Diesel engine heater thingy kaput.

My first Rover 75 had a Webasto heater - but it only kicked in at temperatures below (I think) 5 degrees. Are you sure that yours is not the same? This has been a fairly mild winter so far with sub 5 degree temperatures on only a few days.

Kev

It's been sub-zero here in the mornings over the last few days. Definitely kaput.

Tim

If its anything like the Webasto night heaters for lorries then they tend to pack in if you don't fire them up (just briefly) once a week. Its very common to get to winter and find the cab heater doesn't work.

I suspect it's prettty much the same unit but minus the water circulating pump. As it relies on the engine water pump, there's no option to fire it up manually.

If it's disuse that's the problem then that might perhaps suggest that it's a mechical problem with the internal fan bearings or perhaps the ignitor that's causing the problem.

Time to get a screwdriver out! ;-)

Tim

First thing to check is the glowplug.

It has a glow plug? Where?

Tim

If you really don't have a clue how these heaters work.. you might like to find out how much they cost new.. and how much dealers charge to repair them before you go fiddeling about...

Not a webasto.. but the last eberspacher (exactly the same design, just different name) i had, would have cost over a grand to buy new, simple things like the exhaust pipeing was around 40 quid a meter, not something you'd think about when the clip holding it on is in an awkward position, and you think it's better to cut the pipe and replace it with new when you re-fit the heater.. untill you go to buy the pipe that is :)

On my heater i had one of the heat sensors go open circuit, dealer wanted 50 quid for a new one, and another 50 to fit it if i wasnt able to do do so... luckily i'd had an electric shower appart the week before, and noticed an electric showers over heat switch was the same item as in the heater.. just used to tell the heater when to turn the glow plug on and off as the combustion chamber got upto temp,

So i nipped to RS components, and bought a similar heat switch of the same rating for £1.49, it was still working when i sold the heater 4 years later.. on ebay for almost 400 quid.

Anyway, if it's a modern webasto heater, then it should have the fault code readout port on it.. in the wiring loom somewhere, and with these heaters if they fail to start up so many times.. 5 i think with the eberspachers, they lock out and won't attempt to re-start untill the fault code has been read, and the system re-set.. then you have another 5 non starts allowed untill it locks out again.

and the fault code readers are specific to the heater, as is the re-setting tool, so only dealers will have them.

Have a browse through

although it is a Americansite they cover most of the DB/DW/ThemoTop type heaters. Somedocumentation there also for fault finding & parts lists etc. Neil

Well, I'm coming to the conclusion that there's not a lot I can do myself with this unit but my problem is that because of stupid penny-pinching by Citroen, it's no use as a "pre-heater" and as such, not really worth spending a lot to repair.

I'm afraid I've rather lost faith with my local main dealer (or "thieving shysters" as I prefer to think of them) and my next nearest dealer is 40 miles away. It's a case of either do it myself or not at all.

Hmm...., any chance any independant auto electricians would have access to the necessary kit?

Tim

Many thanks! Just what I've been looking for. If nothing else, I can at least try an electrical reset and see if that boots it back into life (even if only temporarily).

Tim