Had a new diesel i30CW for 1000 kms. The dealer didn't say we needed to wait for the glow indicator lamp to turn off before we started so we've been turning the engine on immediately (with it still lighted). Its started ever time straight away. Can this have caused any damage? The temperature has been warm here in Sydney (25 deg C)

many thanks

 

I live in the U.S. where Hyundai does not market diesel versions of their product line. I grew up with diesels and often drive one of several diesel pickups at work, so I am familiar with their operations. Electronic controls and better designs have meant diesels will start much easier than before under cold conditions. If the engine has been starting smoothly, I doubt you have caused any damage to the engine by not letting the preheater or glow plugs complete their work. The relatively warm air temp helped your situation. At the temps you describe, the system would have likely cycled in few seconds at most anyway. On most the new diesels I've seen or used, the heaters or glow plugs don't even cycle if there is any warmth left from running it.

I would get in the habit of letting the preheater or glow plugs cycle completely on a cold start. Your air temps will eventually cool off, creating more of a challenge for the engine to start smoothly.

 

Many thanks for the advice