1.9 TD Starts, but won't run - Need help

[Pawl]

My dad and I are finally trying to get our 1995 Jetta going after sitting for nearly 2 years untouched. It's been a mad rush since we were told we need to move it asap from the garage where its been sitting.

The motor cranks, catches immediately, then stops dead. Sometime it runs for about a whole second. I have done some reading and people talk about priming the pump, but I have no idea what is the in line or what is the out. Where do I connect the clear hoses? (and how?... Do I need a second set of banjo bolts?) Is there anything else we should look at?  I'm including two pictures so that you can draw up or point to if that's easier. I'll take whatever help I can get at this point since it needs to move very soon.

I am basically pretty new to this whole diesel thing as it has been a very long time since I last read or even thought about an IDI. I'm actually surprised my account here still works lol.

[burn_your_money]

Sounds like air in the fuel. Either keep cranking with your foot to the floor until it goes, have someone pull start it or prime the pump and then keep cranking.

If you choose to crank; 30 seconds on, 2 minutes off. Max. Any more and you'll cook your starter.

Do you see air bubbles in the clear fuel lines? The "in" is on the left side of the pump when you are looking at it from in front of the car.

[Pawl]

The left line is bubble-free but I did see air in the right line.

It catches and then dies immediately after. Should we keep cranking after it catches or will that cause damage?

I noticed the two clear lines go into a metal canister. Do I need to check that or just ignore it for now?

[burn_your_money]

That's the fuel filter. They are usually trouble free unless you are running veg or bio.

It's somewhat fine to keep cranking after it first fires in this type of scenario. Starters have overrun protection for a reason. I wouldn't make a habit of it but it'll likely be perfectly fine.

[vanbcguy]

With all of this, are you using the cold start?  It might help if you are not.  I mention it only because you said you are fairly new to these engines.

[8v-of-fury]

Has the pump had any tampering since it was last running?

Perhaps the fueling settings have been turned out? Try starting with your foot down as mentioned earlier, as this will achieve maximum fuel enrichment for starting. If you can get it running with pedal, keep it running and let the pump circulate fuel and get the air bubbles out. If it will not stay running then the pump may not be pulling new fuel in, likely if it has sat and dried up over 2 year. 

[Pawl]

Went ahead and tried cranking it over a few times last night. It seemed like it was getting close. Cranked it the first two times without the cold start (or what my dad calls the "choke"; is that wrong?). The third time, he insisted on using the cold start and it felt like it was having more trouble. Battery had been fully charged a few days ago, but was toast after the third attempt so we let it sit and are going to charge the battery today and give it another go.

The pump has not beed touched and the car has sat in that spot surrounded by other parts and tools the entire time. I don't think anyone has seen its front end in that entire time period lol.

If this cranking with the foot down thing doesn't work out the next time we try it, I may have to try priming the pump. I wasn't able to find very good instructions how to do this. Does anyone know of a tutorial (preferably with pictures) that details the process. I don't feel too comfortable taking fuel lines off without knowing what exactly I'm doing; I'm afraid I'll never get it back together!

[burn_your_money]

The "choke" advances the timing and increases the idle. It has nothing to do with airflow. Most everyone knows what you mean if you refer to it as a choke but cold start lever is more correct.

Don't pull it out while you are cranking it over, but if it catches then pull it out. It sounds like your pump is already well advanced and pulling it out is over advancing it.

Are you not able to pull start the car? It seems like it would be the best option right now.

Are you waiting for the glowplugs to go out or no?

It won't be a bad idea to check for 12v power at the glow plug bus bar to make sure that is working. This link will give you a good idea of where the bus bar is if you don't know. http://www.cs.rochester.edu/u/jag/vw/engine/glowplugs/glowplugs.jpg

[8v-of-fury]

As for priming the pump, there is no tutorial needed. It is all rather simple.

You just need to fill the pump with fuel by whatever means you have at your disposal. Remove one or both of the lines that come from the filter and fill through there.

[theman53]

I would start to suspect the starter. The bushing being bad can ruin one in short order especially if you have been cranking on it

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[Pawl]

I think the starter is working fine. It turns the engine over, even when I keep it going for 30 seconds. Heck, the battery died out before the starter showed any signs of weakness. I am going to try priming the pump if the cranking technique doesn't work.

I haven't been able to pull start it as the vehicle isn't registered and I only have a limited backlane to work with. And, in the event the pull start doesn't work, I dont think my dad and I would be able to push it back up into the garage.

I am hoping to find some time to tinker with it today or tomorrow. I will keep you guys updated. I really appreciate all the quick help everyone has given

[One_punchmachinegun]

As stated before, Are you cycling the glow plugs? There is a yellow light in the cluster that turns on for a brief moment in time when you first turn the key to the "ON"  position without cranking it over. Try turning it "ON"(without cranking) wait for the light to go out, quickly turn key to "OFF" and back to "ON". Try this a few times then engage the starter by turning the key fully.
But if it seems like it catching then I would assume that its warm enough to start.

Also why not make sure your getting fuel, I would crack open the injector lines at the injectors have someone turn it over. If the pump is supplying fuel it will come out of all four injector lines. This help to let you know if your pump is actually dry or not. If it isnt dry and is supplying fuel, then you need to look into other things.

[Pawl]

It's alive!

We got it fired up over the weekend. Smokes like a mother! But it runs which makes me happy. We used a syringe on the out line and sucked up a bunch of fuel till the bubbles pretty much stopped coming out. It fires up now, no real issues. At first the smoke was black, but now it is a light color. Not blue, just a whitish smoke and doesn't really stop. Is this because the pump still has air in it?

I was really hoping to start making progress on this car but it looks like I will only have about a week or so to work on it before she is sent out for storage for who knows how long again. Sadly, money and space dictate projects that can be worked on, and the jetta is getting set aside again.

On the plus side, there is a pair of 1984 Rabbits headed my way (supposed to be quick and easy, but is it ever?), one of which is a 1.6D with 5xx xxx kms. That will be my new daily once I get it fired up and sell my truck

Thanks for all the help everyone! This car would have probably skipped going to storage and would have went straight to the scrap yard if we hadn't got it started.

[vanbcguy]

Persistent white smoke is usually caused by the timing being out.  Does pulling the cold start handle affect the amount of smoke at all? 

[8v-of-fury]

Persistent white smoke is usually caused by the timing being out.  Does pulling the cold start handle affect the amount of smoke at all? 

yupppppp. If the cold start handle makes more smoke happen then you are a few smidgens too advanced. Try retarding the timing just a touch and see if that helps. If nothing helps the smoke issue, then you likely have a bad or a few bad/leaking injectors that are just drizzling fuel when it is not their time to do so.