Swift Diesel - Engine turns off by itself when stopping on 4th gear

webjunk · 29th October 2008, 18:30

My Swift Diesel VDI has done about 5500kms now. The issue started after the first free service.

When I try to stop my car at (Typically at signals), I apply brake with car still in 4th gear, and at a specific point when I know that engine might stall, I press the clutch fully and come to a stop. This is a gradual and involuntary function for me. (My mind is not really thinking of the sequence, but does it naturally) I change back to neutral when the vehicle comes to a stop. (Is there something wrong here in my driving style?)

Now the car (mostly randomly) switches off engine and the steering gets suddenly tighter when I'm about to stop. That's when I realize the engine has switched off. (in the city noise, with my stereo playing, I can't really feel if the engine is running or not - I'm happy about it anyways

)

I think its some trouble somewhere in the car. But the service guys at Vipul Motors Noida have not been able to identify it. I can't replicate it when I want it. Does anyone here know or faced such an issue. Please let me know. I also hit a stone slab on highway because of this issue and got my suspension arm bent. (couldn't steer away from the stone slab in the middle of the road, when I braked and engine got switched off at that moment.)

Or is it my driving style causing it? (This is my first diesel vehicle)

phamilyman · 29th October 2008, 18:52

The engine is so heavy and its inertia causes the same, changing gears is critical ji, imho.

Jaggu · 29th October 2008, 18:53

My hunch you were driving a petrol car before this and your stopping sequence has to be modified a lil bit. Has happened to me couple of times in the initial few months.

Also with higher torque of diesel engines its not advisable to wait for the engine to stop before activating clutch, this puts unwanted stress on the mechanicals. Better method will be to downshift (again be gentle compared to petrol) and then apply clutch as and when the speeds drop to minimum.

ankit.jhamb · 29th October 2008, 19:35

had the similar problem with my dzire 1-2 times.but now i have changed my driving style.now i donot shift to neutral directly.
now donot face this problem.try following jaggu`s method.

DirtyDan · 29th October 2008, 19:53

Go out on a quiet street sometime and turn OFF your stereo.

Stopped, on the side of the road, in neutral, give your car a little shot of fuel on the accellerator and quickly take your foot off the pedal. You will notice that the engine stops revving immediately and goes to idle speed.
I say again, IMMEDIATELY. This is unlike petrol cars wherein the engine takes a second or two to come to idle. My point is, as soon as you get off the accellerator in fourth you are lugging out the engine and it is going to stall because it quickly goes to idle speed. It is your driving habits. Turn off your stereo and take a long drive sometime without it and listen to your car. A diesel makes many wonderful noises which you can come to appreciate, although I grant you it is an acquired taste.

tush · 29th October 2008, 20:40

It happened to me once when i slowed down to take a right turn from a circle at a four square. The engine suddenly turned off and i wasnt able to steer as the steering got tight. I remember that i had pressed the clutch all the way down and wasnt accelerating at all. This is when the engine turned off. I quickly turned the engine on and averted any accident. Thankfully it was during the night hours and there was no traffic. But after that it never happened again. May be it was the driving style i guess.

anupmathur · 29th October 2008, 20:44

Simply depress the clutch pedal a little earlier than you are currently doing! That should resolve this issue.

LastActionHero · 29th October 2008, 20:46

Ok reading this thread has brought to my mind a stupid question. How should one stop when driving a petrol? I'm a novice driver.. I switch the gear to neutral while the car is still running and then slowly start applying the brakes to bring to a complete stop. Is this normal? Am I damaging my car?

webjunk · 29th October 2008, 22:38

Quote:

Originally Posted by LastActionHero

Ok reading this thread has brought to my mind a stupid question. How should one stop when driving a petrol? I'm a novice driver.. I switch the gear to neutral while the car is still running and then slowly start applying the brakes to bring to a complete stop. Is this normal? Am I damaging my car?

Never do that again. Its NOT normal. Its definitely an invitation to disaster. Never come to neutral while running. (And NEVER on down hill) When the vehicle is still in gears, with clutch still engaged, the engine itself will provide some amount of resistance. And that helps in braking the vehicle. And also to some extent, prevents wheels getting locked while hard braking. Always its good to apply brakes first and apply clutch a little later. (One needs to learn that sequence, timing and co-ordination)

Quote:

Originally Posted by DirtyDan

... quickly take your foot off the pedal. You will notice that the engine stops revving immediately and goes to idle speed.
.... My point is, as soon as you get off the accellerator in fourth you are lugging out the engine and it is going to stall because it quickly goes to idle speed.

I might agree with you Dan. I also felt, it was as if the fuel was sucked out of the engine and it dies. I will try to change my driving style and see what happens.

