Cold Starts and Engine Noise

7 degrees F this morning. Car started fine but the oil light and alarm came on briefly after startup. Is this normal? Also, the engine seemed more noisy than usual, sort of like valve tapping for about one minute. Is this due to the cold? I am using Delvac-1.

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99 NB TDI

Yup.

When it is really cold like that, especially when it has been sitting for a day or more, then there is extra noise from the valve train. Not much you can do but never hit the accelerator pedal. You have good oil, that is about all in your power to do.

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Always interested in steep & deep

Well, you could get an oil pan or engine block heater to keep your engine and oil warm on cold nights. Do a search on the topic or try http://www.engineheaters.com/

Thanks for the replies... So the engine oil light and alarm is not an issue when cold? I don't mean to be a pest on this but, there is no one at my dealer to ask these questions of.

Unfortunately a block heater is out of the question for me. Can not get close enough to a receptacle and do not have a garage.

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99 NB TDI

Using a lighter weight oil in very,very cold weather can help a bit

I'm a bit concerned by your description. Synthetic Delvac 1 should flow just fine at 7 degrees. You should experience no more than a few seconds of valve ticking, and I can't see any reason why the oil warning should come on. I also have a '99 NB, and I've started in temperatures as low as 10 degrees. No light, and the valve ticking disappeared just as quickly as it does during the summer. It's possible you could have an oil pressure problem. Listen to it again tomorrow morning, very carefully. Make sure you're not confusing "valve ticking" with the normal cold weather clattering of the diesel. The valve noise is pretty subtle. As soon as the lifters fill with oil, it should stop. That shouldn't take longer than a few seconds.

This is a long shot, but do you do a lot of very short trip, stop-and-go city driving? If you put VERY few miles on your car it's possible your oil has become fouled with water condensation and there's a lot of sludge in there that's plugging things up. You'd have to be a pretty extreme case to ruin Delvac 1, though. Check your oil. Make sure the level is correct, and make sure there's no gray/white "milky" looking goo on the dipstick. Also, double-check your coolant level. If that's gone down, it's possible that you have an internal coolant leak that's fouling your oil. Again, these are long shots. I think it's most likely that you're misinterpreting what you're hearing, and that you've got a weak oil pressure sender.

-mickey

It was 2 deg F. inside the garage this am and -8 outside. The car started up great!

The diesel engine will make noise until it is completely warmed up. Just like it gets quieter the longer you own it (providing you put the right oil in and take care of it).

I routinely experience a louder engine noise until it is completely warmed up, nothing to worry about. In a garage your engine might not get to the 2 degrees ambient temp in only left for the night.

One thing to pay very close attention to is the RPMs. DONOT rev beyond 2500 until the temp needle has started to creap up. The glow plugs will keep working and will warm up the car faster if the RPMs are kept below 2.5k. It makes a huge difference.

Just got back from NY.. had my first TDI COLD weather experience... One day it was just below 0, with a -15F windchill! Glow plugs stayed on for about 45-50 seconds! Longest I've ever seen! Repeated cycle twice. Cranked engine. Started right up with a small stumble and a good puff of smoke. I was happy and impressed. Man, this thing sounds like a cummins dodge pickup when its cold! People were actually staring at me when I accelerated. No mistaking this thing for a gasser when its THAT cold hehe!

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Ryan

1999.5 Jetta/Bora GL TDI
Atlantic Blue/Gray Studio

Mickey's comment about synthetic oil getting gooey if run so little that it doesn't heat up well is accurate.

A friend of mine had this happen in his BMW when he was running Mobil 1. He had the car towed to the dealer, thinking he had blown a head gasket. Not so. Mobil's comment was to make sure he drives the car enough at least weekly in the cold weather to really heat up the oil. This will evaporate the moisture out of the oil and the goo will be gone.

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Dezl Don

Mickey,
I have heard the valve ticking again.
Monday, 7 degrees, oil light comes on with valve ticking.
Tuesday, 5 degrees, no oil light, valve ticking for about 45 seconds.
Wednesday, 15 degrees, oil light comes on, valve ticking for about 30 seconds.

I drive 17 miles (each way) to work. I do on occasion make short trips (under 5 miles) and turn the car off. At least once per week though i will run it for at least an hour or so at highway speed.

