Candles and city traffic

Hello everyone,

There have already been several discussions about the lifespan of glow plugs... so here's another contribution on that topic – more as information than a question, because what needs to be done is quite obvious.

During my oil change today, I decided to test the glow plugs using the headlight bulb method, remembering some rough cold starts last winter. The result: 3 out of 4 glow plugs were completely dead – the 45-watt bulb didn't flicker at all, while the fourth one almost lit up normally. This explains why it often runs a bit roughly for the first few seconds after starting...

Therefore, it only takes 7 years and 113,000 km (with a very high proportion of short trips) to achieve this result. I am quite certain that the cause lies in the afterglow phenomenon combined with many cold starts, which each involve up to four minutes of afterglow (EU3). A vehicle used primarily for long distances would certainly have achieved double or triple that distance with the same total operating time of the spark plugs, which is consistent with reports on spark plug lifespan found in online forums.

Best regards,

Jan, who still has some work to do before it gets cold.

Vergleichbare Erfahrung - 2 Jahre und 60 Tkm - mit meinem vorherigen Auto, einem Suzuki Ignis DDIS (Fiat-Motor 1.3 JTD aka 1.3 CDTI bei Opel): 3 von 4 Kerzen waren hin. Auch ich bemerkte zoegerliches Starten bei Kaelte mit unrundem Motorlauf in den ersten Sekunden. Zudem kam bei sehr kalten Temperaturen die Motorkontrolllampe (Fehler in der Gluehanlage, sporadisch), was ich allerdings nicht verstand. Der Motor hatte zwar Euro 4 und sollte mit reduzierter Leistung bis zum Erreichen einer annaehernd der Betriebstemperatur entsprechenden Kuehlwassertemperatur weitergluehen - den "sporadischen" Gluehanlagenfehler erklaert mir das nicht. Dass durch die staendige Nachglueherei die Kerzen frueher am Ende sind mag ich aber einsehen. "Especially when the temperature is 8 degrees Celsius or..."eniger immer nach dem Frostgluehprogramm arbeitete.

For comparison: My current Peugeot HDI (as observed via OBD) runs extremely cold! At temperatures of 8-9 degrees Celsius (according to the outside temperature display), and with a cold engine, it doesn't glow, which can strain the engine if you start it like that. It sounds slightly rougher than when it pre-glows. The pre-glowing time at colder temperatures with full power is between 90 and 500 seconds; after that, you can switch it off, provided the engine has warmed up somewhat during the first few kilometers. However, if you're driving in the city from one red light to the next, the glow plug system remains active, but at approximately 60% power. Then, it waits until a minimum temperature is reached. Those who drive like that frequently will need to replace their glow plugs sooner.

Hi,

The ASV system also starts the pre-glow process just above freezing temperatures, around 5 degrees Celsius or so, although it always takes longer to pre-heat than the display indicates. I have an additional LED that shows when the glow plug system is energized. In winter, this can be a good 10 seconds longer than what's normally displayed. The afterglow duration can be up to 4 minutes, but yesterday, with temperatures around 20 degrees Celsius and an oil temperature of about 40 degrees Celsius, it was closer to 2.5 minutes.

The ASV (Automatic Starting Valve) isn't really necessary down to -10 degrees Celsius... In the early days of my TDI car ownership, I sometimes started it directly even at -10 degrees when I was in a hurry. It was very rough, but it would start quickly. Even last winter, which wasn't extremely cold, it worked fine, although sometimes it ran unevenly right after starting – some cylinders probably weren't eager to join in immediately.

An interesting question would be whether a properly preheated cylinder can help the other cylinders reach operating temperature in extremely cold conditions.

Let's see what else this will entail... especially what the 7-year-old battery has to say when it once again has to deal with four times the usual preheating current in the winter, before having to power the cold engine.

Best regards,

Jan.

On my A3 (year of manufacture 1997), after 11 years and 290,000 km, exactly one glow plug was defective.
I wouldn't have noticed it either, if I hadn't been given a spark plug as a gift.
and of course, I wanted to install them in my own car as well.

I can only imagine that Seat used different/inferior glow plugs.

Tagessuppe wrote:

On my A3, manufactured in 1997, after 11 years and 290,000 km, exactly one glow plug was defective. I can only imagine that

Seat used different/worse glow plugs. In my opinion, the explanation is more likely related to the year of manufacture or the emission class, and the proportion of cold starts, as Jan already outlined: }
My ex AFN-G3 (EU2 from 1998) didn't glow for nearly as long (and at such high near-hot start temperatures) as, for example, Jan's Ibiza and the ALH of my better half.

Bedingt durch die elend lange Nachglueherei (bis zum Erreichen einer vorgegebenen Temperatur) liefen die Kerzen im 1.3 DDIS (= CDTI, JTD) bei dauerhaftem Tagfrost durchaus staendig mit reduzierter Leistung mit.

Auf den ueblichen 28 km bis zum Dienst (2/3 Landstrasse, 1/3 Stadt) erreichte der Motor nur dann normale Temperaturen (> 80 Grad Kuehlmitteltemperatur), wenn man ihn getreten hat - was ich aber ablehne.

Standing in traffic for several minutes caused the water temperature to drop rapidly again. Therefore, the engine emitted very little heat when idling. In addition, the interior heating system (despite the electric auxiliary heater) also drew heat away from it. If the windows didn't need to be kept clear of ice or condensation, I would disable the interior heating for the first few kilometers, and the engine would reach its operating temperature faster (as monitored via OBD). warm.


In the case of the Peugeot, this effect is not as pronounced. It uses the aforementioned glow plug control system, along with a glow plug for the water circuit to act as an auxiliary heater. The Ignis (using the electric auxiliary heater) heats the interior more quickly, while the Peugeot, using the glow plug that heats the water in the cooling system, achieves more favorable water temperatures for the engine more quickly. However, it still takes some time – until the coolant temperature reaches 80 degrees Celsius. Zeit.

The Ignis had some "Duratherm" spark plugs installed, and the Peugeot has (if I read correctly) some from "Bosch."

Quote:

The Ignis had some "Duratherm" candles inside, and the Peugeot has (if I read correctly) some from "Bosch".

At least in the area of GSK, "Duratherm" is a (product) designation used by BOSCH.

Okay, please provide the German text you would like me to translate into English. I will only provide the translation.

Hello,
Can I detect faulty glow plugs with VCDS? Or does it only show whether the glow plugs are receiving power, but not whether they are actually working?
Where can I find the general knowledge questions (GK) in the Multiple-Choice Question Bank (MWB)?
You're welcome, haithamina.

Hi,

Quote:

Can I detect faulty glow plugs using VCDS? Or does it only show whether the glow plugs are receiving power, but not whether they are actually working?

Since there is no monitoring of the current being drawn, you can only tell if they are receiving power – making it pointless for a core test.

Why don't you just do the simple test with a headlight bulb? Disconnect the wires, connect from the positive terminal of the battery to the bulb, and then from the bulb to the tip of the spark plug. If the bulb lights up, the spark plug is electrically okay. If it stays dark (like in three of my spark plugs), then the spark plug is faulty.

Best regards,

Jan.