And to clarify to others, here down shifting may not happen because some times, there is not enough time or distance to do that at all in city conditions.

Rehaan · 29th October 2008, 22:53

Quote:

Originally Posted by LastActionHero

Ok reading this thread has brought to my mind a stupid question. How should one stop when driving a petrol? I'm a novice driver.. I switch the gear to neutral while the car is still running and then slowly start applying the brakes to bring to a complete stop. Is this normal? Am I damaging my car?

This has been discussed in plenty of detail in several other threads, lets continue this discussion in those threads only.

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/techni...e-braking.html

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/techni...ing-right.html

cya
R

LastActionHero · 3rd November 2008, 22:24

Thanks for the info. Will try to avoid my action from now on and follow the right sequence.

saurabhb2000 · 9th July 2009, 16:17

webjunk - do you still feel the engine stalling problem? I have been facing it quite frequently in Dzire Zdi now in 7500 - 10000km range. Have got it checked at Maruti Service masters, delhi and they could not replicate it but admitted that they have seen the problem in some other cars. It could be due to faulty clutch.

webjunk · 9th July 2009, 17:00

Quote:

Originally Posted by saurabhb2000

webjunk - do you still feel the engine stalling problem? I have been facing it quite frequently in Dzire Zdi now in 7500 - 10000km range. Have got it checked at Maruti Service masters, delhi and they could not replicate it but admitted that they have seen the problem in some other cars. It could be due to faulty clutch.

Quote:

Originally Posted by DirtyDan View Post
... quickly take your foot off the pedal. You will notice that the engine stops revving immediately and goes to idle speed.
.... My point is, as soon as you get off the accellerator in fourth you are lugging out the engine and it is going to stall because it quickly goes to idle speed.

No Saurabh, I dont have that problem now. As DD stated, I just changed my driving style little bit and the problem is gone. Changing from petrol driven cars to diesel for the first time, I think I had to slightly re-adjust my style.

Most Service guys I've come across are really not equipped to answer any technical or theoretical questions. They are basically trained to repair (sometimes just replace) the parts. period.

Suresh.

mukeshgoel · 9th July 2009, 20:18

Hi, I am also facing this problem since the time I bought my Swift VDi in March. Sometimes, it happened with me 2-3 times a day and sometimes not even once in a week.

While coming at halt (or almost halt) from speed, on a red light or a round about, I used to press complete clutch till the time the car stops or about to stop, in the process the engine turns off and a result steering power is gone.

Told this at the time of 5k Service but SA could not find anything wrong in the car. Now my car has been driven 7300 kms.

Was planning to put it on on forum for last few weeks. Now after reading this thread, now (at this moment) I realize that I need to change my driving style for this diesel car. I have been driving petrol cars for last 12 years.

While typing this message IIRC, I faced this problem maybe once in last 15 days, so automatically my driving still is improving I guess.

THEAGCUSTOMS · 12th July 2009, 23:23

Hi user your car must have some kind of unwanted impurities in your throttle part or the rpm controller u must check it and make it cleaned.

29th October 2008, 18:30	#1
webjunk BHPian Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Bangalore Posts: 27 Thanked: 37 Times	Swift Diesel - Engine turns off by itself when stopping on 4th gear My Swift Diesel VDI has done about 5500kms now. The issue started after the first free service. When I try to stop my car at (Typically at signals), I apply brake with car still in 4th gear, and at a specific point when I know that engine might stall, I press the clutch fully and come to a stop. This is a gradual and involuntary function for me. (My mind is not really thinking of the sequence, but does it naturally) I change back to neutral when the vehicle comes to a stop. (Is there something wrong here in my driving style?) Now the car (mostly randomly) switches off engine and the steering gets suddenly tighter when I'm about to stop. That's when I realize the engine has switched off. (in the city noise, with my stereo playing, I can't really feel if the engine is running or not - I'm happy about it anyways ) I think its some trouble somewhere in the car. But the service guys at Vipul Motors Noida have not been able to identify it. I can't replicate it when I want it. Does anyone here know or faced such an issue. Please let me know. I also hit a stone slab on highway because of this issue and got my suspension arm bent. (couldn't steer away from the stone slab in the middle of the road, when I braked and engine got switched off at that moment.) Or is it my driving style causing it? (This is my first diesel vehicle)
	() Thanks

29th October 2008, 18:52	#2
phamilyman Senior - BHPian Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Gurgaon Posts: 5,968 Thanked: 4,642 Times	The engine is so heavy and its inertia causes the same, changing gears is critical ji, imho.
	() Thanks