Just so you know, the dealer overfilled my car at the 5000 mile service. The oil level was 1/2" above the top line (crosshatched area) on the dipstick. The excess oil has been drained but the car was operated for 1200 miles when overfilled. Could this be the reason for my oil pressure problems?

I really appreciate your help on this, there is no one in my area (including the dealer) who seems knowledgeable on this engine.

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99 NB TDI

I didn't know that about the coolant glow plugs. Was that info in the manual? I don't remember reading it, but I might have just missed it.

Karl,
I have been using the PowerService (from Wal*Mart)supplement for the past few tanks and have not experienced any starting or driving problems. I add 4 ounces (think that is the correct ratio) to approximately 12 gallons of fuel. I have been using Coastal diesel fuel from a local dealer who seems to sell quite a bit of it. He told me it is a 50/50 blend?

I seem to be having some oil pressure problems. Have you seen your oil light come on just after start up?

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99 NB TDI

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by mickey:
This is a long shot, but do you do a lot of very short trip, stop-and-go city driving? If you put VERY few miles on your car it's possible your oil has become fouled with water condensation and there's a lot of sludge in there that's plugging things up.

-mickey<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Well now i'm slightly scared.... i do extremely short trips to school right now (1 or 2 minutes of driving) repetitively....
the weather is around 15 degrees, give or take 10. Am I in for trouble? I still have factory oil and 1500 miles so far.

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Please excuse lack of knowledge... it goes along with lack of experience...
1st car: 2000 Golf GL TDI /w Auto

When it gets down to -8 deg F, weird things happen I guess. My oil light has never gone on. Don't you love the instrumentation in the NB's. I think it might be interesting to monitor the fuel temp, which is an accessible parameter of the ecu.

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Yellow 2000 Beetle

Beet: Have YOU actually checked your oil lately, like today, just to verify that there is indeed enough oil in there? I had an old VW whose light would come on when going around corners. That's how I would know that it was time to add oil. I'm better than that now.

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Yellow 2000 Beetle

FYI:

Mobil's 5W-40 Delvac 1 does NOT have the greatest flow properties for cold weather.

Delvac 1 is NOT REALLY A 5W - IT IS ACTUALLY MORE LIKE A 10W OIL!

In fact, Delvac 1's heavier properties are much like Amsoil's CH-4 rated 10W-40 (ask TooSlick!).

Amsoil's 5W-30 flows much faster during cold temperatures and offers better protection!

Period! (I have used and tried both!)

If you want to stay with Delvac 1 for cold temperatures, I would recommend an engine block heater.

See: http://forums.tdiclub.com/NonCGI/Forum3/HTML/001489.html

Regarding oil pan and engine block heaters, VW does NOT allow any U.S. dealers to order them - only Canadian dealers.

Maybe that's why U.S. VW dealers act so dumb when you ask them about the part!

Sadly, you will have to special order one from a Candian dealer.

All you have to do is contact the VW dealer that I ordered two heaters for my 2000 TDI's (VW Part #ZVP 289 107) and ask for Joe Angerstein.

Southgate Volkswagen Audi Inc, Canada
*Telephone: (780)435-4821
*VW Part #ZVP 289 107

E-mail: sgvw@comcept.ab.ca

Price: $110.00 U.S. Dollars, plus taxes and freight.

Good Luck!

And . It's going to get even colder!


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sjporter2@juno.com

2000 Jetta GLS Loaded 5-speed: Silver / Gray

As an afterthought, some TDI'ers will even add a quart of Marvel Mystery Oil to their crankcase to help lubrication flow during cold temperatures.

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sjporter2@juno.com

2000 Jetta GLS Loaded 5-speed: Silver / Gray

Karl,
I physically checked the oil level on Monday and it was at the line just above the crosshatched area. As mentioned earlier the dealer overfilled my car at the 5000 mile service. When it was originally changed in late November I provided the 5 quarts of Delvac-1. According to the technician he put in all 5 quarts. Now it gets confusing...the Bentley manual says 4.5 quarts and the VW manual says 4.7 quarts, so either I was overfilled by .3 or .5 quarts or the technician did not fully drain the old stuff and I was severely overfilled. Now that the level is correct according to the dipstick I am beginning to wonder if the dipstick is correct. I will measure it up to the full line and post the dimension tonight.

Thanks,

Rich

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99 NB TDI