Car takes several cranks before it starts

Fellows:
Hate to inform that the hard start problem came back; after replacing the lift pump and the filter , it worked fine for a week, now it started with the hard start problems again; in the morning and after letting the car parked for 4 or more hours, it's a 2004 Jetta TDI, 95K, runs with Diesel 2 only, oil changed every 7k with Castrol purchased at the VW dealer.
Any other thoughts on where the problem might be??
Thanks, VF60

If the battery is original, I would have it load tested. Maybe a little air getting in the fuel system.

Does it still have the original timing belt?

Joe_Meehan said:

If the battery is original, I would have it load tested. Maybe a little air getting in the fuel system.

Does it still have the original timing belt?

Click to expand...

Well put Joe, would have been my first 2 guesses as well

Fellows:
The battery is brand new, 2 months old, the timing belt job is scheduled to be done soon; after the car starts it will start again with no problems, unless of course if let to stand for some hours then it takes a lot of cranks until it finally starts. I checked the thermic T for cracks and it's fine. The filter is one month old.
Thanks

Last week it worked just fine. The battery cranks and cranks the starter, so the battery is not logical guess. Worn out batteries don't crank. The "timing" most likely is in the ball park because the car works once it starts.

My experience with hard starts (with my 2000) has been the air bubbles. After tracking the fuel lines around the car and found only frustration, I finally found the air leak that has become a drip. No wonder I was smelling diesel and had a puddle under the engine. silly me thought it was A/C condensation mixed with the chems from the parking lot. Mine was in the return line to the "T" coming from the IP where the black line and hose are crimped together.

If you don't have a mity vacumm bleeder set, buy or borrow one and see if you can pull the air out of the return side. I have sucked the air out of the line from the IP and the injectors. Bang, now there is fuel to burn going into the cylinders. rattle bang bang

I would put a clear line on the return off into a bucket, then key on (don't start it) and then off after it's been sitting a while, just to see if it's got air in the lines. it should start the in tank lift pump for a couple of seconds and you should see some fuel in the clear line, if not, it shouldn't take more than 3 key cycles to see the fuel coming out.

Any codes in the ECU?

There are no codes. I'll check under the car for diesel leaks, I haven't seen one; will also check under the car just in case there is one that spreads on the underside.
Another fact: I hit a dear last year and it ran under the car destroying the front bumper and the plastic cover under the car plus the power steering hoses. The problem started after that accident, but not immediately, some months after. The car was fixed perfectely by the insurance co.
Thanks for the tips

Methinks that you have a cracked fuel line. They run under the car and could have been damaged when you ran over the deer.

If you can find one, I suggest replacing the tandem pump gasket. These leaked on some of the PDs, and sometimes just leaked air in, so you never knew it was leaking. One symptom was prolong cranking. TDIparts.com used to have the gasket. At some point, the gasket design was greatly improved. My early '04 has the old style, and I have been fortunate, no issues so far.

There was also a tandem pump recall on SOME of the '04s and '05s. It was by VIN. Before you replace the tandem pump gasket, find out if you ever had the tandem pump replaced (the dealer can look it up) and if not, see if the car qualifies. It was roughly from mid-year '04 through mid year '05 models. Mine VIN was under (outside) the range, so my car never got a replacement tandem pump.

--Nate

Nate and others, thanks for the hints; I'll look at the lines and I'll check with the dealer for the recall possibility; I took the car to the dealer early this month for the glow plug recall, but they didn't tell me anything about the tanden pump recall, and I specifically told the attendant to make sure all recalls were taken care of.
Thanks again.