water in the system? 02 audi a6 1.9tdi

bd2012

hi all just looking to see what you brainy people here think of this one

i have a 02 audi a6 1.9 tdi 195,000 miles. when shes parked up for a few days and not driven and its been raining (unusual in this country i know!) she keeps stalling when i start her, have to keep the revs up, lots of blue smoke. she wont idle at all. once i drive for a bit its all hunky dory again, bit of turbo lag but that goes once the engine heats up.

i reckon its water getting in somewhere, had a new fuel pump put in at 100k, could be as simple as a seal? local mechanic reckoned water wouldnt affect it, more likely to be a temp sensor ( engine temp clock on the blink ) but it only happens after rain which brings me back to water.

any advice on this would be greatly appreciated,
cheers,
hup!

swhyte027

Temp sensor is very very common on that engine failing tat id say it might be drawing in a tiny bit of air somewhere think the rain my just be a ur mind playing tricks

bd2012

swhyte027 wrote: »

Temp sensor is very very common on that engine failing tat id say it might be drawing in a tiny bit of air somewhere think the rain my just be a ur mind playing tricks

Ok thanks for reply. However it does only happen after rain. Dry and even frosty starts are no problem. And the turbo lag that clears up once the engine is warm? Prognosis? Temp sensor a pricey job?
Thanks again

tossy

Im no expert but id say your temp sensor could be gone but i don't think its the main problem you have.Normally blue smoke comes from burning oil so you could have some turbo problems which would explain the 'lag'

Did your local mechanic scan the car?

swhyte027

Don't no where ur getting ur quotes for temp sensors but I do them all the time so some one is lien to you if there telling u its a pricy job.

bd2012

tossy wrote: »

Im no expert but id say your temp sensor could be gone but i don't think its the main problem you have.Normally blue smoke comes from burning oil so you could have some turbo problems which would explain the 'lag'

Did your local mechanic scan the car?

Thanks tossy. Any ideas as to why it only happens after a lot of rain? No problems even with frosty starts. Mechanic was a local guy. Old school but top notch. Didn't scan it though don't know if he has the machine or not. Thanks again

bd2012

swhyte027 wrote: »

Don't no where ur getting ur quotes for temp sensors but I do them all the time so some one is lien to you if there telling u its a pricy job.

Cheers swhyte.
Haven't gotten a quote for temp sensor yet was just asking roughly how much it would be?
Thanks again

swhyte027

Temp sensors including fitting 75e I would say.

George Dalton

The original temp senders in these were troublesome so were replaced with a revised version. The old type is black, the improved version is green. Have a look at the sender yourself and see which type is fitted. If it is black then replace it for definite. The later green ones rarely fail so if it is a green sender it is probably ok.

The sender is located on the coolant flange on the rear of the cylinder head near the bulkhead. It has a four wire plug on it.

bd2012

cheers for all the help guys, am in the middle of exams at the minute so wont be sorting it until after all that madness, will keep ye posted, thanks again, hup

bd2012

Quick update guys. Got the temp sensor fixed. Was just a loose connection. However no change I'm afraid. I think u might have been right about the rain thing being a trick of the mind but if she's not driven for a day or two she's very sluggish to start and same problems again. Any ideas? It's got me stumped. Thanks in advance. Hup

d o'c

Need a bit more detail. So when the car is used frequently everything is ok, or does it always stall after startup.

Sluggish? what do you mean here, slowing turning over, or prolonged cranking before it fires up?
what did the local mech do? was anything checked

bd2012

d o'c wrote: »

Need a bit more detail. So when the car is used frequently everything is ok, or does it always stall after startup.

Sluggish? what do you mean here, slowing turning over, or prolonged cranking before it fires up?
what did the local mech do? was anything checked

Yes. When she is used every day she's perfect but if left for a couple of days she won't idle in start up. Also seems to be a bit of turbo lag until she's been driving for a while (30 mins at least) quite smokey until she heats up and fuel consumption has gotten worse. Mechanic serviced and scanned the car but no faults showing up. Like u said if driven daily she's fine. Just happens if shes been sitting for a while.

Mar4ix

do the computer scan. I had one costumer with petrol engine, dash doesnt show anything, but when connected to computer, it said crankshaft and o2 sensor was gone, after replacing, car was perfect. if you around blanchardstown, i can scan.

bd2012

Mar4ix wrote: »

do the computer scan. I had one costumer with petrol engine, dash doesnt show anything, but when connected to computer, it said crankshaft and o2 sensor was gone, after replacing, car was perfect. if you around blanchardstown, i can scan.

Thanks man. Had a scan done. No faults. Cheers for the offer but I'm down in lovely limerick.

d o'c

i would verify the fuel system is intact first.
You could have a leak source somewhere letting the pressure drop.

You could park the car facing downhill,to see if it helps to some degree.
that may give a clue.
you may not visibly see fuel leaking out, but air could be getting in.
another clue is a very faint squeeling noise after the engine is shut down..

Source could be bad filter housing, pipe joints etc..

bd2012

d o'c wrote: »

i would verify the fuel system is intact first.
You could have a leak source somewhere letting the pressure drop.

