New Highway Star owner, Aberdeen

[LargoStar]

Hi all, I'm Steve, and I've just become a proud owner of a 1996 Highway Star. I have a growing family and always fancied one of these, and I'm not disappointed!

These are scarce up here so I had to take a risk and buy one online from a seller in London, but it was driven up overnight and all is good.

Looking forward to getting to know you all!

[tttonyyy]

Hiya and welcome to the forum

[LargoStar]

Cheers! Well, day two of ownership and the missus has texted me to say that the van is driving fine but the engine warning light is flickering intermittently. Hmm.. might have to get the fault codes read.

[tttonyyy]

Two ways to do that

viewtopic.php?f=20&t=2528
viewtopic.php?t=3916&p=44650

[LargoStar]

Ok, thanks. Now it's stalling and refusing to start again. Aargh, not the best start to our Largo ownership

[LargoStar]

Oh well, I've bitten the bullet and booked the van into my local friendly Jap specialist. I'm busy with work so don't have time to do my own diagnostics etc. I've given them this fault description, hope it helps diagnose what's wrong!

"Vehicle was being driven a short distance when engine still cold and stalled in D when approaching a junction. It then took around 6 attempts to get started, after which it ran fine. Later that day, again when engine was cold, I attempted to start the vehicle using normal diesel engine starting procedure. On the first few attempts, the engine would not turn – there was a click from what sounded like the starter motor. When it did eventually start, idle was lumpy and the engine check warning light was blinking on and off. According to the owners manual, this signifies water detected in the fuel filter, and it needs to be drained asap.

The engine then stalled whilst in P, twice - I got it started again and it was fine. The engine check light was no longer flashing and the idle was smooth. I took it for a run (approx 6 miles) and it was fine. When I got home, I tried starting the engine 3-4 times (engine warm) and it started and ran with no problems.

After leaving the vehicle overnight, I tried starting it 3-4 times and got the starter motor click as mentioned previously, engine not turning."

Seems to be a problem when the engine is cold.

[tttonyyy]

The trouble is that there are a few possibilities that can cause this behaviour, but I'm sure your Jap specialist will cover them.

The failure to start could be the starter motor itself or poor ground bonding to the engine.

The lumpy idle from cold could be water in the filter, but the more obvious thing to check is for a failed glow-plug. How long did you let it glow before cranking? Again, poor ground bonding may also cause this.

If you're unlucky it's both a starter motor and glow plug replacement. A recon starter will be about £170 but you can get one for much less from a breaker (check eBay for "Nissan Largo breaking") - though of course then you are gambling with how long a second hand starter will last.

The stalling issue may be harder to fix. Anything from a faulty sensor to an injection pump recon.

I realise this is sad news when all you want to do is enjoy driving your new pretty Jap bus.

Good luck with your garage, and please keep us updated with what they say.

[LargoStar]

Thanks!

I was waiting for the glow plug light to go out then trying to start (the owners manual warns against leaving ignition on for more than 10 seconds). Then waiting 30 seconds until trying again. I've used this garage for years and they're very thorough, so hopefully they can get to the bottom of things.. hopefully it's nothing serious / expensive.. <gulp>.. I'll report back when I know more.

Ah, the dangers of eBay distance buying.. wife and kids are gutted, I'm embarrassed, but I'm prepared to spend a bit more to get our new bus up and running again

[jimmyrev3]

Hi largostar hope you get it sorted and not to expensive,quite a few owners have been suffering the dreaded stalling issue but not been able to pin point the cause as yet,tttonyyy has been doing great job trying to sort it.

[LargoStar]

Here's hoping it's an easy fix jimmyrev3 - fingers crossed! I read tttonyyy's diagnosis thread with interest - to be honest, if it's anything to do with the injection pump, I'm going to cry!