Stalling at cold starts

[Old.Tony]

I wouldn't say it can't be filter-related, but it is more likely either the SCV or the timing chains.

The SCV can be cleaned with some success - had a couple of people report that on this forum. Saves a coupla hundred bucks.

Timing chain's a different kettle of fish. I'd listen to an idling engine with a stethoscope on the timing chain housing before I jumped at it - they're not easy to change, and it's an expensive exercise. If you WERE going to change the chains, visit yd25.com.au or call them up and talk to Paul - you'll get a far, far superior result.

While it COULD be glow plugs you'd have to wonder about it, really. Everything changes when the engine warms up - tolerances tighten up in pumps and guides and bores and so on - so the SCV could be at fault. The timing chain could be. It could be the glow relay (right-hand side of the engine bay against the wall beside the battery), had one guy report his was cooked (actually he uploaded a photo of it, was like someone had BBQ'd it and forgot the sausages). That's a free thing to check though, so do it - look at the relay, and pop out the glow relays (just extract EVERY relay one at a time) and reinsert them from the box behind the battery.

 

[Arty_74]

Thanks Tony will do those checks. Spoke to my mechanic and was told the fuel filter hat was recently changed was non genuine, he will swap over with Nissan one on Monday, he thinks that will be he cause fingers crossed.

 

[Old.Tony]

Non-genuine filters have a very poor history with our D40s, the little o-ring in the middle is a prick with a genuine, it's a bloody nightmare with aftermarket units. There is a small amount of temperature change in the fuel when running but I wouldn't have thought it'd be that much to cause these symptoms. Still, doesn't mean it's not possible!

 

[Arty_74]

Genuine fuel filter fitted, problem gone.
Thanks guys

 

[Sean]

Hey All,
I have a slightly different version of this problem only started occurring a week ago in my 07 Spanish D40. The car starts ok and doesn't stall at idle, but when you take off there is no power as if in limp mode but no fault lights on. Had it do the same thing yesterday just during general driving after it had been running for a couple of hours went to accelerate up a hill and had no power. Could potentially be a life threatening issue if it happened at the wrong time such as pulling out into traffic.

 

[Old.Tony]

Sean, that could be a dirty/faulty SCV. Easy to repeat if it is: get the car to around 80km/h by gently accelerating and after holding that speed for a couple of seconds, plant the foot to the floor. It should almost instantly go limp - a dirty SCV is like a cold spoon.

Cleaning it is free. Replacing it is around $240.

 

[Sean]

Thanks For the info Tony I will try that.

 

[jjohn]

Bloody genuine filter......
Simple enough, although hardly obvious unless it started imedeatly after the replacement.
Glad to hear you've sorted it.

I wonder how many others will get caught?
I wonder which other brands are successful?

 

[Sean]

Thanks For the info Tony I will try that.

Well Tony
I tried your advice and give her a good run up the Link Road. the car behaved without fault.
So I installed a new genuine Diesel filter (mine wasn't genuine, I hate being ripped off $150.00)
Will see how that goes on a trip to Parkes this weekend?
Thanks again
Sean

 

[Old.Tony]

Good luck with it, hope it's solved the problem.

I wish the non-genuines were manufactured a little better too, but YGWYPF, I guess.

 

[jjohn]

Good luck with it, hope it's solved the problem.

I wish the non-genuines were manufactured a little better too, but YGWYPF, I guess.

My goodness Tony.
You have a LARGE acronym.

 

[Bobb44]

I had a d40 2.5 diesel for 4 years and experienced this stalling problem when cold on and off for 4 years and I can tell you I've tried all the fixes mentioned and none of them on this site has worked and just cost a lot of dollars , ps, it's definitely not the filter or timing chain, or glow plugs or the relay, good luck with finding the real cause of the problem, cause nobody here has put their finger on it yet.

 

[Old.Tony]

My goodness Tony.
You have a LARGE acronym.

You Get What You Pay For.

I thought it was in reasonably common use?

 

[Old.Tony]

I had a d40 2.5 diesel for 4 years and experienced this stalling problem when cold on and off for 4 years and I can tell you I've tried all the fixes mentioned and none of them on this site has worked and just cost a lot of dollars , ps, it's definitely not the filter or timing chain, or glow plugs or the relay, good luck with finding the real cause of the problem, cause nobody here has put their finger on it yet.

Have you tried blocking the EGR?

 

[Bobb44]

Have you tried blocking the EGR?

Yes.

 

[Old.Tony]

Yes.

Is the MAFS clean? How about the intercooler?

Diesels are fairly simple things and actually love cold air (more oxygen molecules in a given volume when the air is colder). At idle, there's no issue with the turbocharger (no boost at idle), EGR should be off (which is why I asked about blanking it, if a little EGR seeps through a bad valve it will stall the engine) and overall flow rates should be fairly low.

Can you get a reading on what the fuel rail pressure is at idle? It should be somewhere in the 4,000-4500psi range.

Thinking about fuel, can you squeeze the primer bulb a few times before it's firm? What happens if you keep squeezing it (about 10-15 times after it becomes firm) - does diesel start to leak from anywhere? I'm wondering if there's a small amount of air being drawn in (possibly after the filter) causing issues at low revs. It won't leak when the engine is off because the pump draws the fuel from the tank so the entire fuel system is in low pressure, but because air is not as dense as diesel it will find a way into a crack more easily.

 

[Bobb44]

Mafs, cleaned, and then replaced, with a new item, intercooler removed and cleaned, new turbocharger, egr blocked, 4 new injectors, now primer bulb, fuel tank removed and cleaned, no blockages, no leaks in the fuel system, new genuine fuel filter, scv valve replaced, etc, and a number of other parts as well

 

[Old.Tony]

Mafs, cleaned, and then replaced, with a new item, intercooler removed and cleaned, new turbocharger, egr blocked, 4 new injectors, now primer bulb, fuel tank removed and cleaned, no blockages, no leaks in the fuel system, new genuine fuel filter, scv valve replaced, etc, and a number of other parts as well

After replacing all that I'd feel pretty ordinary if my car still mucked up. I'm actually surprised that it's not behaving, you've covered all of the common issues.

 

[Bobb44]

Some days it starts, idles and doesn't stall at all, then other days it will stall just as the engine begins to warm up and the temp gauge is half way to operating temp, I don't think timing chain has a bearing on this problem because of the intermittent nature of it.

 

[Old.Tony]

It doesn't even sound like an air leak. If the engine's been running long enough to get halfway to warm on the gauge (which is going to be around 70C at least) then it's pumped so much fuel through the system you'd think any air would have already been taken through - unless it's forming a pocket in the filter (possible given its location, but unlikely given the amount of gear you've replaced).

I can only think it might be an ECU glitch. Have you found and cleaned the earth point for the ECU? Nissan just screwed it straight in without removing paint to ensure a good contact, and sometimes that's worked but other times it hasn't, either through lack of metal-metal contact or oxidisation. The recommended fix is to remove the screw, clean it thoroughly, reattach and then seal it with battery terminal sealer.