Land Rover Repair: Freelander struggles to start (Diesel), dirty diesel, engine fires

Question
Hi there,

I have a 2002 tdi freelander that really struggles to start in the mornings. It is not cold where I live and the starter motor turns over fine. But it takes about 15/20 seconds to start the engine, and when the engine fires there is a lot of grey/blue smoke (a large puff). The car then goes fine. I took it into land rover yesterday, and asked them to replace the glow plugs, but they refused. Said that this wasn't the problem, that it might be dirty diesel or oil dripping through the injectors into the engine! I don't know how true this can be, the car is in very good condition and has only done 95 000 Kms.

Any help would be appreciated.
Ian

Answer
Glow plugs are very easy to test.  If the dealer tested them, there will be no benefit to new ones.

Basically, I agree with what the dealer told you.  If the glow plugs are good your poor starting is probably clogged or leaking injectors, air getting onto the fuel lines, a clogged filter, or some other fuel system problem.

You can get bad fuel anytime and end up with damaged injectors.  The mileage on the vehicle has nothing to do with it.

Your fuel source makes all the difference.

Good luck!

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