29th October 2008, 18:53	#3
Jaggu Team-BHP Support Join Date: May 2004 Location: Bangalore Posts: 20,215 Thanked: 15,902 Times	My hunch you were driving a petrol car before this and your stopping sequence has to be modified a lil bit. Has happened to me couple of times in the initial few months. Also with higher torque of diesel engines its not advisable to wait for the engine to stop before activating clutch, this puts unwanted stress on the mechanicals. Better method will be to downshift (again be gentle compared to petrol) and then apply clutch as and when the speeds drop to minimum. Last edited by Jaggu : 29th October 2008 at 18:56.
	() Thanks

29th October 2008, 19:35	#4
ankit.jhamb BHPian Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: new delhi Posts: 573 Thanked: Once	had the similar problem with my dzire 1-2 times.but now i have changed my driving style.now i donot shift to neutral directly. now donot face this problem.try following jaggu`s method.
	() Thanks

29th October 2008, 19:53	#5
DirtyDan Senior - BHPian Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Dharamsala, H.P Posts: 2,075 Thanked: 1,563 Times	Go out on a quiet street sometime and turn OFF your stereo. Stopped, on the side of the road, in neutral, give your car a little shot of fuel on the accellerator and quickly take your foot off the pedal. You will notice that the engine stops revving immediately and goes to idle speed. I say again, IMMEDIATELY. This is unlike petrol cars wherein the engine takes a second or two to come to idle. My point is, as soon as you get off the accellerator in fourth you are lugging out the engine and it is going to stall because it quickly goes to idle speed. It is your driving habits. Turn off your stereo and take a long drive sometime without it and listen to your car. A diesel makes many wonderful noises which you can come to appreciate, although I grant you it is an acquired taste.
	() Thanks

29th October 2008, 20:40	#6
tush BHPian Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Pune Posts: 331 Thanked: 12 Times	It happened to me once when i slowed down to take a right turn from a circle at a four square. The engine suddenly turned off and i wasnt able to steer as the steering got tight. I remember that i had pressed the clutch all the way down and wasnt accelerating at all. This is when the engine turned off. I quickly turned the engine on and averted any accident. Thankfully it was during the night hours and there was no traffic. But after that it never happened again. May be it was the driving style i guess.
	() Thanks

29th October 2008, 20:44	#7
anupmathur Senior - BHPian Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: New Delhi Posts: 3,095 Thanked: 307 Times	Simply depress the clutch pedal a little earlier than you are currently doing! That should resolve this issue.
	() Thanks

29th October 2008, 20:46	#8
LastActionHero BHPian Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: New Delhi Posts: 184 Thanked: 22 Times	Ok reading this thread has brought to my mind a stupid question. How should one stop when driving a petrol? I'm a novice driver.. I switch the gear to neutral while the car is still running and then slowly start applying the brakes to bring to a complete stop. Is this normal? Am I damaging my car?
	() Thanks

3rd November 2008, 22:24	#11
LastActionHero BHPian Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: New Delhi Posts: 184 Thanked: 22 Times	Thanks for the info. Will try to avoid my action from now on and follow the right sequence.
	() Thanks

9th July 2009, 16:17	#12
saurabhb2000 BHPian Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Delhi Posts: 144 Thanked: 7 Times	me too webjunk - do you still feel the engine stalling problem? I have been facing it quite frequently in Dzire Zdi now in 7500 - 10000km range. Have got it checked at Maruti Service masters, delhi and they could not replicate it but admitted that they have seen the problem in some other cars. It could be due to faulty clutch.
	() Thanks

9th July 2009, 20:18	#14
mukeshgoel Senior - BHPian Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Gurgaon Posts: 1,234 Thanked: 2,141 Times View My Garage	Hi, I am also facing this problem since the time I bought my Swift VDi in March. Sometimes, it happened with me 2-3 times a day and sometimes not even once in a week. While coming at halt (or almost halt) from speed, on a red light or a round about, I used to press complete clutch till the time the car stops or about to stop, in the process the engine turns off and a result steering power is gone. Told this at the time of 5k Service but SA could not find anything wrong in the car. Now my car has been driven 7300 kms. Was planning to put it on on forum for last few weeks. Now after reading this thread, now (at this moment) I realize that I need to change my driving style for this diesel car. I have been driving petrol cars for last 12 years. While typing this message IIRC, I faced this problem maybe once in last 15 days, so automatically my driving still is improving I guess.
	() Thanks

12th July 2009, 23:23	#15
THEAGCUSTOMS BHPian Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Jalandhar Posts: 70 Thanked: 3 Times	Hi user your car must have some kind of unwanted impurities in your throttle part or the rpm controller u must check it and make it cleaned.
	() Thanks