2nd hand diesels - what to look for?

It varies. Many turbodiesels have an audible whistle, but it's very subtle.

Which is how it should be. If its noticably loud, it's knackered.

The old sierra Xerox my dad drove had one of those indicator things that advised of lamp failure.

At the time my dad worked for a company based in Loughborough.

One managed all the way to the Ashby turn off on the M1 all the way from Bolton without touching the brakes.

How I don't know, but it was 4AM on a Sunday or something...

To this day he still tells of that tale.

Tom

That should be.

Sierra XR4x4

Not some sort of office appliance :-D

Hmmmm, must tell the boss on Monday, he's got around fifty knackered Sprinters to fix.

Whistle, yes - A whistle shows that air pressure has been built up.

Whine, no - a whine signifies unlubricated metal/metal contact.

I did say "from inside the cabin" - clearly you'll hear more noise from outside...

Ya, heh *cough* that'll teach me to read properly! :)

In message , Paul Cummins writes

Yep, on a 10 hour shift I very rarely hear it from _outside_ the cabin, 'cause on the sixty odd occasions I get out, the engine's always off.

Easy answer. Scotland is actually 'higher' than England so you were 'going uphill' a bit more all the way there. Coming back you were going 'downhill' a bit more thus increasing economy :)

There is only one logical measurement.

Paul Cummins ( snipped-for-privacy@spam.vlaad.co.uk) gurgled happily, sounding much like they were saying :

And the difference is...?

then yes, your turbo is being knackered as we speak.

Do you let the engine idle for a few seconds before killing it?

a turbo whistle sounds much like a distant steam whistle. It will vary it's note only slightly, and directly in line with engine speed. It also lessens with higher accelerator opening.

A whine sounds like a whine, varying with, but not totally in synch with, the engine speed. Is it literally the sound of the bearing breaking up. It becomes worse the faster the engine runs, and also worse, the heavier the foot. It often accompanied by drivers who kill the engine before it's idled for 4-5 seconds when they stop outside their deliveries...

My turbo whistles gently, and is barely audible in 5th.

I'm glad that's sorted then. Now what about speed? Kms per 27minutes

Huw

Paul Cummins ( snipped-for-privacy@spam.vlaad.co.uk) gurgled happily, sounding much like they were saying :

You snipped a bit :-

Furlongs per fortnight is the accepted standard afaik.

cheers, clive

Not sure about that. Every Alfa 156 2.4JTD I've driven (from brand new on) has had a very noticeable turbo *whistle*..particularly when the engine is cold. It reduces somewhat when warmed up.

In my case, it's a Garrett VNT 25 (variable venturi) and it's doing just as good a job now as it did five years ago so I'm not about to walk away..

Unless you've got a variable venturi turbo - I thought these were common nowadays - where the turbo whistle note sounds more related to engine load than speed.