The winter operation of a diesel car is covered with many stereotypes. Of these, the main one is that you can’t start a diesel engine in the cold! However, the roots of this prejudice are from the distant past, today everything is different. Modern glow plugs help start a diesel engine in almost any frost.
Due to low fuel consumption and excellent traction characteristics, diesel remains popular not only in the commercial transportation market, but also among car owners. Knowing how popular diesel is and how harsh winter can be in Australia, FEBEST has included almost a hundred glow plug options in its catalog.
Candles FEBEST – reliable design with two spirals
The main job of a glow plug is to help a diesel engine with a cold start. Let’s briefly describe how it works.
The mixture of air and diesel fuel (DF) in the cylinders of a diesel engine is ignited by compression. As we know, during compression, the temperature of the gas rises. But the lower the initial air temperature in the cylinder, the more difficult it is to raise it to a value at which diesel fuel will ignite. To heat the cold winter air, glow plugs were introduced into the design of the diesel engine.
Heating is provided by a heating coil located inside the candle body. Voltage is applied to it, and the coil heats up to 800–1300 °C. The tip of the candle, is led into the combustion chamber, where it heats the air compressed by the piston.
The candle should heat up relatively quickly, from 2 to 10 seconds. The faster the heating, the lower the battery charge consumption before starting. Response speed is an important criterion for a modern candle, and here FEBEST products meet the most stringent requirements.
In order to prevent the candle from overheating when voltage is applied sharply, a second spiral is installed inside the structure – a regulating one. Its resistance varies with temperature. To smooth out temperature changes and to protect both coils from shorting to the body, the internal cavity of the candle contains a special filler (usually magnesium oxide) – neither air, nor oil or fuel should get inside the candle, by analogy with an incandescent lamp.
The higher the temperature, the less current the control coil passes to the working coil, protecting the latter from burnout. The twin coil design is the modern standard for glow plugs and is also adopted by FEBEST.
When is it time to change the spark plug?
The main sign of a malfunctioning glow plug is difficult starting the engine in cold weather. If at the same time winter diesel fuel is poured into the car, the battery is normally charged and the starter turns, but the start still does not occur, then with a high probability the problem is in the glow plugs. The heating control unit can also help determine the malfunction. If the spiral of one of the candles breaks, the “spiral” indicator will blink.
It also happens that the indicator normally burns evenly, but the start is still difficult. There may be a number of malfunctions here at once. In which normal voltage is not supplied to the glow plugs, or the voltage is not supplied on time (problems with the glow relay or the candle control unit). Or the spirals are partially damaged and closed to the housing.
Part of the diagnostic procedures can be carried out without removing the candles. To begin with, you can measure the resistance of each of the candles. It should be in the range from 0.7 to 1.8 ohms, depending on the factory specifications. If the indicator is much higher, then the candle does not heat up to the desired temperature. If there is no conductivity at all, then the candle is faulty and needs to be replaced.
As a rule, the surest way out is to dismantle the candles and replace them. It is important to remember that the failure of one candle often indicates that the resource of the remaining ones will soon be exhausted. Therefore, it makes sense to immediately replace the entire set, especially since on most models this procedure is not simple, it usually requires a lot of labor and it is better not to do it twice.
Change to FEBEST
The fleet of passenger diesel engines in Russia is very large. Almost all the most common brands have or had diesel models in their arsenal – these are Toyota, VAG, and Hyundai-KIA. Knowing about the need for these cars in new glow plugs, as well as their shortage due to the departure of a number of large auto parts manufacturers from the country. FEBEST offers Australian car enthusiasts their own glow plugs. We have added 92 articles of modern, high-speed glow plugs to our catalog at once. Our parts meeting all the standards of the car manufacturer. Supported brands include Mitsubishi, Toyota, Mazda, Opel, SsangYong, Fiat, Citroen, Suzuki, Volvo, Honda, Mercedes, VW, Skoda, Audi, Hyundai, KIA. The wide range of FEBEST glow plugs provides a wide range of applications.
An important point that we would like to draw your attention to when installing FEBEST glow plugs is strict adherence to the candle tightening torque. In accordance with the requirements of the car manufacturer. Exceeding the recommended torque can lead to both damage to the spark plug itself. By stretching of the body and damage to internal parts. And damage to the threads in the cylinder head, with subsequent problems when dismantling the spark plug. Insufficient preload, in turn, can lead to a violation of the tightness of the thread and a drop in compression in the cylinder.
Proper installation and the correct choice of glow plugs are a guarantee (along with winter diesel fuel, of course) of a quick and successful start of a diesel engine in any frost. You should not wait for those who left Russia or risk running into counterfeit goods. It is better to opt for FEBEST glow plugs. You can choose the right model using the convenient FEBEST electronic catalog!
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