Vectra 2.0 DTI 16V Low Power

Honest John Back Room » Technical matters
What is life like with your car? Let us know and win £500 in John Lewis vouchers | No thanks
View Threaded
Sat 26 Jul 2003 17:14
Vectra 2.0 DTI 16V Low Power - stevie070
I have a Vectra CDX 2.0 dti 16v 1998 which has low power.I have read all of the other posts on here but none seem to cure my problem. It is very hard to pull away from roundabouts with any speed and it is sluggish in all gears.In have checked all the common faults like the vac system, egr and all the solenoids and piping, the turbo and the waste gate solenoid are working ok. I have stripped the inlet manifiold and cleaned the variable valves.Ihave also cleaned the air flow meter but with no improvment. The car has just passed the mot and when smoke tested it was well under the pass limit which makes me think the fuel pump is not delivering full fuel, is there any way to test these fly by wire pumps without selling my house and using a vauxhall dealer as it seems with these engines they have no idea what is wrong when the ecu light is not on.If anyone can shed some light on the problem please let me know as apart from low power the car is great.

Steve.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Sat 26 Jul 2003 22:57
Vectra 2.0 DTI 16V Low Power - wemyss
Sounds as if youve looked at most things Steve. I suppose you have checked the simple things such as air access into the fuel supply and the filter bowl.
I have a 98 Vectra with the same engine and it has lots of power unless you let the revs drop below the turbo working range.
However I have a friend who works on TDi Vectras as a fleet mechanic and will ask him when he returns off holiday.
You may have noticed on an earlier thread that I had trouble with the spill pipes off the injectors but this only affected starting. Apparently this happens to all of them and are a must to be replaced.
alvin
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Sun 27 Jul 2003 22:57
Vectra 2.0 DTI 16V Low Power - stevie070
Thanks for your time Alvin.
I have changed the spill pipes when i serviced the car,I have also thought about air getting in the system but all the pipes and filter look good. The car starts without fail on hot or frosty mornigs.
The big problem with the car is i bought it cheap, and at the time i thought it was down on power but as the engine sounds as sweet as a nut i thought a good service could improve the power ( wrong !!).
When i say it is down on power i am comparing it to my works van which is a 97 TD astra van with 68 horse, put the two side by side and the van would pink fluffy dice on it.
The only thing im am going to do is follow all the wiring back to the ecu from the sensors and check for any signs of bad connections, if that fails it could look like a new air flow meter as that really controls all of the settings for fuel rate.

Any thanks for you help

Steve.
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Mon 28 Jul 2003 00:44
Vectra 2.0 DTI 16V Low Power - Dynamic Dave
Sounds familiar. Did you come across this thread in your search Stevie?

www.honestjohn.co.uk/forum/post/index.htm?t=7566&m...e

Although you might want to read the whole thread.

www.honestjohn.co.uk/forum/post/index.htm?f=4&t=75...6
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Mon 28 Jul 2003 07:56
Vectra 2.0 DTI 16V Low Power - CarlW
Hi Steve

I had the same problem when i bought my 97 2 litre tdi Vectra,
although i didn't know it at the time as i had just bought it. I was used to the power for about a week until the ECU light flashed twice. I popped into a Vauxhall spares centre who plugged in the computer and diagnosed the Air mass meter. He fitted a new one while i waited and when i drove the car home......well, 3 times the power i reckon!!!!
Also it wouldn't rev about 4000rpm before, does yours??

Mine now sounds like it has a dodgy bearing in the engine, very whiny above 3000rpm. Anyone know if this is normal???

Carl
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Mon 28 Jul 2003 22:13
Vectra 2.0 DTI 16V Low Power - stevie070
Hi Carl,
Thanks for your help, your problem sounds just like mine except no ecu light.My engine is also reluctant to rev above 4000rpm and you will stuggle to get it near the red line unless you are in 1st or 2nd.When you drive it around town it does not drive that bad its when you open it up that you notice the lack of power.
I must confess the air flow meter sounds like the likley fault, it would help if though if the ecu light came on though.
When you say your engine has a whine do you think it could be a noisey turbo ????. Personally i would disconnect the drive belt that drives the alternator, air con,and power steering pump and run the engine and see if it still there.Only run it for a few seconds though as the belt also drives the water pump!.
Thanks for help mate hope you cure your whine,
Steve.
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Tue 29 Jul 2003 08:02
Vectra 2.0 DTI 16V Low Power - CarlW
Thanks for the info Steve, I don't think its the turbo as it literally goes with engine speed (under load or not)!

