Octavia 2 1.9PD BXE

 

When parked facing uphill for a couple of days. Engine takes a lot of cranking to get started or starts briefly then dies then starts again after lots of cranking. Battery is new and engine seems to be cranking vigorously.

 

Presumably a fuel supply problem / air leak.

 

Definitely no diesel leaking out but I understand air could still be getting into the system.

 

This problem does not occur every time.

 

Tried putting front up on ramps last night to get a serious angle, this did not bring on problem but it was only overnight.

 

Any thoughts?

Have you noticed any pattern regarding fuel tank level? There is a flap on the bottom of the lift pump assembly that can cause the level to drop inside the reservoir if it fails or gets some dirt on the seat. This would cause air ingress if the level in the tank was low

 

I would also check all the fuel lines are seated properly, paying particular attention to the rubber hoses on the tandem pump and the connections to the steel fuel line on the front of the engine. A quick twist on the rubber hoses will give you a quick indication of how well they are on if you haven't get room to pull on them.

Edited 7 November, 20169 yr by SuperbTWM

I seem to remember that its often to do with a missing or damaged o ring on the fuel filter connections (the t piece bit on the return line)

Injector seals have failed

Water in the fuel filter, when did you have it changed last?

i had a leon fr tdi with the exact same problem, it only occured when parking uphill like yours or when left for a long time.

i messed about for ages changing this that and the other.

as i said it turned out to be injector seals that had failed and the car was losing pressure,more so when facing uphill as the fuel ran back to the tank.

my advice is take it to a diesel specialist as i wasted a lot of time and money guessing the issue.

 

the reason it dies then needs cranking is to build up the pressure again.

The same fault happened on my Renault Scenic, the cause was a pin hole in one of the fuel pipes.  It had worn as it rubbed on the washer bottle.  It was a very small hole which produced a fine mist of fuel when under pressure but enough for air to get in when the engine wasn't running (such a fine mist it took a long time to find it).  It also only seemed to affect it when parked facing up hill but I could get it started first time if I pumped the priming bulb before starting.  Obviously a new pipe fixed that particular problem on that car.

Edited 7 November, 20169 yr by andy-fisher