Precautions / Maintenance for Diesel Engines with Turbo

adarsh76 · 4th July 2006, 15:32

Hi everyone,

Recently I took my Accent GLE for service. At the Hyundai Dealer workshop I saw an Elantra CRDi being tested for some complaint. It was emitting thick black smoke. I asked the service chief what was this and why it is happening. He replied that its turbocharger has failed. But since the car was on warranty period it would be replaced and repaired free of cost. The system would cost around 30,000 rupees.

When I enquired more about it he said there should be proper maintenance for diesel cars especially with turbo. He said two points which should be taken care:

1. The engine should be run in idle for atleast 1 minute without racing in neutral gear before the first shift.

2. Similarly the same procedure should be done while switching after a long drive or before it is switched off for a long break.

I don't know if his information is credible or not. I don't know much about the Diesel Engine Technology. One of my friend working in Mahindra also supported the same theory. What do you think?

sumitkalindi · 4th July 2006, 15:37

Yes it is true, to maintain a turbo you have to religiously follow the 1 min idle rule.

nitrous · 4th July 2006, 15:55

Quote:

Yes it is true, to maintain a turbo you have to religiously follow the 1 min idle rule.

ITs either that...or u need a turbo timer.

But, i don't know how compatible it is with diesel CRDI turbos.

tadukuttan · 4th July 2006, 17:00

Does anybody here know whether Hyundai/Skoda diesels have water cooled turbos? Remember reading some time ago that if you have a water cooled turbo, then you dont really need to idle before stopping.

What about the more expensive cars like BMW/Audi/Merc? Do they also have this trouble?

Vandal · 13th March 2007, 15:14

This pertains to the Safari 2L turbo. When I used to drive it, I was most cautious about starting her up and letting the engine idle for 20~30 seconds on account of the turbocharger. I also practiced this whilst stopping and turning off the engine.

Now my driver back home (Jabalpur) does most of the miles on our 2l safari in my absence. I assume he doesn't follow the same procedure all of the time, because I got blue in the face telling it to him a dozen times...lazy chap.

What damage if any could occur because of this? If at all will it be serious? We're looking to sell off this vehicle soon, could this be a problem? Any precautions to be taken, besides firing feroz (the driver)

??

Advise...

suman · 13th March 2007, 16:02

Quote:

Originally Posted by Vandal

What damage if any could occur because of this? If at all will it be serious?

I think you answered yourself - the turbocharger is likely to get damaged & as the manual says, its good to let it idle for about 30 seconds before switching it off. What's amazing is that even in the dealer workshops, you'll come across hordes of technicians who actually rev/blip the engine a couple of times and then switch it off

Vandal · 13th March 2007, 16:08

suman, another noobish query...damaged as in to what extent? The same feroz also drives our 3.0L. He doesn't get why I'm so particular about the 30 seconds warm up, cool down on the 2L...

what will be the initial symptoms of damage?

chanapli · 13th March 2007, 16:11

Quote:

Originally Posted by suman

What's amazing is that even in the dealer workshops, you'll come across hordes of technicians who actually rev/blip the engine a couple of times and then switch it off

may be becuase they are not qualified as technicians. In my knowledge there may be only one/ two main mechs in a dealer / workshop who is technically knowlegeable, Others are boys under training.

mobike008 · 13th March 2007, 16:19

Any diesel car equipped with a turbocharger the start/stop procedure should be followed mandatorily else there is a huge chance of the turbocharger failing and you spending a lot of moolah to get it rectified

Start: Idle for 15-30 secs
Stop: Idle for 30Secs to 1 minute depending on how hard you revved the engine.

I follow the above quite religiously well crossing above timings.

jango · 13th March 2007, 16:19

True but then its the responsibilty of the main mech to make these helpers aware abt the damage ........

suman · 13th March 2007, 16:22

Quote:

Originally Posted by chanapli

may be becuase they are not qualified as technicians. In my knowledge there may be only one/ two main mechs in a dealer / workshop who is technically knowlegeable, Others are boys under training.

Depends on the size of the workshop I'd say. The one I go to in Gurgaon has about 8 or 10 technicians (2 or 3 of them are "senior" technicians).....they are the ones who listen to your woes & open up the job card for you with appropriate items/sections "ticked" for mechanics to appropriately check out.

The cars are then attended by the "boys" who are basic mechanics, each with their own areas of specialization (there are some who are experts on body work, there are others who are electrical & some who work on engine related issues).

I'm referring to the first category who are expected to know what is or is not supposed to be done.......

chanapli · 13th March 2007, 16:38

It really depend on how good is the floor supervisor how he allocate / control. I have seen many of these guys gathering at one bay when they dont have work and guess what, you never know who is doing what. May be a body repair guy helps his electric SME by start..rev..rev..stop the engine?.

suman · 13th March 2007, 16:48

Chanapli, you are a good theorist.......when I'm telling you they're technicians its because they have separate uniforms (again, in the workshop I go to) so you know clearly who is a tech & who is a mech.

Not sure if its so difficult to understand this....why spend time talking about theoretical situations or what happens elsewhere in other workshops? I can understand a mech doing this but not a tech. Anyway, lets take this ridiculous discussion off-line as its not helping Vandal's query in any way.

Vandal · 13th March 2007, 17:35

Thanks guys...I'm due a trip down home in May. Will get the message through his thick skull.

The funny thing is feroz insists on the mechanics using proper precautions, since he's the chap we send with the safaris whenever they're due repairs...In fact he makes it a point to tell whatever mechanic is working on the vehicle to ensure that it idles for 30s before any stunts.

