Jim 2 Posted August 11, 2008 Normally my car is ok as I drive it basically every day but I find every time I leave it for more than a day it does interesting, unpredictable things. This morning was no exception as i'd not driven it for a few days over the weekend so fired it up this morning and after a second or so cranking the car spluttered into life but running on three cylinders (or at least as lumpy as hell) and with reasonably sized grey / white plume out of the back and for a second or two after starting. After about 20 seconds or so of running lumpy as hell it sort of normalised and was ok again. I popped the bonnet and my expansion tank is still happily sitting on the max line so it's not coolant that it's blasting out so not quite that concerned about it being the head gasket..... I seem to get this sometimes after leaving the car a few days but its normally one extreme or the other - its either lumpy as hell, or sometimes after being left for a fair while (week or so) it starts perfectly on the first turn of the key, far more enthusiastically than it normally does on a standard weekday morning. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
flusted 0 Posted August 11, 2008 sounds like it. think vw state that injectors should be changed after 100k Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
boost monkey 0 Posted August 11, 2008 Do you notice any oil consumption? the smoke could be valve stem seals if it does it on startup although that would be more blueish smoke. Have you checked your hydraulic lifters with the DIY stethoscope? Put a spanner to the rocker cover and the other end to your ear: you will be able to hear the drivetrain whirring, if you do it at a few points along the top you might even hear a duff lifter (should be quite loud I think). Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Yandards 0 Posted August 11, 2008 Normally my car is ok as I drive it basically every day but I find every time I leave it for more than a day it does interesting, unpredictable things. This morning was no exception as i'd not driven it for a few days over the weekend so fired it up this morning and after a second or so cranking the car spluttered into life but running on three cylinders (or at least as lumpy as hell) and with reasonably sized grey / white plume out of the back and for a second or two after starting. After about 20 seconds or so of running lumpy as hell it sort of normalised and was ok again. I popped the bonnet and my expansion tank is still happily sitting on the max line so it's not coolant that it's blasting out so not quite that concerned about it being the head gasket..... I seem to get this sometimes after leaving the car a few days but its normally one extreme or the other - its either lumpy as hell, or sometimes after being left for a fair while (week or so) it starts perfectly on the first turn of the key, far more enthusiastically than it normally does on a standard weekday morning. Its probably a little condensation in the system too, a little bit of moisture on the HT leads will occur naturally as the temperature varies during the day, this will also occur in the exhaust. As for running on 3 cylinders, 2cc's valver does that on a semi-regular basis, not too much to worry about. So the combination of an old set of high mileage injectors and a bit of moisture makes a little overfuelling look like a lot! However, saying all of that if your KR/9A mechanical injectors have done over 100k (as yours have) then a new set would be a good idea. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
was8v 0 Posted August 11, 2008 I had an injector fail open once on my VR6, plumes of white smoke and of course miss firing. It was doing it all the time though, it didn't stop. Replaced it with a spare and its fine. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jim 2 Posted August 11, 2008 Cheers guys. I've got visions of a bit of refresher work on the old valver in the coming months - just picked up a new (well, only done 90k versus my 187k) intake manifold, throttle body, ISV and cold start injector for £25! Want to get the manifold cleaned / sand blasted and would be keen to change the injectors at the same time - my only concern is the state of the threads and the fuel lines from the metering head, especially if I damage one of them as new ones from VW (according to ETKA) are like £150 EACH.... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Supercharged 2 Posted August 11, 2008 Yeah i'd keep an eye on eBay for some brand new injectors mate as yours will be well past there best... My TDI clutch is playing up again so it looks like hire car for us for germany - either a Skoda Superb or Mondeo TDCi me thinks... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Toad 0 Posted August 11, 2008 My valver starts on 3 regularly when it's warm, bit of a pain in the arse now. :( I fitted new injectors a while back, but I think it's probably an HT lead playing up. Try turning the ignition on and off a couple of times to get the pressure up in the metering head and fuel lines, see if that makes a difference... Those fuel lines shouldn't be too bad. soak themin plus gas etc for a few days before chaning them. Mine came undone fairly easily. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Yandards 0 Posted August 11, 2008 Yeah i'd keep an eye on eBay for some brand new injectors mate as yours will be well past there best... My TDI clutch is playing up again so it looks like hire car for us for germany - either a Skoda Superb or Mondeo TDCi me thinks... :camp: Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bcstudent 0 Posted August 11, 2008 My valver starts on 3 regularly when it's warm, bit of a pain in the arse now. :( I fitted new injectors a while back, but I think it's probably an HT lead playing up. Try turning the ignition on and off a couple of times to get the pressure up in the metering head and fuel lines, see if that makes a difference... Those fuel lines shouldn't be too bad. soak themin plus gas etc for a few days before chaning them. Mine came undone fairly easily. My 1.8 16v used to do that. The only way to start it if it was warm (not hot) was by turning it over with the throttle floored. When it fired it'd run on three for a few seconds, before clearing its throat and being fine from there on. If you tried to start it when warm with no throttle it'd start and then immediately die. After that it would be a right git to start again. Fitting new injectors (and o-ring seals) solved the starting issue completely. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bcstudent 0 Posted August 11, 2008 my only concern is the state of the threads and the fuel lines from the metering head, especially if I damage one of them as new ones from VW (according to ETKA) are like £150 EACH.... The banjo bolts have a pretty coarse thread IIRC; I hightly doubt you'll damage any. In fact, I'd be less than surprised if you find it all comes apart with no fuss...regardless of how bad it may look. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
