cold start issue

need someone to point me in the right direction of places where to start. 98 jetta tdi. its been getting down around in the 30's on average here in maryland. i know other years it was easier to start than now...

it just pours white smoke on when trying to start (takes about 15 times crankin it over to get it to fire.

put in glo plugs over new years to see if it might help a little, waste of 60 bucks. tho they were stock gp's, all looked normal except the number 4 which was coverd in oil.

so what yall think, something to do with egr, turbo seal issue? (which im sure are totally blown out after 230,000 miles), or who thinks cyl 4 rings no good??? fuel leakdown?? dont know much about these injection pumps...is there any hope for this beater lol

in addition to the 4 new plugs, i tested out the harness and its tests good for all 4 female ends 12v....im starting to think maybe fuel/oil pressure issue..

Check your timing.

Birdman said:

Check your timing.

Click to expand...

And compression, especially on the cylinder that had the dirty gp.

timing is retarded, should i start over with a new belt or do ip adjustments to get my timing back where i need it...

How many years/miles on the belt? How does belt look? Normal for timing to drift slightly downwards as belt wears in. But a big change in timing may mean something bad is going on.

Also on a 98, crank pulley can works loose and that will screw up timing. Check crank bolt.

the belt was done when it was my fathers car about 3 years ago, he took the job on but had to seek my neighbors help (whom i work for at the moment) to complete. of course you can assume they used the mark and pray method because i know they didnt have proper lock down tools. however the car ran just fine but in the cold as the years past its almost impossible to start and the greyish diesel smelling smoke leads me to believe its retarded. so either the belt stretched and the timing drifted or maybe the two fools didnt get a new crank bolt (i read and seen its a one time use bolt is this true?) and the crank sprocket loosened letting the timing shift. i guess ill tear off the cover and check it out, if they didnt use a new bolt does that mean the crank sprocket could need replaced due to wear?

btw im still looking for someone with vag-com to help check timing. the most i could find on my mac mentor was timing angle and its was 1.1-1.3 BTDC and dropped down into .7-.9 BTDC

Please read over the TB replacement under articles several times to get familar with the procedure before attempting it and buy/rent the needed tools and a complete TB kit of known quality (no xbay junk, etc).

I'm not sure about the '98 TDI, but the guys probably never touched the crank sprocket bolt to do the TB if it's anything like the ALH types. But, they were known to have have a few get loose, so it warrants checking.

im going to buy the cam lock and pump pin then check the timing. any recommended site to purchase? i was looking on metalnerd 50 bucks just for those two tools

When you turn the key to start when the car's cold how long does the glow plug light stay on? If it's on and then goes off almost immediately you could have a faulty glow plug relay or temperature sensor. You might try unplugging the temp sensor to see if it starts better. If it doesn't it may be the gp relay. Of course retarded timing doesn't help, but if it started OK when it was warm out I'd look to something in the glow plug system.

it only stays on a secong or two, however the past summer it started with a plume of white smoke just not having to do long cranking. ill update everyone when the tools arrive hopefully soon.

So, as is the case many times, you may have more than one thing going on. Retarded timing causing hard starting all year, but made worse when it gets cold because your glow plugs aren't working.

I agree: fix the timing first. But don't stop looking.

As above, find someone with VCDS to check your timing.

Also, just because you have 12v at the harness ends doens't mean it's getting to the GPs.

To start the car in the interim, unplug the coolant temperature sensor located in the plastic flange/rad hose connector and turn on the key for 15 seconds - the GP light should stay lit, as the unplugged sensor should fool the car into thinking that it's much colder than it is.

If the car starts easier, it's again an indication that your timing is off - check your pump timing with VCDS and check that crank pulley bolt and replace it and the psorcket if needed.

FWIW, I made my cam lock for $2 worth of steel, and use an 11mm socket for the pump lock. There are other ways to skin a cat.

locks in...one tooth retarded

Will one tooth cause the long cranking rough starts?

going to do the reset tomorrow, supposed to be mid 60's

That doesn't tell you much because all the TDC mark and cam/IP locks do besides get the cam/crank timing perfect (which yours isn't) and get the injection timing within the "starting window". The injection timing then gets checked w/VCDS and often needs adjusting at the IP by loosening the pump sprocket bolts and turning the pump shaft.
Depending on where the IP sprocket was set, you don't know where the timing is/was. If I didn't know where injection timing was at, I would always check it before starting the belt replacement.
That just leads me to think the cam/crank timing was off a bit, which isn't a good thing if it gets very far off.

Mid 60's? Wow! Probably not get out of single digits here tomorrow.

yalll make my hope dwindle sometimes

ahu the pump itself is rotated. 3 bolts you can access through the pulley holes and one on the backside of the pump. Rotate towards the head to advance the pump.

you could pull the glow plugs and leave them connected to the harness to see how well they glow when you energize the GP circuit. Should turn bright red pretty quickly (5 sec).

temps in the 30s the car isn't commanding the GPs for very long, so I think it is more of a timing issue.

I have vagcom, but hatfield is about 1.5 hrs from the MD line.

Sorry, yes the pump, not sprocket rotates to set injection timing for that engine.
Always seem to think everyone has an ALH like I do and only tend to think that route.
You are getting it sorted out. It will be starting better soon.

crank sprocket gear was worn, ordered new one today..bolt didnt seem "loose" but wasn't very tight upon breaking loose.

what should his pump timing be set at? I have 97 golf td and am having similar problems. My pump was set at .85......should it be advanced more?

He has a TDI.. the numbers don't compare to your IDI.

I posted the correct IDI numbers in your other thread.