I'd laugh at this if I wasn't worried about damage to my beloved road hog...

condor · 13th March 2007, 20:17

Vandal, can understand the frustration: the drivers never seem to follow these instructions with our vehicles.

At the risk of going OT: the mechanics would have too many cars to handle to care for such stuff. They would do a hundred plus starts / stops a day to have the patience for this. But dont think this is the only thing that the mechanics dont follow ..

4th July 2006, 15:32	#1
adarsh76 BHPian Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Trivandrum Posts: 661 Thanked: 231 Times	Precautions / Maintenance for Diesel Engines with Turbo Hi everyone, Recently I took my Accent GLE for service. At the Hyundai Dealer workshop I saw an Elantra CRDi being tested for some complaint. It was emitting thick black smoke. I asked the service chief what was this and why it is happening. He replied that its turbocharger has failed. But since the car was on warranty period it would be replaced and repaired free of cost. The system would cost around 30,000 rupees. When I enquired more about it he said there should be proper maintenance for diesel cars especially with turbo. He said two points which should be taken care: 1. The engine should be run in idle for atleast 1 minute without racing in neutral gear before the first shift. 2. Similarly the same procedure should be done while switching after a long drive or before it is switched off for a long break. I don't know if his information is credible or not. I don't know much about the Diesel Engine Technology. One of my friend working in Mahindra also supported the same theory. What do you think?
	() Thanks

4th July 2006, 15:37	#2
sumitkalindi BHPian Join Date: May 2006 Location: Kolkata Posts: 376 Thanked: 17 Times View My Garage	Yes it is true, to maintain a turbo you have to religiously follow the 1 min idle rule.
	() Thanks

4th July 2006, 17:00	#4
tadukuttan BHPian Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Bangalore Posts: 241 Thanked: 24 Times	Does anybody here know whether Hyundai/Skoda diesels have water cooled turbos? Remember reading some time ago that if you have a water cooled turbo, then you dont really need to idle before stopping. What about the more expensive cars like BMW/Audi/Merc? Do they also have this trouble?
	() Thanks

13th March 2007, 15:14	#5
Vandal BHPian Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Mumbai Posts: 31 Thanked: 3 Times	A noobish query about the Safari 2L This pertains to the Safari 2L turbo. When I used to drive it, I was most cautious about starting her up and letting the engine idle for 20~30 seconds on account of the turbocharger. I also practiced this whilst stopping and turning off the engine. Now my driver back home (Jabalpur) does most of the miles on our 2l safari in my absence. I assume he doesn't follow the same procedure all of the time, because I got blue in the face telling it to him a dozen times...lazy chap. What damage if any could occur because of this? If at all will it be serious? We're looking to sell off this vehicle soon, could this be a problem? Any precautions to be taken, besides firing feroz (the driver) ?? Advise...
	() Thanks

13th March 2007, 16:08	#7
Vandal BHPian Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Mumbai Posts: 31 Thanked: 3 Times	suman, another noobish query...damaged as in to what extent? The same feroz also drives our 3.0L. He doesn't get why I'm so particular about the 30 seconds warm up, cool down on the 2L... what will be the initial symptoms of damage?
	() Thanks

13th March 2007, 16:19	#9
mobike008 Distinguished - BHPian Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Seattle, WA Posts: 11,696 Thanked: 14,809 Times View My Garage	Any diesel car equipped with a turbocharger the start/stop procedure should be followed mandatorily else there is a huge chance of the turbocharger failing and you spending a lot of moolah to get it rectified Start: Idle for 15-30 secs Stop: Idle for 30Secs to 1 minute depending on how hard you revved the engine. I follow the above quite religiously well crossing above timings.
	() Thanks

13th March 2007, 16:19	#10
jango BHPian Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: New York & kotayam Posts: 800 Thanked: 23 Times View My Garage	True but then its the responsibilty of the main mech to make these helpers aware abt the damage ........
	() Thanks

13th March 2007, 16:38	#12
chanapli BHPian Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Banglaore Posts: 270 Thanked: Once	It really depend on how good is the floor supervisor how he allocate / control. I have seen many of these guys gathering at one bay when they dont have work and guess what, you never know who is doing what. May be a body repair guy helps his electric SME by start..rev..rev..stop the engine?.
	() Thanks

13th March 2007, 16:48	#13
suman Senior - BHPian Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Kolkata Posts: 4,589 Thanked: 279 Times View My Garage	Chanapli, you are a good theorist.......when I'm telling you they're technicians its because they have separate uniforms (again, in the workshop I go to) so you know clearly who is a tech & who is a mech. Not sure if its so difficult to understand this....why spend time talking about theoretical situations or what happens elsewhere in other workshops? I can understand a mech doing this but not a tech. Anyway, lets take this ridiculous discussion off-line as its not helping Vandal's query in any way.
	() Thanks

13th March 2007, 17:35	#14
Vandal BHPian Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Mumbai Posts: 31 Thanked: 3 Times	Thanks guys...I'm due a trip down home in May. Will get the message through his thick skull. The funny thing is feroz insists on the mechanics using proper precautions, since he's the chap we send with the safaris whenever they're due repairs...In fact he makes it a point to tell whatever mechanic is working on the vehicle to ensure that it idles for 30s before any stunts. I'd laugh at this if I wasn't worried about damage to my beloved road hog...
	() Thanks

13th March 2007, 20:17	#15
condor Distinguished - BHPian Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Speed-brkr City Posts: 15,864 Thanked: 16,014 Times View My Garage	Vandal, can understand the frustration: the drivers never seem to follow these instructions with our vehicles. At the risk of going OT: the mechanics would have too many cars to handle to care for such stuff. They would do a hundred plus starts / stops a day to have the patience for this. But dont think this is the only thing that the mechanics dont follow ..
	() Thanks