery and they work, their tips glow red when connected means they work..not sure about the power reaching them or not...
i will check the relay as you mentioned. and the connections. thank you much.

alykhalil

Dave_G wrote:

Did you say the glow plugs have been changed or not? Try this, turn the ignition on and wait for the glow plug light to go out, then turn the ignition back off and on again and wait for the light to go out again before trying to start the car. If it now starts then there is a good chance that it needs new glow plugs.

Another thing that might be worth checking, I think the relay for the glow plugs is behind the passenger side head lamp and sometimes corrodes from water ingress, might be worth checking that all the contacts are nice and clean.

If the starting problems are only when the engine is cold then it is probably related to the glow plugs or the circuit feeding them.

by relay behind the passenger side head lamp do you mean the black box which has a coupel of fuses ? yes there is one..but i dont know which fuse is for the glow plugs...would you know...thks

Dave_G_5

Sorry I was going off memory but I'm sure there is something behind the headlight that gets water in and corrodes and can prevent the glow plugs from operating correctly.

Could you not just remove a glow plug, but leave the electrical connection attached to it and make sure the body (ie the bit that normall screws into the engine) is still earthed, then turn on the ignition and see if it glows hot?

alykhalil

Dave_G wrote:

Sorry I was going off memory but I'm sure there is something behind the headlight that gets water in and corrodes and can prevent the glow plugs from operating correctly.

Could you not just remove a glow plug, but leave the electrical connection attached to it and make sure the body (ie the bit that normall screws into the engine) is still earthed, then turn on the ignition and see if it glows hot?

yeah i could try that...thats right...but you sure there wont be an explosions...LOL..right...lol...:)

alykhalil

Dave_G wrote:

Sorry I was going off memory but I'm sure there is something behind the headlight that gets water in and corrodes and can prevent the glow plugs from operating correctly.

Could you not just remove a glow plug, but leave the electrical connection attached to it and make sure the body (ie the bit that normall screws into the engine) is still earthed, then turn on the ignition and see if it glows hot?

i know what you are saying , but i didnt get this part you said ..." make sure the body (ie the bit that normall screws into the engine) is still earthed "...earthed to what ?....the top bit of the glow plug is silver in colour and the bottom is thin black metal...do i touch the silver or the black metal long bit to something to earth it or what ?...pls advise..i am sure i am getting there....

Dave_G_5

The part that has the electrical connection to it gets supplied with 12v and the return path (earth) is normally through the engine block because this is connected to earth. So just make sure that the threads that screw into the block are connected to earth or are touching the engine block.

You shouldn't blow anything up, if it doesn't have an earth path then it won't heat up.

alykhalil

Dave_G wrote:

The part that has the electrical connection to it gets supplied with 12v and the return path (earth) is normally through the engine block because this is connected to earth. So just make sure that the threads that screw into the block are connected to earth or are touching the engine block.

You shouldn't blow anything up, if it doesn't have an earth path then it won't heat up.

i think i understand now..i will tell you..is this the right way i will be doing...i will take 1 nut off of 1 of the 3 to 4 glow plugs...i will unscrew that 1 glow plug and put the electric connection back on and the nut on top...so now i have just a glow plug, unscrewed from the engine but the electric connection is there...right ? then i will touch the screw part (which screws into engine) of that taken out glow plug to the engine...i mean just touch it to the engine...right ? pls let me know if i am right in all this...thank you ever so much...

Dave_G_5

Yes thats right. Either let it touch the engine or run a cable directly from there to the battery earth, then turn on the ignition and see if it glows. If you have a multimeter you could just remove the electrical connection, then see if you get 12v between the cable and earth when the ignition is switched on.