Starting engine causes a huge shudder down the car.

nickr18 · Post Tue Feb 12, 2019 5:28 pm

Hi, wondering if anyone can help with this. I've owned the car now for just over a month. Really happy with pretty much everything about it apart from the morning startup. In fact its not always just the morning, but when i start it up on the drive there's the slightest hesitation and then the engine kicks in but sends a huge shudder down car, rattling the flooring under my feet. I'm coming from a Toyota diesel that I've owned for 7 years and it may have been more vocal on a cold start but never this much vibration.

Once the engine is running there's no vibration, one of the quietest, smoothest cars I've owned and turning off the engine is also smooth. During the day after a few miles are done, seems to start up fine.

After I first noticed it I bought some Cataclean to ensure it wasn't a clogged fuel system and also I just had it serviced for peace of mind by a reputable mechanic and he said its more typical for a french engine to be less refined than the Toyota I'm used to but I've owned french cars in the past and they were never like this. I'd prefer to see to it sooner in case the vibration causes more damage down the line.

Any ideas?

C3driver52 · Post Tue Feb 12, 2019 6:04 pm

nickr18 wrote: ↑Tue Feb 12, 2019 5:28 pm Hi, wondering if anyone can help with this. I've owned the car now for just over a month. Really happy with pretty much everything about it apart from the morning startup. In fact its not always just the morning, but when i start it up on the drive there's the slightest hesitation and then the engine kicks in but sends a huge shudder down car, rattling the flooring under my feet. I'm coming from a Toyota diesel that I've owned for 7 years and it may have been more vocal on a cold start but never this much vibration.

Once the engine is running there's no vibration, one of the quietest, smoothest cars I've owned and turning off the engine is also smooth. During the day after a few miles are done, seems to start up fine.

After I first noticed it I bought some Cataclean to ensure it wasn't a clogged fuel system and also I just had it serviced for peace of mind by a reputable mechanic and he said its more typical for a french engine to be less refined than the Toyota I'm used to but I've owned french cars in the past and they were never like this. I'd prefer to see to it sooner in case the vibration causes more damage down the line.

Any ideas?

Hi nickr18, it is very odd to have such a big problem on such a low mileage and new car. It should not be like this.

The PureTech (EB) engine is a 3 cylinder, so any problem on one of the cylinders will show up quite well.

I would start with reading the stored codes using this OBD2 tool. The codes (if any) can help identify what is causing it, or not causing it from the codes or lack of.

You need to read the codes, write them down, delete the codes, start the engine in the morning and read the codes again. This way we can see the old codes and the new ones that come with the shuddering engine.

Arfur Dent · Post Tue Feb 12, 2019 6:18 pm

C3driver52 wrote: ↑Tue Feb 12, 2019 6:04 pm It should not be like this.

Autocar are not impressed with that engine in the C1

https://www.autocar.co.uk/car-review/citroen/c1/first-drives/2016-citroen-c1-12-puretech-82-furio-review wrote:Unfortunately, it’s not particularly refined, being quite loud, and vibrating noticeably upon startup and when idling in our omnipresent urban queues. More upmarket rivals like the Volkswagen Up do a better job.

But as you say, it shouldn't be that bad.

I wonder if there is a software update for that engine to help? The dealer can look that up for you.

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Starting engine causes a huge shudder down the car.

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