Is it turning over faster than normal? Check the cam belt/chain.

 

No, it's turning over normally - I checked inside the rocker cover and the camshaft is rotating. There is no unusual noise either.

 

Well there is no spark plug type ignition so it has to be fuel shortage or air in the fuel system, blocked fuel filter, things in this line?

 

any light on the dash you might need a code read a dead crank sensor will stop it running

 

these things are a right pain when they go wrong , any slight air leak on the fuel system will stop it dead & never get it started .
as posted above though , you need to get the codes read to find out if it is crank sensor or even pump failure .

 

Thanks for all the above, I'll start working my way through them and post the results when I have some. Thanks again for the ideas and your time, much appreciated.
Ade

 

OK folks, have spent two days going over the vacuum system (no fault found) and replacing the drain down pipes from the injectors to the injection pump (which were in poor state). Charged the battery as a matter of course for cranking it over while I was busy with the other bits. Interesting point - no EML when ignition turned on or whilst cranking the motor over waiting for the fuel to get through. Cranked for 30 secs at a time to preserve starter, but right up until the battery went too weak there was no attempt at firing. Only at the end when the battery was out of juice did the EML light again.

The crank sensor was mentioned previously - can this be tested at home?

The nearest dealer for a code reading is 45 miles and would cost me quite a bit as I would have to pay a recovery fee so that's a real last resort I'm afraid. What do I do next Amigos? Thanks again for your time.
Ade

 

As Startrader sort of said, if you have fuel in a diesel engine and turn it over, eventually the compression should make it try to fire*. Therefore I'd start investigating the fuel system. *obviously you need compression too.

My mate had a problem like this on his Leon (except intermittantly), after changing injectors and injector wiring harness (fuel at injectors but not going into the cylinders) the garage thought it might be an ECU problem but still no luck until they physically found a broken earth wire in the bulkhead that had been causing an intermittant fault and confusing the ECU into not injecting fuel. I have no idea how I would go about finding a problem like that, but would definitely start on the fuel system and hope it's something simple and obvious like a blocked fuel filter (or cracked housing stopping it priming maybe?). I hardly dare ask a fellow engineer, but you have got fuel in the tank haven't you?

 

Any question is legit at this stage Boater, no offence taken at all mate. There is 3/4 fuel in the tank. Having changed the drain-down pipes and cranked for some time, I then checked that fuel had gone through as far as the drain-down pipes (therefore assuming that it has passed through the injectors ok and confirmed that the pump is pushing fuel - at an unknown pressure of course). I have also had a close listen whilst my wife turns the engine and can not hear any untoward sounds from the head-gasket. From this I am assuming compression is ok and fuel is there but not whether the pump pressure is sufficient to make the injectors work. Does this sound logical to you? Can I test the pressure being output from the pump?

I have to say my fear is the ECU or the ECU on the pump as it was instant cut-out of engine but as you say there's a lot of possibilities with simple wiring faults!! I'll start on the bulkhead wiring as a start point and keep on with that. Thanks for the suggestions, keep 'em coming please.

Ade

 

New piece of info, my missus has informed me that twice while she was driving the car before it's catastrophic stop, that when the EML came on the RPM dropped to zero - both times even though it carried on running in "get you home" mode. Where does the RPM counter get it's input? Could this also point to the crank sensor as mentioned by erroneousbogz (are you a plumber?).

 

A dodgy crank sensor can cause the rev counter to stop working and as Mr Bogz says could be the cause of your car not starting as well. The crank sensor is screwed to the front of the engine below the oil filter housing above the level of the sump gasket. (Just in case you need to ask).

 

Thanks for that, found it and removed it, cleaned it, put it back, tried to start - no change. Ordered a new one. Another step towards a working jalopy, thanks again everyone!

Oh, another question, when the vacuum pipes disappear into the bulkhead - where do they go? I've checked all the accessible ones around the engine but can't say the system is truly intact until I check the rest!

