Question for diesel drivers

[markjay]

My car does not rattle, it purrs. But it is a diesel. 350 CDI excellent engine won't have a bad word said against it.

Top-of-the-market cars are obviously better in this respect, but try standing next to a any run-of-the-mill diesel-powered Vauxhall/Ford/VW-Audi-Skoda/Citroen-Peugeot/Renault etc in a quiet street.

 

[RWDpetrol]

...my neighbour who leaves his Vauxhall van idling at 5am outside his house while he loads up...

I believe it's illegal in some countries (Denmark?) to leave the car running while cleaning the snow off it - environmental reasons. Same should apply to other activities all year round.

 

[markjay]

I believe it's illegal in some countries (Denmark?) to leave the car running while cleaning the snow off it - environmental reasons. Same should apply to other activities all year round.

As far as I know it has always been illegal to leave a car with the engine running while the driver is not in driver's seat, though it has been generally ignored when jumpstrating another car or tuning the engine etc.

Bus drivers on certain routes in London regularly leave a bus full of passengers with the engine running, while they sit on a bench at the bus stop waiting for replacement. Which is wrong on so many levels.

 

[Giantvanman]

Just to clarify and expand, it also applies (engine running) when the driver is in the vehicle.
Regulation 98(2) of the Road Vehicles (Construction and Use) Regulations 1986, as amended, sets out the circumstances where vehicles are permitted to be stationary with the engine running.

 

[219]

I've never owned a diesel engined vehicle and haven't driven many either, but there's something about them (or their drivers) that has perplexed me for many years. Why is it that so many of the vehicles are left running for such a long time after reaching a destination or whilst popping into a local shop? Sitting out in my garden this evening I was subjected to the horrendous rattling of two neighbours' cars for several minutes after they arrived home. Then a little later I spotted a lady leaving her diesel Ford running whilst she went to collect her child from next door.

• Are diesels difficult to turn off?
• Or perhaps are they difficult to start again if you don't leave them running for a few minutes?
• Maybe the drivers think that their vehicles are so economical it gives them a sense of false superiority to know that they can leave the engine running unnecessarily without too much cost?
• Is it worryingly that drivers of diesel vehicles get some sort of perverted pleasure out of annoying people by running their noisy engines for an extra few minutes?
• Or is it possible that there are just as many drivers of petrol engined cars who leave them running for a long time whilst stationary, but we just don't have to suffer the pain of the rattle?

Please put me out of my misery.

I think the last probably applies .

 

[rf065]

Cars fitted with Stop/Start are obviously configured to safely shut down the turbo without causing damage?

Yes, they run fully synthetic oil, that is the only protection they have.

Russ

 

[merc85]

I don't know anything about turbos , but I thought they were exhaust driven ?

How can the turbo still be turning when the engine is off ?

Genuine question

Because there rotating at 150,000rpm they dont just stop when you turn the engine off.

The Engine needed to be runing on the Volvo as the Oil pump is driven off the crank

 

[merc85]

Again, 99% of turbos are not water cooled. The only reason letting the turbo spool down is not mentioned much anymore is because when turbos were first in use we were still running engines on mineral oil which turned to carbon and blocked the turbo's oil passage if it got too hot. Modern synthetic oils do not do this, but letting the turbo spool down is still not a bad idea.

Russ

Alot of modern car's have Water cooled turbo's,

Volvo and Subaru are just 2 of them, Thats Mitsubishi's turbo's and some Garret's btw

 

[rf065]

Alot of modern car's have Water cooled turbo's,

Volvo and Subaru are just 2 of them, Thats Mitsubishi's turbo's and some Garret's btw

A hell of a lot more don't though.

Russ

 

[boxbrownie]

As I recently discovered on my new A6 not only is the steering and water pump electric driven so also is the AC compressor, not sure about the oil pump though......I'll have to find out.
But at least I can sit with the engine off and keep cool in this weather we are presently having

Aha....yes apparently the oil pump is also electrically driven to maintain pressure in the system whilst in coast and stop/start mode........good job it has a huge battery

 

[geraldrobins]

Top-of-the-market cars are obviously better in this respect, but try standing next to a any run-of-the-mill diesel-powered Vauxhall/Ford/VW-Audi-Skoda/Citroen-Peugeot/Renault etc in a quiet street.

Not sure what you mean by run of the mill where you include audi, or do you mean larger engine cars of say 6 cylinders which may be quieter by design. Although a more luxurious or top of the range car may well have more sound insulation.

 

[tali]

Just wanted to ask similar question - why do coaches have engine running on idle ?I've gone to pick up points and waited up to 1hr and the engine has been running?
Why can't/won't they switch off engine whilst awaiting passengers?

 

[merc85]

A hell of a lot more don't though.

Russ

Quite a few here

http://www.stealth316.com/misc/mhi-turbo-applications-melett.pdf

 

[markjay]

Not sure what you mean by run of the mill where you include audi, or do you mean larger engine cars of say 6 cylinders which may be quieter by design. Although a more luxurious or top of the range car may well have more sound insulation.

I meant mostly the 1.8T engine found on Audi's smaller cars, not the A8...

 

[merc85]

Quite a few here

http://www.stealth316.com/misc/mhi-turbo-applications-melett.pdf

Also Here is a list of Borg Warner (CHRA) thats the centre of the turbo btw that are used in vehicles scroll down page 11 onwards it show id say 50% of there turbos are water cooled, and thats just 1 Manufactuer.

http://www.turbointernational.com/images/catalog-pdf/Catalog-KKK.pdf

 

[carat 3.6]

Just wanted to ask similar question - why do coaches have engine running on idle ?I've gone to pick up points and waited up to 1hr and the engine has been running?
Why can't/won't they switch off engine whilst awaiting passengers?

Coach'es keep the engine running to drive the air con system, it takes quite a while to get the interior to the desired temperature because of the amount of room inside.

The other reason is to keep the air pressure built up in the reservoirs, most coaches leak like a sieve because nobody wants to spend money on them.

 

[V12]

Quite a few here

http://www.stealth316.com/misc/mhi-turbo-applications-melett.pdf

No cars with water cooled apart from VAG ones.
Even then, none of the cars can hardly be called modern. Most are over 15 years old.

 

[Simon_M]

http://www.turbobygarrett.com/turbo...iles/Garrett_White_Paper_01_Water_Cooling.pdf

 

[grober]

After a detailed consideration of several aspects of modern engine technology and developments in synthetic oil rheology I have to conclude that the reason many car drivers leave their their diesel engines running while parked is that they can't be *rsed to turn them off.

 

[carat 3.6]

After a detailed consideration of several aspects of modern engine technology and developments in synthetic oil rheology I have to conclude that the reason many car drivers leave their their diesel engines running while parked is that they can't be *rsed to turn them off.

I personally leave my diesel's running because they sound gorgeous, my neighbours really appreciate the soundtrack on a cold morning.