2008 Ford focus 1.8 tdci cut out.

[Realdozzy]

Hi everyone I have a 2008 Focus 1.8 tdci.

The other day I was driving home and my car just cut out for no reason. 

I pulled into a side road and attempted to start it which it did ran for about 10 seconds and cut out. I left the vehicle for about 15 mins and tried to restart it. The car started and ran fine. So I headed to mine. About a mile from home and it cut out again and would not start. 

Changed the fuel filter as thought it may have been blocked. 

Refilled the filter with clean diesel and reinstalled. 

Tried starting it started ran for bout 10 secs soon as put foot on throttle it died out. 

I have checked for blockages in fuel line and fuel runs freely. 

I removed the filter again and noticed that the little o ring in centre of the filler cap is warped. Can this happen when just driving. When it first happened there were no lights on the dash and still isn't. 

Would this cause the car to just cut out after driving for last 6 months when I bought it with no problems at all. 

[mjt]

Something very similar to this happened on our old Mk1.5 1.8TDCi. A diagnosis pointed to the camshaft sensor. This was changed and there were no further problems.

I'd recommend checking for any DTC's. A cheap code reader will only report generic codes, of which the cam sensor is likely to be one, whereas something like the free Forscan software on a laptop, with a suitable ELM327 cable, can check Ford-specific ones on both CAN buses.

[Realdozzy]

I thought about the camshaft sensor and spoke to a mechanic who has said if the sensor goes then as its connected to the ecu it will always throw up a engine management light. There's no lights on the dash. 

[mjt]

There wasn't an EML when ours played up but if I remember correctly it flashed a code on the immobiliser LED. It's quite a long time ago now and I didn't keep a record of the fault so can't be totally sure.

Getting the codes read should give a clue to the problem. It's important to realise, however, that they're not infallible. In many cases the ECU has to infer a fault from the readings it gets but they'll usually point you in the right direction.

[Focus7788]

Would this cause the car to just cut out after driving for last 6 months when I bought it with no problems at all. 

No it wouldn't 

2 hours ago, Realdozzy said:

Changed the fuel filter as thought it may have been blocked. 

Refilled the filter with clean diesel and reinstalled. 

Tried starting it started ran for bout 10 secs soon as put foot on throttle it died out. 

I have checked for blockages in fuel line and fuel runs freely. 

I removed the filter again and noticed that the little o ring in centre of the filler cap is warped. Can this happen when just driving. When it first happened there were no lights on the dash and still isn't. 

Would this cause the car to just cut out after driving for last 6 months when I bought it with no problems at all. 

It shouldn't, 6 months? Did you just change the filter recently.

Your post is a little confusing, sorry.

Mechanic is correct, it would put the eml on

[Focus7788]

2 hours ago, Realdozzy said:

Changed the fuel filter as thought it may have been blocked. 

Refilled the filter with clean diesel and reinstalled. 

Tried starting it started ran for bout 10 secs soon as put foot on throttle it died out. 

Air in the diesel, easiest way I found is have someone keep cranking the engine and loosen the screws at the fuel rail, not too much. Air should come out or it'll spout diesel. I checked all mine but there was air only in one of them. 

You might need a spare battery as it can take a while

[guy woodbridge]

Maybe see if any codes are stored? It does point to camshaft sensor to be honest. That is often the culprit with the symptoms you are talking about.

 

[Realdozzy]

14 minutes ago, guy woodbridge said:

Maybe see if any codes are stored? It does point to camshaft sensor to be honest. That is often the culprit with the symptoms you are talking about.

 

Hi. I did think cam shaft sensor but no engine management light on. 

[guy woodbridge]

My old Aldi had an issue where the cam shaft sensor was on the blink. I didnt always get an EML for it though.