About myself & new car problem!

[unlucky alf]

Hi all, New member & new Jag owner, I am one of those people who hates seeing cars going to scrap & would rather save them where possible, Anyhow I have just purchased a 2004 X type estate 2.0 diesel  which is very tidy for the year & good service history as a replacement for my old Rover 75 which got beyond saving (I saved if from scrap 10 years ago & got 80,000 out of her),

The Jag seemed the obvious choice as the look & size is very similar to my old Rover so when I saw one come up with no MOT that needed saving I jumped at it, I done my homework first on the bad starting, erratic tick over & smoke issue this one has & I thought I had it covered, (EGR problem was what I got from asking around).

So I set about getting under the bonnet today & removed the EGR & manifold, & sure enough the EGR seemed to be stuck solid so replaced it, Started the old girl up &, , , , , , , , ,dammit still the same, So my obvious question is where do i go next?, The smoke has no Oil smell to it so i guess that eliminates the turbo, The smoke looks kind of white in colour which to what i read is due to it running lean, I am sure others have got better knowledge than me so I am passing it over to you guys!, , , , , ,Many thanks.

 

 

[Big John]

Hi Tim and welcome.

For me you have not yet eliminated turbo issues. "White" smoke to me indicates either coolant in the exhaust from something like a cylinder head gasket leak or Oil burning which can come from a whole host of places. 

I would start by checking coolant level and condition. Basically you are looking for falling level and/or Oil contamination. If that all looks good I would be thinking Oil smoke.

I always used to try holding a white hanky over the exhaust when revving the engine to see what is actually coming out which might help.

....and just to be pessimistic whilst you are at ground level it is worth having a look at the state of the sills, not the outer painted plastic which will be fine but the metal underneath which are very prone to rust. Just part of the joy of X-Type ownership 🙂

Good luck,

John

[unlucky alf]

4 hours ago, Big John said:

Hi Tim and welcome.

For me you have not yet eliminated turbo issues. "White" smoke to me indicates either coolant in the exhaust from something like a cylinder head gasket leak or oil burning which can come from a whole host of places. 

I would start by checking coolant level and condition. Basically you are looking for falling level and/or oil contamination. If that all looks good I would be thinking oil smoke.

I always used to try holding a white hanky over the exhaust when revving the engine to see what is actually coming out which might help.

....and just to be pessimistic whilst you are at ground level it is worth having a look at the state of the sills, not the outer painted plastic which will be fine but the metal underneath which are very prone to rust. Just part of the joy of X-Type ownership 🙂

Good luck,

John

Many thanks John, The guy i got the car from said that he had the sills replaced so i am hoping that worry is eliminated, Somebody did tell him that the smoke could be the turbo but as I cant smell Oil in the smoke I figured that wasn't the issue, But saying that my knowledge of turbo's is very little.

The coolant level is a bit difficult to monitor as the car isn't being used but a good sniff of the expansion bottle & a visual check shows no sign of contamination & no sign of custard on the Oil filler cap either, I will try the hanky thing & see what colour that catches, (hopefully not a pinky colour!) but smelling it it has a strong smell of diesel,

This is the first diesel engine I have had to attack as i have never had issues with one before so pretty much going in blind, As it is a right pig to start from cold I have ordered some glow plugs to see if that will at least help the starting problem, I will report back on any progress (if any) is made.

[Big John]

Hi Tim
This is mine: 

If you are getting a strong smell of diesel in the exhaust it could be what is causing the smoke. Have you got a code reader to check for the exact nature of the issue? If not they are only about £20 off eBay or amazon and would really help you get to the bottom of it.
Good luck

John

[unlucky alf]

1 hour ago, Big John said:

Hi Tim
This is mine: 

If you are getting a strong smell of diesel in the exhaust it could be what is causing the smoke. Have you got a code reader to check for the exact nature of the issue? If not they are only about £20 off ebay or amazon and would really help you get to the bottom of it.
Good luck

John

Hi John, i know my neighbour had some sort of code reader so will find out if he still has it, & in answer to your question, yes the diesel smell is pretty much all i do smell & the more you rev it the more smoke you get, & from cold it is a right pig to start almost like a petrol car when it's flooded it starts lumpy then smooths out a bit but with an uneven tickover, I did try the hanky thing & that stayed white so I'm hopeful that is one scare out of the way!, Anyhow time to grovel to the neighbour!,

[Big John]

From your response, my guess would be a faulty injector. I would also check the smell / level of the engine Oil as if an injector is not operatin g properly, excessive diesel may be being washed into the  crankcase causing Oil dilution. If the smell / level are OK hopefully the code reader will help. I assume you do not have a engine light on the dashboard?.....