Ade

 

you need new cranksensor fitting and you need to bleed the fuel system to the return first change cranksensor

second fill up filter with fuel and tank to 1/4 full

remove return to tank turn ignition to on position

use a small pump to pull fuel through to return pipe

when you get fuel through reconnect return pipe and try starting

the reason you need ignition on during bleeding is that it lifts the fuel stop solenoid

 

Thanks for the above Fronteraorg, I've just fitted the new sensor and am waiting for the battery to charge to full strength before doing the rest (pulling fuel through and trying it). You mentioned the fuel stop solenoid - this was the first thing I suspected when it just cut out but there's no mention in the haynes manual that I've got and I can't find a likely looking culprit on the fuel lines. Is it in the pump? Should I be able to hear it latch when the ignition turns on? Just in case the above doesn't bear fruit!! Thanks again for your time, I appreciate it.
Ade

 

OK, here we go again!! Have done all the above: vacuum pipes, drain down pipes, crank sensor, pumped fuel through and turned it over - no joy. The question of a fuel stop solenoid has already come up but I don't know where it is - there is no reference to it in the manual or the fuse list and I cannot see anything on the fuel lines that looks likely. Can anyone shed light on this bit?

I am pretty sure that I still have compression going by the rate at which the starter turns the motor (it's no faster than before the failure) and the air coming out the exhaust whilst turning it over. I keep coming back to the suddenness of the stop with no mechanical noise or prior symptoms, it was sweet right up to that moment. Electrical?

Thanks once more for your assistance folks, sorry it's dragging on. All the best,

Ade

 

Well, I think the end is nigh - although the EML no longer lights up at all (result of all the little things I've tried), the motor still will not start. From all my research outside the forum and within it I think that the Fuel Spooling Solenoid (built into the pump) is the culprit, or there's also a transistor in the pump ECU that burns out causing the solenoid to malfunction. I've also read that the transistor fails as a result of the solenoid seizing. Either way it's a big job to take it all to bits and replace or repair the pump and I have run out of time. Shame as she's in really nice condition for an old gal but I'll sell her to someone with the time and know-how to do it - if there's a Frenchman around here prepared to put the effort in!!

Thank you all so much for the help and advice, it's been a real pleasure to be a thicky with you lot about to bail me out. If I get another Vectra I'll be back - hopefully in better circumstances though. My best to you all.
Ade.
(unless someone comes up with a last second solution!!)

 

have u ?

 

have you checked the pickup filter in tank under rear seats? defo worth a look. thats why mine stopped eml probs and all that.have a quick look v. easy.had months of probs with mine and dealer told me needed new pump for just 1700 quid . i too was redy to scrap the car. in a last attempt looked at filter in tank. it was blocked badly,washed it and all my probs were solved.

 

Well robbodobbo, never heard of a pick-up filter until I read your post today - I only logged on to cancel my membership!! I have just finished cleaning the filter and it was so clogged with what looks like algae that it had formed a flap over the filter that would shut off fuel flow the moment that the lift pump pulled!! Unbelievable. The battery is on charge as I type and I'll give it a go as soon as it's good eneough to go. Watch this space.

I must also apologise to Boater - he mentioned blocked fuel filter early on and I only knew about the one in the engine bay. I should have looked deeper and found the pick-up filter first time round (I did call myself an aircraft engineer after all!). Good call Boater, badly handled on my part.

 

Oh well, that wasn't the problem then - it just looked like a good bet!! Pulled fuel through to filter in engine bay and turned her over.....not a dicky bird. Just turned over like a champ but wouldn't fire up. Gave it quite a while but no joy. As soon as it turns over the warning lights all go out as normal, even the oil pressure after a while. So the last thing must be the pump - maybe the electrical fault I keep reading about where it burns out a transistor. Ho-hum.

 

The filter clean didn't work - crushing defeat. Vectra 8 - human 0.

Did a bit more research on the EDC side of the injection pump and decided to take it off and have a look at it. The idea being if the spooling solenoid on the bottom had failed, it burns out the transistor that controls it. However, as soon as I removed it I saw that there was no insulation left on the wires where they come out of the EDC and go to the spooling solenoid. This makes them very vulnerable to shorting to either themselves or the pump body which, I'm assuming, would kill the solenoid and therefore the engine as the spooling solenoid is the "stop/run" device on these pumps. This bit of insulation could maybe be inspected with a small mirror and a torch if you have a similar problem - it would have saved me weeks of messing about if I'd known more about it then!!! New EDC is on order and I will post when it's fitted and of course whether it solved the problem.