A common problem with the 2.7 TDV6 engine as fitted to the Discovery 3 and Range Rover Sport is poor starting on very cold mornings. There are a few things that can cause this: the most common seems to be the Glow Plugs. TDV6 Glow Plugs are situated inside the “V” of the engine and can be quite troublesome to get to.

When the time finally comes to actually changing the Glow Plugs, this is where the fun starts. If you do an internet search regarding the changing of these then you will find all kinds of horror stories regarding the Glow Plugs snapping inside the Cylinder Head. On most occasions these type of stories are untrue or exaggerated due to the fact of poor fitment etc; unfortunately on this occasion the story came true!

Our workshop staff are currently busy removing the Cylinder Heads of a 2.7 TDV6 Discovery 3 to extract the snapped glow plug. This is no easy job, with an almost complete engine top-end strip down required to remove and refit the Cylinder Heads. Once the Cylinder Heads are removed the remains of the Glow Plugs need to be drilled out and the threads inside the Cylinder Head either need to be cleaned or replaced using special inserts.

Once the Cylinder Heads have been refitted, the engine can be rebuilt with new gaskets, seals and belts, including a new timing belt. A long drawn out job to “just” change six Glow Plugs, but one our highly skilled and professional Technicians take in their stride!