Glow plug warning light resolved

[Googlebot]

Dodged a bullet here I hope!

Glow plug warning came on the weekend, Fiat Ducato 2.3, 2013.

Did some testing after finding the glow plug relay (right hand side as you look at engine behind headlight).

Power supply and relay all good, glow plug resistance however had three of them at 1 ohm and one at 0.6 ohms. Tested again when cold and all within normal range and warning disappeared. As soon as engine warm, fault comes back. Disconnected the wiring and infinite resistance so wiring good.

Identified the glow plug 1, which is on the left looking in, and as luck would have it, could just about get to it with just moving the intercooler pipe out the way, all the others were an EGR and throttle body out job. Did lots of reading about how easy they are to snap off and crapped myself. Mechanic at work advised if it doesn’t move then don’t touch and send to specialist immediately.

So, got my 8mm deep socket and used a torque wrench with lots of release stuff soaked in after getting the engine warm. I barely put any pressure on and it just unscrewed by hand after the initial turn.

Replaced with new one and all sensors now reading the same resistance and warning gone. I did ask the mechanic about replacing them all, his view was just do the one as the risk of snapping them off is so high.

In short, cost me £11.50 and I am very relieved I haven’t got to remove the cylinder head.

Hope it helps others.

 

[Googlebot]

Back to the drawing board after a great trip away.

Glow plug light came back on.

On the positive side, while the engine was warm, as quickly as I could, stripped everything down and removed the inlet manifold. Number 4 came out no problem, 2 and 3 both stuck after half a turn.

Lots of patience, releasing spray and back and forth and eventually, managed to get all 4 out!

Relieved is an understatement!

Now nursing the scratches on my arms after the tight space and will get them replaced and everything back together tomorrow.

Number 3 was reading infinite resistance and wasn’t glowing at all when supplied power for those who were wondering.

Moral of the story, just replace all 4 of the things first time.

 

[Googlebot]

Nothing is ever easy….

Turned engine over and wouldn’t start after a big bang and power steering warning light.

Thought I had left something under the bonnet and a belt had gone.

Diesel pissing everywhere under the front. Turns out I had caught a very delicate port from the fuel return from the injectors to the feed and return on the front when I dropped the intake manifold.

Started fine when I held the pipe on, no idea what caused the bang and power steering fault.

New part on order.

They could have made it more robust.

Only positive is removing it was easier than I first thought with no room at all.

Be careful if you drop the intake manifold.

 

[buzz1]

Well done sir .
To honest it’s like walking on egg shells with motorhome’s faults everyone’s seems to be getting .

 

[Googlebot]

I can’t moan about this, it’s my own stupid fault.

Incidentally, I thought it was going to cost a mint from Fiat only. Couldn’t find a part number or anything on it so resolved to phoning a dealer tomorrow.

Tried Google lens and immediately came up with the correct part and part number. Amazing!

Will be here this week for £22.

There must be a lot of stupid people breaking them.

Pardon our interruption...

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[poppycamper]

Well done sir .
To honest it’s like walking on egg shells with motorhome’s faults everyone’s seems to be getting .

This is in no way a dig and I appreciate there are a lot more Ducato mohos out there than anything else but all the reported faults seem to be with Ducatos !!!

 

[Googlebot]

This is in no way a dig and I appreciate there are a lot more Ducato mohos out there than anything else but all the reported faults seem to be with Ducatos !!!

I think that’s because there are more of them than anything else.

Glow plugs have done 11 years and 70,000 miles. I can’t grumble.

 

[DBK]

2013 is the same age as mine. I wouldn't beat yourself up about the pipe, after 10+ years it must be getting brittle and there may already have been a hairline crack in it due to vibration.

Even routine maintenance can be a challenge at this age. I wanted to change the air filter recently but the 4 screws which hold the top on the filter housing in place were so corroded I couldn't get any grip on them with a screwdriver. So I just drilled the heads off using a 90° attachment on the drill. The top came off although it was a bit of a struggle and after changing the filter I replaced the cover and secured it with 4 small self-tappers going straight through the seal. The top seems to be firmly secured and subsequent maintenance a little easier.

It's a rubbish photo but you should be able to see what I did in it. At 5 o'clock to the self-tapper is the hole where the original securing screw is. It has no head but the rest of the screw remains in place. They were impossible to remove. With corrosion the thread expands I think.

 

[Happy Jack]

2013 is the same age as mine. I wouldn't beat yourself up about the pipe, after 10+ years it must be getting brittle and there may already have been a hairline crack in it due to vibration.

