Bought a 100k V50 2007 Diesel, great car but in the 3 months/ 1500 miles I've owned her she's failed to start 3 times. On each occasion I have rocked her back and fourth and then she starts! Sorry no codes, but the first time it said that the ABS needed servicing. Some kind of sensor issue maybe? I'd be grateful if anyone has any ideas.

 

Define "failed to start".

 

Ok. I turn the key and you get a click, but no starter motor. If you persist you sometimes get a quick engagement of the starter motor, but then it stops. Roll the car forward and it starts as normal. Does that help?

 

sounds like the solenoid may be hanging up. not sure if you have access but as a test, when it hangs up, try hitting the starter with a hammer or mallet. if that gets the car to start, then you know its time to replace the starter and solenoid

 

Probably IS the starter. The other things to check out are the power and ground connections to the starter / engine block. I'd throw a voltmeter on the big red lead, and see if battery voltage stays when you get the click or not.

The other thing is to check for a bad ground strap. You can cheat, and just use a jumper cable from the battery negative terminal to the engine block. If that fixes your problem, look for a rusty ground strap from the body to the engine block.

But I'm betting it's the starter itself.

 

Thanks guys, good call on the solenoid, I will check the earth lead as well. But I’m still wondering if is more electronic. Because I only roll the car forward or backwards (out of gear). Would a faulty ABS sensor, or dirt on the ring it looks at, cause the electronics to stop the car starting? or am I barking up the wrong tree

 

ABS won't keep the car from starting. I suspect that the correlation between rolling the car back and forth and it starting or not is coincidental, other than the possibility that doing so moves something in the engine compartment (most likely "reconnecting" a cable that's intermittent, temporarily).

 

Ok thanks, I shall set about investigating the solenoid and earth cable and let you guys know. Thanks for your help.

 

i am having the same problem. However replaced the starter motor and still having issue.

 

If it's intermittent, check the ground strap to the engine, and the connections between the battery and starter (there are only a few - follow the "big red wire").

It's actually quite easy to troubleshoot IF it's acting up. Just probe with a voltmeter, starting at the battery and working to the big red wire on the starter. If you have 12 volts at one point, and not on the next (when a helper is trying to engage the starter), then you know the problem is between those two points. You can also check the negative cable / circuit this way too - just put one lead on the battery's negative terminal and the other to the engine block. If you get more than a small fraction of a volt when you try to engage the starter, you know you have a bad / loose ground strap to the engine block.

 

I ended up taking my car in. The car had two problems. The connector to the ECU had become loose in the past so someone had fix them together with a screw!!! (which wasn't holding it anyway). The guys took the screw out, cleaned the connections and cable tied it together. The faults were cleared and I drove on for a while, but every now and then the car started going into limp mode.
Back it went to the garage and the guys at the garage thought it might be an electronic part that all the messages go through before reaching the ECU (sorry for the lack of technical name). They bought a second hand unit and had it cloned and since then the car has been perfect, and that a year ago now.
Hope that helps someone in the future.
Diesel Dave