[vectra120]

First time tinkering under the bonnet today, replaced both front indicator bulbs no big drama (except for one bolt down that convenient liitle hole doh!)
Next took the engine cover off and noticed what looked like an oily patch on the head/cam cover around No3 cylinder. Figuring it was just a leaky gasket I went to wipe it away only to find it was a hard coked up deposit like I'd expect in an exhaust manifold or EGR. I scraped a bit away with a small screwdriver then started the engine. With the bonnet shut and the engine cover on I could hear what to me sounded like a tappety tick tick noise, with bonnet open and cover off it was more of a chuff chuff noise (like starting and engine up with spark plug out). A bit more scarping hoovering and inspection and it looks to me like the injector seal to the head is leaking, seems worse with a engine cold than hot.

Does the injector electrical connection come off easily, is it fragile?
Is taking the injector and clamp off straightforward?

Will probably get a local diesel specialist to look at it tomorrow and see if they have seals for it.

Off on hols to France soon so don't need gremlins!

Never did get round to looking at glow plug connection (flashing light on dash) which was why I took the engine cover off in the first place!

Keith

 

[Viking Paul]

get the issue sorted asap as whats happening on the out side of your engine (HARD COKE) is also happening inside the rocker cover and this can lead to turbo failure as the coke blocks the engine sump pick up strainer, get the oil flushed and changed after the blow is fixed

 

[vectra120]

Got it fixed by a local diesel specialist today.
I took it to them with a view to getting them to diagnose it then booking it in to get fixed, but the chap who looked at it said yes it is injector seal we've done quite a few of these SHOULD only take 15-30mins might as well do it now.

He squirted some duck oil on it with the engine running just to check that only 1 was leaking, sure enough just No3. So he took No3 out and checked that the other 3 were tight all good up until now.
Injector hadcarbon/coke along it's whole length, had been blowing for some time!

Then he took the washer out with a long reach tool of some sort (will try to take some pictures, middle noticably blown).

Next step was to clean up the washer seat with a seat cutting tool, the tool was a 'snug' fit and here comes the problem! Seat cut OK with a bit of effort but now the seat cutting tool won't come out! Much levering and prying and out it came, well most of it came out! cutting tool tipstill in hole. My suggestion of putting a box with packing in upside down over the hole an turing the engine didn't work. So I had to leave it with them for a while so that I could go to work. They phoned me a couple of hrs later to say it was all done and only charged me £30. Seems OK and that woft of diesel exhaust fumes on start up has gone. (fingers crossed it might improve mpg!)

So if your does this it's probably not a DIY job unless you're quite experienced and well equipped. It wasn't the first one they'd got stuck so now they are trying to source a reamer type tool to clear the carbon from the injector hole before cutting the seat.

Thanks for the tip Paul will change oil ASAP, any recommendation on oil that suits?

 

[vectra120]

Seems to run smoother and quieter, oil flushed and changed and still clean after about 60miles.
To add photos do I have to upload them somewhere else then put a link in here?

 

[m623d]

That's what I did, uploaded to photo bucket and pasted link