You could park the car facing downhill,to see if it helps to some degree.
that may give a clue.
you may not visibly see fuel leaking out, but air could be getting in.
another clue is a very faint squeeling noise after the engine is shut down..

Source could be bad filter housing, pipe joints etc..

Thanks a million. Will have a listen tomorrow have a nice little spin lined up

lomb

Headgasket could be gone, water leaking in over a few days into cylinder which needs clearing out to run, its a classic sign really.

Mar4ix

lomb wrote: »

Headgasket could be gone, water leaking in over a few days into cylinder which needs clearing out to run, its a classic sign really.

Than op should do compression test.

d o'c

lomb wrote: »

Headgasket could be gone, water leaking in over a few days into cylinder which needs clearing out to run, its a classic sign really.

OP car must have some coolant resevoir,
unless he failed to mention having to top it up every few days

Mech1

You could be right about the rain thing.

Check in the chamber below the windscreen, (where the battery lives) for a build up of water.

The drains block and this area fills up eventually reaching the brake servo and leaking into it.

On startup the engine will suck some water from servo into inlet manifold causing your symptoms.
http://www.honestjohn.co.uk/forum/post/index.htm?t=81642

Mech1

sorry just saw its a Diesel!!!

lomb

d o'c wrote: »

OP car must have some coolant resevoir,
unless he failed to mention having to top it up every few days

OP doesnt need to do a thing the car is getting on now. Tbh I drove a 405 that did the same thing for 3 or 4 years and it made no odds. It didnt use much water, maybe topped it every month but it was enough that a little leaked in over a few days. Didnt seem down on power but then again didnt seem very powerful either. I scrapped it in the end as it had 140000 miles on it and owed me nothing.

Chimaera

I'd say leaky fuel supply line. Sounds like the fuel system is losing prime when it's parked for a few days.

bd2012

Quick update guys. She was very bad this morning. Engine spluttering, cutting out at idle until she was revved through the gears and then relatively ok (bit of lag only). She's been driven daily all week so beginning to think its a water thing again grrr (had a wet day and night here yesterday). Could even feel the throttle lagging a bit on my way home last night having been parked up in the rain for 5/6 hours. Looks like a dry day today so that will show me something I hope

Chimaera

So what exactly do you think the water is doing?

bd2012

Chimaera wrote: »

So what exactly do you think the water is doing?

To be honest Chimaera i do not have a clue, dont know too much about mechanics, but it seems to me heavy rainfall = unhappy car. especially as it was ok for the last while just acted up this morning after a good bit of rain yesterday and last night, opened the bonnet this morning and spotted a few drops of water on the battery, would that have a bearing?? to be honest i am baffled! been dry all day today so will be interesting to see how she starts in the morning. apologies for my ignorance, hup

bd2012

Sorry to resurrect an old thread but lots of rain last night and car like a pig this morning! Basically when I put the foot down on the accelerator it feels like it takes a couple of seconds for the power to kick in. When moving off from stopped have to up the revs and noticed a bit of black smoke out the back. Been driving perfectly up to now. Has been serviced 3000 miles ago. New fuel filter done too. Again I must emphasise this only happens in the wet. Any ideas? Again apologies for bringing this up again. It just has me baffled!!

Greyfoot

bd2012 wrote: »

Sorry to resurrect an old thread but lots of rain last night and car like a pig this morning! Basically when I put the foot down on the accelerator it feels like it takes a couple of seconds for the power to kick in. When moving off from stopped have to up the revs and noticed a bit of black smoke out the back. Been driving perfectly up to now. Has been serviced 3000 miles ago. New fuel filter done too. Again I must emphasise this only happens in the wet. Any ideas? Again apologies for bringing this up again. It just has me baffled!!

Any excessive coolant or oil loss?
Simple head test is, remove reservoir cap, start engine and CAREFULLY look for extensive bubbling or squirting of coolant in expansion bottle.

bd2012

Greyfoot wrote: »

bd2012 wrote: »

Sorry to resurrect an old thread but lots of rain last night and car like a pig this morning! Basically when I put the foot down on the accelerator it feels like it takes a couple of seconds for the power to kick in. When moving off from stopped have to up the revs and noticed a bit of black smoke out the back. Been driving perfectly up to now. Has been serviced 3000 miles ago. New fuel filter done too. Again I must emphasise this only happens in the wet. Any ideas? Again apologies for bringing this up again. It just has me baffled!!

Any excessive coolant or oil loss?
Simple head test is, remove reservoir cap, start engine and CAREFULLY look for extensive bubbling or squirting of coolant in expansion bottle.

No loss of either. This has been happening on and off for the last year. The problem being intermittent (only after heavy rain) anytime I've gone to the mechanic it's been fine. Like I've said car runs perfectly when it's relatively dry. Problem only surfaces after heavy rain. Changed battery a while back and the drain under the battery was a bit plugged up so I cleared that. I'm stumped!

bd2012

Mods feel free to move this to motors as it might be more suitable there. Thanks