colind3782
Well-Known Member
My Sole Mini 34 needs up to a minute of preheat in the winter before starting. Not unusual according to the manual.
Starting a diesel
- Thread starter vic008
- Start date
PCUK
Well-Known Member
Because they snapped off due to corrosion (as is normally the case!)
cpedw
Well-Known Member
That's a misapprehension. The compression heat is dissipated immediately on the expansion stroke if the fuel doesn't burn. Having said that, I used to own a 2003 that needed a lot of turning over on an early season cold morning. It was probably accumulating fuel in the cylinders, increasing the compression ratio. Or there may have been partial combustion slowly warming it up.
dave_gibsea
Well-Known Member
I always turn the engine over a few times with the decompressor to prime it, then leave the engine just over TDC before starting. If you have a single cylinder then its worth leaving at TDC when you pack up as then both he inlet and exhaust valves are closed and the starter gets a full cycle to build momentum... ask anyone who has owned a big single motorcycle with kick start!
vic008
Well-Known Member
Thats an answer I was after. You reckon the heat inside isn't building up then eh?
vic008
Well-Known Member
Thermostart sounds interesting. Any recommendation for a VP2003?
PCUK
Well-Known Member
They are a standard item. If you have a metal air filter then it should be possible to install there. You will also need a fuel feed from your engine filter and of course 12 colts thrpugh a switch to operate it.
stu9000
Well-Known Member
This is my experience as well. VP2003. If the engine has not been turned over for a month it takes maybe 10 to 15 chugs (technical term) to start. If she feels like she wont go I stop, pull out the stop lever a couple of times for choke and have another go. She starts in the end and starts much quicker when she has been used so I am not taking her to bits (yet)
stu9000
Well-Known Member
I am intrigued.
Is this the part?
Amazon.com: Mover Part Thermostart Heater Plug AR63103 for John Deere 820 920 830 930 1030 1130 1630+: Automotive
In needs fuel as well as 12 volts does it? Sounds like a mini blow torch!
alan_d
Well-Known Member
I don't know if the VP2003 has a decompressor or not. Diesels with a decompressor will often turn over quickly with the decompressor opened and start when you drop it suddenly.
peter gibbs
Well-Known Member
In warmish weather diesel starting should be a doddle. If not, try a short spray of fine oil into the air intake - helps the valves to seal against their seatings. Failing that a shot of starter fluid. Long cranking episodes are wasteful and can crock the battery. When in trouble like this, turn off the seawater intake to save flooding the engine and make sure you turn back on immediately it fires.
PWG
Iliade
Well-Known Member
Using the official excess fuel procedure my VP2003 would start very quickly without decompressing and with a very flat battery if decompressed.
Something is amiss with yours (Vic) It is just whether you can bring yourself to face the potential of VP parts prices... Having been there, I consider poor engine starting to be a real safety issue. One day it will either be too slow or simply fail altogether and you'll be embarrassed at the very least. Worst case you could keep a can of easy start by the motor, but the solution may be much less drastic:
A diesel needs very little to start: Atomised fuel, a free flow of air (in and out) and adequate compression for the ambient temperature. A reasonable condition VP will start pretty quickly even when temperatures are below freezing.
A compression check is not that onerous and will diagnose bore and valve issues
A visual check of injector spray patterns shouldn't be expensive (If doing this yourself, on the motor, don't bend your pipework to do this and don't get in the way of the spray)
It is unlikely that the pump is worn out unless the engine has been really mistreated or has hours measured in deep time. - If it isn't starting at all, there is a little spring inside the pump case which sometimes falls off when the cable is disconnected. It is easy to re-hang.
Something is amiss with yours (Vic) It is just whether you can bring yourself to face the potential of VP parts prices... Having been there, I consider poor engine starting to be a real safety issue. One day it will either be too slow or simply fail altogether and you'll be embarrassed at the very least. Worst case you could keep a can of easy start by the motor, but the solution may be much less drastic:
A diesel needs very little to start: Atomised fuel, a free flow of air (in and out) and adequate compression for the ambient temperature. A reasonable condition VP will start pretty quickly even when temperatures are below freezing.
A compression check is not that onerous and will diagnose bore and valve issues
A visual check of injector spray patterns shouldn't be expensive (If doing this yourself, on the motor, don't bend your pipework to do this and don't get in the way of the spray)
It is unlikely that the pump is worn out unless the engine has been really mistreated or has hours measured in deep time. - If it isn't starting at all, there is a little spring inside the pump case which sometimes falls off when the cable is disconnected. It is easy to re-hang.
CAPTAIN FANTASTIC
Well-Known Member
Spray a little bit of "Easy Start" in the intake; it will start instantly.
Refueler
Well-Known Member
So many people repeat the old wives tale of diesel engines becoming dependent on Ether (Easy Start) ... what a load of cobblers !!
Yes - I agree its an aggressive 'fuel' to start an engine - BUT that's WHY it works !!
Tractors ... trucks ... loads of boat engines ... generators ... over many years I've had to resort to Easy Start ... it has never done any harm ... all of them have survived without developing a need for it ...
An old trick if you didn't like Ether - was to use WD40 ... but that no longer works.
PCUK
Well-Known Member
Yes, that's it, basically a mini blow torch without the fierceness of the torch flame.. Fitted as standard on older Perkins, Bedford and others I can't remember!
Refueler
Well-Known Member
The unit has a glow element fed by 12v to the tab and a 'drip' feed of diesel through the centre connection. I have a short length of stiff fuel tube that stands vertically - that I top up ... but the fuel drip has no secure off ... so it drips in continuously.
The original set-up on my boat was a small 100ml 'gravity tank' with stop cock .... and that gave me literally a seasons use.
Turn on drip feed ... press button for about 10secs ... POP .. wisp of white smoke from air filer - hit start button.
Poignard
Well-Known Member
peteK
Well-Known Member
That thermostart thing was fitted in an early eberspacher I had in a boat.
rotrax
Well-Known Member
Quite right!
I had a Fiat Scudo 1.9 diesel with sheared off heater plugs, very poor starting when wintertime.
I drilled a 6mm hole into the plastic air filter housing. This allowed me to give a quick squirt of Easystart into the intake.
It then lit up instantly.
And only needed it first thing in the morning. It would be fine for the rest of the day.
I sold it, explained to the purchaser the purpose of the little hole, who thought it was a bloody good idea.
I bought it cheap because of the fault, sold it cheap ditto.
I often see it around locally, six years later, still going.
We had a 2003 with poor starting from cold. The bit inside that operated the cold start was US, so pulling out the stop cable and pushing back in did not operate it.
A one second squirt of starting fluid fixed that too.
The Volvo 2003 does need a big throttle opening for starting, about two thirds in my engines case.
Without that, even with starting fluid, it was reluctant to light up.
rotrax
Well-Known Member
Got a can of that on our Kiwi boat.
I just had to buy one, even though it is not required.