If you decide to get a new air flow meter, I can recommend the Vauxhall spares centre near Romford, Essex if you're in the area, they only charge £85 + VAT for a brand new one.
They have a good stock as they're always being asked for them apparently.
They will also plug into the ECU for £15 to see if there are any fault codes. Bargain!!

Cheers
Carl
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Sun 3 Aug 2003 03:01
Vectra 2.0 DTI 16V Low Power - RS2000
Hi CarlW,

can you let me know where abouts that Vaux spares is in Romford? I think I might get my vectra over there to see if they can sort out why mine is lagging on power & as above won\'t rev more than 4000 RPM.
Not going to vauxhalls again for them to charge £45 and then they tell me that until the EM light stays on all the time they cant work out what the problem is : Cheers Vauxhall\'s ???

cheers Mate

Paul...(RS2000)

rs2k@ntlworld.com
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Sun 3 Aug 2003 10:21
Vectra 2.0 DTI 16V Low Power - CarlW
Sure no probs. If you know Gallows corner, go down straight road from there to the mini roundabout with the jeans shop.
Turn right, down there just passed the turning that goes to B & Q is a blue fence with a very small industrial estate. Go in the gate and down the right hand side is a Ford spares centre and a Vaux spares centre.
I highly recommend them!!
Good luck.
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Sun 3 Aug 2003 22:48
Vectra 2.0 DTI 16V Low Power - RS2000
Do they actually do vauxhall repairs there or just the tech test??? cheers M8.

Only while i was at Harlow today, i booked me car into vaux\'s over there for them to have a look next friday.


I\'ve already had the problem sorted once. It was the ERG unit they replaced last time it went like this,
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Mon 4 Aug 2003 13:29
Vectra 2.0 DTI 16V Low Power - Cyrill666 {P}
Hello,

www.vauxhall-spares-centre.co.uk

For contact info and a map. Never used them, but when I get around to replacing my MAF sensor I'll certainly give them a call.

Cheers,
Cyrill666
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Tue 29 Jul 2003 20:14
Vectra 2.0 DTI 16V Low Power - Flat in Fifth
"very whiny above 3000rpm."

difficult to diagnose sounds over the net but my late Vectra had distinct turbo whistle above 3000 which could have been called a whine more than a whistle I guess.
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Wed 30 Jul 2003 09:15
Vectra 2.0 DTI 16V Low Power - CarlW
Oh OK thanks.
I've read on here a lot about the oil feed pipe to the turbo being blocked. Do you know exactly which pipe this is so I can check it out??

Cheers all.
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Tue 5 Aug 2003 09:53
Vectra 2.0 DTI 16V Low Power - stevie070
Hi,
Have just got my hands on the latest Vauxhall TIS service disc (ask no questions).When i have loaded it up i will let you know if it helps with sorting out this Vectra of mine with low power.
Thanks for all your help,
Steve.
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Tue 5 Aug 2003 19:39
Vectra 2.0 DTI 16V Low Power - CarlW
Great, hope it sorts your problems.
Any chance of a copy!?!?!
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Tue 18 Mar 2014 23:15
Vauxhall astra 07 twintop 1.0 cdti - joannapattinson
Please can anyone give me any advice... Being a women a lot goes over my head, however my astra twin top has lost all power up to 20revs, then their is power, but my foot is on the floor and the car goes no where. My boyfriend has worked on this car along side the garage for a week, he has been doing cars for 30 years but this has got him.. He has checked sensors and air filters all silly things, it's had a new alternator, egr valve is booked in for a regen tomorrow we have driven it for 50 miles in third gear at 70 tonight to warm it up... We just don't no what to do if this doesn't work, hoping someone else has had this problem and has a solution, as between him and 2 garages and 5 mechanics they dispare... Help!!!!
Reply | Report as offensive | Link

We give you the low down on how to save on insurance, little-known tricks and tips, what insurance groups mean and how to use insurance aggregators to beat insurers.

Insurance group finder and how to save on insurance

Looking for a garage you can trust? Honest John's Good Garage Guide has thousands of reader recommended garages, plus how-to guides and tips on servicing.

The Good Garage Guide