Even routine maintenance can be a challenge at this age. I wanted to change the air filter recently but the 4 screws which hold the top on the filter housing in place were so corroded I couldn't get any grip on them with a screwdriver. So I just drilled the heads off using a 90° attachment on the drill. The top came off although it was a bit of a struggle and after changing the filter I replaced the cover and secured it with 4 small self-tappers going straight the seal. The top seems to be firmly secured and subsequent maintenance a little easier.

It's a rubbish photo but you should be able to see what I did in it. At 5 o'clock to the self-tapper is the hole where the original securing screw is. It has no head but the rest of the screw remains in place. They were impossible to remove. With corrosion the thread expands I think.

View attachment 973866

Had the same with mine and same as you to resolve it.
Used stainless self tappers.

 

[Googlebot]

2013 is the same age as mine. I wouldn't beat yourself up about the pipe, after 10+ years it must be getting brittle and there may already have been a hairline crack in it due to vibration.

Even routine maintenance can be a challenge at this age. I wanted to change the air filter recently but the 4 screws which hold the top on the filter housing in place were so corroded I couldn't get any grip on them with a screwdriver. So I just drilled the heads off using a 90° attachment on the drill. The top came off although it was a bit of a struggle and after changing the filter I replaced the cover and secured it with 4 small self-tappers going straight the seal. The top seems to be firmly secured and subsequent maintenance a little easier.

It's a rubbish photo but you should be able to see what I did in it. At 5 o'clock to the self-tapper is the hole where the original securing screw is. It has no head but the rest of the screw remains in place. They were impossible to remove. With corrosion the thread expands I think.

View attachment 973866

Snap!

Mine too is held shut by Screw-fix’s finest twin thread.

I just hope it works after the new fuel lines arrive.

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[the1andonly]

2013 is the same age as mine. I wouldn't beat yourself up about the pipe, after 10+ years it must be getting brittle and there may already have been a hairline crack in it due to vibration.

Even routine maintenance can be a challenge at this age. I wanted to change the air filter recently but the 4 screws which hold the top on the filter housing in place were so corroded I couldn't get any grip on them with a screwdriver. So I just drilled the heads off using a 90° attachment on the drill. The top came off although it was a bit of a struggle and after changing the filter I replaced the cover and secured it with 4 small self-tappers going straight through the seal. The top seems to be firmly secured and subsequent maintenance a little easier.

It's a rubbish photo but you should be able to see what I did in it. At 5 o'clock to the self-tapper is the hole where the original securing screw is. It has no head but the rest of the screw remains in place. They were impossible to remove. With corrosion the thread expands I think.

View attachment 973866

Having read about this problem before there was a wisp of rust or chewed heads i replaced mine with SS torx head screws.

 

[Googlebot]

The new fuel line is here, still can’t believe the pricing of some bits regarding vehicles. It’s quite a complex moulding that’s heat shrunk into plastic pipes with a rubber hose in one side and a flange heat shrunk to the other.

I was expecting to spend at least £100, it arrived in 24 hours for £22.

Doesn’t make sense.

Wish me luck tomorrow and I hope the bang was just the copious amount of brake cleaner I used blowing up somewhere.

It started fine holding the fuel line together with no warning lights so I am hopeful.

 

[Googlebot]

The good news is it’s all back together and working.

Glow plug warning light is gone, steering fault came up as a steering angle position sensor which is weird. I am putting that down to a failed start and electrical surge as it’s reading correctly in the scan tool and hasn’t come back.

The bad news is on the test drive the EML came on.

I will start another thread about that as I think it’s unrelated.

A copy of Fiat multi scan is on the way if anyone wants to buy my Fiat specific handheld reader.

 

[buzz1]

That’s Good news .
Out of curiosity what scan tool do have as I’m having a look around ,

 

[Googlebot]

That’s Good news .
Out of curiosity what scan tool do have as I’m having a look around ,

This one. It’s actually really good and looks at all systems on my 2013 Ducato.

Basic ones would never pick stuff up like the steering angle sensor, this did in seconds. Really handy if you get a warning like the ABS system as it will tell you individual sensors.

Pardon our interruption...

Keep an eye on the classifieds. If multiscan works, it will be up for sale.

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[buzz1]

Thanks
But thats what I’m looking at multi-scan ,
Maybe wait and see if any Black Friday deals being offered.

 

[Googlebot]

Thanks
But thats what I’m looking at multi-scan ,
Maybe wait and see if any Black Friday deals being offered.

I ordered it today. Tried the demo version and it looks great.