Hard starting in cold

[rockyrunner99]

I have a 99.5 golf. It has 298,000 miles on it now. I bought it with 212,000 on it. This winter, it has really been starting hard, anything under 30 degrees it takes about 4 seconds of rolling over to start. The glow plugs are fine, we cycle the glow plugs twice before starting it. I am worried it has lost compression. I did go over on the last 2 oil changes cause I have been busy, I know how bad that is and I may be paying for it now. It has a new Air cleaner, that helped some, I cleaned the snow screen the best I could with it on the car. The battery is 2 years old, and it seems to roll over fast enough. It does have a little smoke on start up. but goes away within seconds. It does not use much oil at all 1 qt in 10,000 miles, and I use shell rottella T6 all ways have.

What other issues can I check? I have checked compression on a gas engine, what is different about doing it on a diesel? If it is low on compression, any guesses on the life expectancy? I am not sure the car is worth an engine rebuild. Thanks

 

[Doug Huffman]

I did go over on the last 2 oil changes cause I have been busy, I know how bad that is and I may be paying for it now.

How bad is that, going over (miles?) on service interval? There have been discussions here suggesting that VWAG considered a 30K mile interval but didn't trust the owners.

 

[sisyphus]

Could be your starter is getting worn out. The + battery cable tends to get corroded after awhile, too.
Lots of things can contribute to slow starting in cold temps.

 

[AndyBees]

Going over on the oil changes hasn't hurt your engine at all nor affects it's starting .... throw that one in the trash can!

A totally 100% blocked snow screen will not keep the engine from starting ...... the water drain holes in the bottom of the air filter box will allow enough air to enter to sustain starting and idling ......... throw that one in the trash can.

A little smoke on start-up is very typical of a diesel engine, especially if it is cold out. However, non-functioning or limited functioning GPs could contribute to smoke on a cold day at start-up!

There's a possibility that the GPs are not cycling due to a bad Engine Temperature Sensor (ETS). If you know where the ETS is located, unplug and see if the engine starts better. Unplugged, the system will default to 40 degrees below zero, thus the GPs will definitely cycle assuming all the other circuits pertaining to them are functioning properly.

Using/losing a quart of oil in 10,000 miles with the miles on your engine is just fine and typical.

Check the ASV (Anti-Shudder Valve) [thingy on the EGR assembly]. It could be hanging shut cutting off air to the engine ....... if it hangs for very long during the starting process, there should be lots of white raw diesel smelling smoke!

Is the Check Engine Light on?

 

[KLXD]

How is the timing? Late timing will affect starting.

 

[rockyrunner99]

Thanks for the suggestions, I have a lot to check out this weekend. I will let you know what I find out. You have made me feel a lot better, I thought I had killed the engine!

 

[Richy_T]

My wife's TDI beetle had a problem starting in the cold (< 20ish). Turned out to be the o-ring on the t-piece on the fuel filter was letting air in when cold. Took the t-piece off of a good filter and all was good after that.

I can't remember how I diagnosed it now I think back.

 

[Richy_T]

How bad is that, going over (miles?) on service interval? There have been discussions here suggesting that VWAG considered a 30K mile interval but didn't trust the owners.

Yeah, in my experience, they would at least want a 10k change because the car eats enough oil that at around 12k the pump could be sucking air.

 

[rockyrunner99]

one more thing I forgot to mention. The Mileage has dropped a little. I can't get my wife to check it regularly, but I have filled it up lately and have been getting 43-45, it is a 5 speed. The average trip with it is down to about 20 miles from 40 miles and with it being cold out I know that will drop the mileage, is that still typical? When we bought the car in az, I drove the car and got 47-48mpg on every tank. when we moved back to mi, it got that in the summer, then it became my wifes car and doesn't get checked much anymore.

 

[rockyrunner99]

How does the timing get off? It is getting close to needing a timing belt. Does that make it get off by the belt stretching?

 

[turbocharged798]

Yes it can, especially if it wasn't set right to begin with.

 

[PeterV]

Diesels are not corollas and DO need the required maint, the lack there of costs.

Now timing is important but you really do need a Vag Com/VCDS scan of your car. It is difficult to get good answers with out that info.

The 99.5 has a defect in the SW programming. The cold start Inj really does not give the car the correct fuel to start quickly. A Tune can fix this Ours 99.5 has Rocket chip tune and the car was a hard starter years ago the past 9 years no problems.

There is another method to assist and that is programming the ECU to the auto setting. You need Vag Com to do that.

 

[rockyrunner99]

Update. It has been near 30 every morning lately, but it has been starting better. It had been a while since I had ran any type of cleaner or anything though the fuel system. So I got some of the power service fuel additive. It has cut down on white smoke at start, and seemed to increase power. Could just be the placebo effect though. We will see when it gets colder again this week. I think I should get some new or rebuild injectors, they are the originals with 300,000 miles on them.

 

[Richy_T]

I think the diagnosis might have occurred when I put a mityvac on the lines to refill the fuel filter after I drained it in case there was water in the filter (logic being frozen water blocks filter).. Sucking nothing but air being a big clue.