01-06-2018, 11:23 AM
(This post was last modified: 01-06-2018, 11:30 AM by Warriorsquare.)
The car is a 306hdi LX estate, 1999 model 90bhp. I've tried to keep this brief but its a long story.
I've had this problem for years and it's kept returning randomly. The engine can either be hot or cold, the weather wet or dry it makes no difference. Turn the key, it fires once and dies. Keep it turning over and nothing happens, it won't fire.
If i leave the car for a day or two and return to it it's 50/50 the engine will start, it ticks over like nothing was wrong and has plenty of power for silly driving. After that it starts on the button for weeks/months/years before the problem returns.
The first time it wouldn't start the AA man gave the tank a few taps and it started. I thought that it needed a lift pump and in time (after another non-starting episode) i had a new pump fitted. The problem persisted and threatened holidays etc. Oddly, i've driven it all over North Wales, Cornwall and the Yorkshire dales and it never let me down once. But 300+ miles or so is probably enough to keep the battery sharp (more on that later).
The local garage had a look at it and it puzzled them, they replaced the brown relay behind the battery and the fuel filter. They also managed to accidentally disable the fuel gauge somehow and that has never worked since, just shows empty all the time.
It went to a local specialist in Peugeot Citroen cars and a lengthy and expensive repair involved reconditioning the ECU.
The problem came back a few times and went again. Then a ECU light appeared on the dash. I noticed that the lift pump was actually not getting power when the car wouldn't start so i bought a small jump starter battery to keep in the car for emergencies. I would use crocodile clips to connect it to the lift pump. The car would start instantly and i could drive it to safety. After that it would normally start on the first turn.
This system worked fine until i ran out of fuel on the way home one night. Since it was recovered back to my home the sat for a while as i was really busy with work and it's MOT promptly ran out. I couldn't start it with or without self powering the lift pump anyway. I tried swapping the brown relay for a new one and it made no difference.
Since then it's started and had the cheapest MOT ever, passing the emission test with flying colours. During the MOT prep the mechanic (another local garage, spare me the warnings about safety please, it's temporary) wired the pump to the radio 'key on' feed so that it could be started normally. This appeared to work well until i got in one day and it wouldn't start.
The latest mechanic to look turned the key and it fired up on the button. He did a leak off test and confirmed the injectors are working fine. He checked the codes from the ECU and said it would be best to check when the problem returns. He cleared the codes and the ECU light has gone out on the dashboard.
It's still starting mostly fine except i had to turn the key about 15 times yesterday (would have called mechanic but had appointment) and i think it's getting worse. My theory is that there is wiring damage somewhere between the engine and the fuel tank and maybe a dodgy sender on the engine too like fuel pressure or something. There is no damage to the wiring that i've found yet but i haven't taken out the seats!
If i drive the car more often the problem seems to clear up. The reason for that might be the corrosion or damage to the wiring needs a fully powered up battery? Trouble is i tend not to drive it for many days and i work from home.
Apologies for the ramble. Any thoughts?
I've had this problem for years and it's kept returning randomly. The engine can either be hot or cold, the weather wet or dry it makes no difference. Turn the key, it fires once and dies. Keep it turning over and nothing happens, it won't fire.
If i leave the car for a day or two and return to it it's 50/50 the engine will start, it ticks over like nothing was wrong and has plenty of power for silly driving. After that it starts on the button for weeks/months/years before the problem returns.
The first time it wouldn't start the AA man gave the tank a few taps and it started. I thought that it needed a lift pump and in time (after another non-starting episode) i had a new pump fitted. The problem persisted and threatened holidays etc. Oddly, i've driven it all over North Wales, Cornwall and the Yorkshire dales and it never let me down once. But 300+ miles or so is probably enough to keep the battery sharp (more on that later).
The local garage had a look at it and it puzzled them, they replaced the brown relay behind the battery and the fuel filter. They also managed to accidentally disable the fuel gauge somehow and that has never worked since, just shows empty all the time.
It went to a local specialist in Peugeot Citroen cars and a lengthy and expensive repair involved reconditioning the ECU.
The problem came back a few times and went again. Then a ECU light appeared on the dash. I noticed that the lift pump was actually not getting power when the car wouldn't start so i bought a small jump starter battery to keep in the car for emergencies. I would use crocodile clips to connect it to the lift pump. The car would start instantly and i could drive it to safety. After that it would normally start on the first turn.
This system worked fine until i ran out of fuel on the way home one night. Since it was recovered back to my home the sat for a while as i was really busy with work and it's MOT promptly ran out. I couldn't start it with or without self powering the lift pump anyway. I tried swapping the brown relay for a new one and it made no difference.
Since then it's started and had the cheapest MOT ever, passing the emission test with flying colours. During the MOT prep the mechanic (another local garage, spare me the warnings about safety please, it's temporary) wired the pump to the radio 'key on' feed so that it could be started normally. This appeared to work well until i got in one day and it wouldn't start.
The latest mechanic to look turned the key and it fired up on the button. He did a leak off test and confirmed the injectors are working fine. He checked the codes from the ECU and said it would be best to check when the problem returns. He cleared the codes and the ECU light has gone out on the dashboard.
It's still starting mostly fine except i had to turn the key about 15 times yesterday (would have called mechanic but had appointment) and i think it's getting worse. My theory is that there is wiring damage somewhere between the engine and the fuel tank and maybe a dodgy sender on the engine too like fuel pressure or something. There is no damage to the wiring that i've found yet but i haven't taken out the seats!
If i drive the car more often the problem seems to clear up. The reason for that might be the corrosion or damage to the wiring needs a fully powered up battery? Trouble is i tend not to drive it for many days and i work from home.
Apologies for the ramble. Any thoughts?