Tell me more ×
Motor Vehicle Maintenance & Repair Stack Exchange is a question and answer site for mechanics and DIY enthusiast owners of cars, trucks, and motorcycles. It's 100% free, no registration required.
up vote -2 down vote favorite

Diesel engines are more complex than their petrol counterparts. What are the basic diesel engines maintenance must-dos?

share|improve this question
3  
Can you make your question more specific? It is open-ended at the moment. – jzd Jul 18 '11 at 11:29
Also, what sort of Diesel engine are you referring to - maintenance on a modern electronic TDI is very different to a 1960s indirect-injection Land Rover engine, for example. – Nick C Jul 19 '11 at 12:22
Don't run them out of fuel, re-priming can be a nightmare. Especially if you're stuck on the side of the road without any tools. Don't ask how I know... :-) – Brian Knoblauch Jul 19 '11 at 15:14
Welcome to the site, please edit your question to make it more specific and I will be glad to reopen it. – Larry♦ Jul 24 '11 at 18:49

closed as not a real question by jzd, Larry♦ Jul 24 '11 at 18:48

It's difficult to tell what is being asked here. This question is ambiguous, vague, incomplete, overly broad, or rhetorical and cannot be reasonably answered in its current form. For help clarifying this question so that it can be reopened, see the FAQ.

1 Answer

up vote 3 down vote

Because diesel engines are so much simpler than petrol engines, servicing them is a lot easier. There's no spark plugs or timing to worry about, no mixture to set, none of it.

All you need to do is ensure that the fuel and air filters are clean, and change the oil and oil filter regularly. Timing belts are a little more complicated to do because they drive the injector pump as well as the camshaft, even on common-rail diesels.

One thing to watch out for is that old-style diesels don't self-prime, so you need to press the button on top of the filter until it won't depress.

share|improve this answer
if the filter doesn't have a button to press, you can easily prefill it yourself as you install it (mark4 vw TDI, for example) – Oren Mazor Jul 20 '11 at 18:39
Yes, and many of the common-rail diesels use an electric lift pump in the tank like petrol injection systems - so all you need to do is slacken the bleed screw on the filter head (T20 or T25 Torx, usually) until diesel bubbles out. Slacken, not remove ;-) – user822 Jul 21 '11 at 7:56

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.