[Keith]

Had this on my former car, a 1.9 litre Fiat turbo-diesel.
After seeing similar complaints to this I asked my Service Agent to change the EGR during the Full Service it had at 52,000 miles, also had the cam-belt & waterpump changed.
I got my old EGR back off the guys & stripped it, it was totally choked.
I did clean it out but never re-used it, but with a new EGR on all the problems of hesitation & slow pick-up had gone.
These things can stick closed or open, or any degree of either... & different symptoms get described. I only got an EML up when the thing became so choked up it didnt work at all...

There is a school of thought that prescribes blanking off the EGR all together but I didnt feel that right to do.

However, consider the MAF sensor too, try disconnecting it & take a test drive, if the car runs clean suspect that, but if you replace it, dont be tempted by cheaper aftermarket examples, stick with OEM parts.

[Knight4474]

Hi all, I have had my i30 for 6 weeks now and it has developed this strange problem as well.  I have the CRDi Auto CW and I have it running irregularly at about 1500rpm (which is 50 Kms) - each time about 2 - 3 minutes after a cold/coldish start this occurs (but not always) the engine travels along and holding the revs at 1500rpm, you start getting a chugging or jerking of the car.  A quick accelerate and the problem goes but when it settles down again and held around the 1500rpm, the issues shows up.  After the car has been running for 5 or more minutes the issue doesn't show itself.  I have had the car back to the dealers a few times with them finding now problems or issues. They say the glow plugs are fine and there is nothing showing on there computers.  They had suggested trying a different fuel, which I was using Coles, now on BP with some improvements but the problem is still there.

Being a new car, new to Hyundai and diesel, I'm getting disappointed in my purchase.

Can someone please help.

Just an update for the above, after a few months and trips to the dealer, they have finally found the fault.  Air was getting into the fuel line due to a faulty cowl.  Awaiting for the part to come in and be installed.  Then maybe for the first time since I had the car I can drive it without something wrong...  Wait and see.

[Dazzler]

Just an update for the above, after a few months and trips to the dealer, they have finally found the fault.  Air was getting into the fuel line due to a faulty cowl.  Awaiting for the part to come in and be installed.  Then maybe for the first time since I had the car I can drive it without something wrong...  Wait and see.

Thanks for the update.. lets hope you have a dream run going forward...

[Talking Hoarse]

Good to hear of resolution.  My car problem is ongoing - having had ECU's reset /relearned and now gearbox oil changed all to no avail.  Fault still continues - when hot it sometimes judders violently when trying to change down from 4th at about 1500rpm /40-50mph, and also (more reproducable) again when doing 40-50mph and 1500rpm in 4th - an attempt to get it to kick down results in a violent jerk/thump of a gearchange - into 2nd too I think too judging by the revs.  However the nice dealer is still investigating.
Gear changes from 4th to 3rd cleanly if the gearlever is used instead of kickdown.
Any ideas?

[Phil №❶]

Just an update for the above, after a few months and trips to the dealer, they have finally found the fault.  Air was getting into the fuel line due to a faulty cowl.  Awaiting for the part to come in and be installed.  Then maybe for the first time since I had the car I can drive it without something wrong...  Wait and see.

 

Can someone explain how air can get into the diesel fuel line when the pressures in common rail diesels are so high. Wouldn't fuel be spurting everywhere and how does a cowl exclude air under these conditions.

Mind you, If they found the problem, I'm glad for you, I just don't understand their explanation. 

[Knight4474]

Just an update for the above, after a few months and trips to the dealer, they have finally found the fault.  Air was getting into the fuel line due to a faulty cowl.  Awaiting for the part to come in and be installed.  Then maybe for the first time since I had the car I can drive it without something wrong...  Wait and see.

 

Can someone explain how air can get into the diesel fuel line when the pressures in common rail diesels are so high. Wouldn't fuel be spurting everywhere and how does a cowl exclude air under these conditions.

Mind you, If they found the problem, I'm glad for you, I just don't understand their explanation. 

I'm not a car person myself, but I have to agree.  I don't think they are telling me the whole story as they explained they taped the problem to a make shift fix until the part comes in.  This hasn't worked   I'm hoping when this part they have ordered is installed that it fixes the issue and my opinion of the dealership... or at least the service side may change.  For a car that won car of the year for 3 years I have to say I'm very disappointed in the length of time it takes to get parts, when and if they find the fault to start with.

[gra502]

Hi, have tried the car with the air con ON and the problem seems to be fixed..... seemingly the EGR valve is at fault....now travelled about 10k so when the 15k service is due will have a chat to the mechanic (ex hyundai mechanic) and see what he suggests? have also read about blocking off the EGR valve which seems to run the engine cooler/cleaner and a bit more power, I know I will open a can of worms here but would appreciate you input.
ps would have gotten back earlier but had a seniors time and forgot my password......

[Dazzler]

have also read about blocking off the EGR valve which seems to run the engine cooler/cleaner and a bit more power, I know I will open a can of worms here but would appreciate you input.
ps would have gotten back earlier but had a seniors time and forgot my password......

Search "EGR" on here (see button at top of page) and you will find a lively thread about that topic..

[Keith]

EGR... 1 of the reasons I left turbo-diesel for NA petrol....
So good not thinking about DPF's... EGR's... turbochargers.... **relaxed... 

[2i30s]

this crdi auto problem sounds very similar to the problem in the petrol auto.  it also seems to change into a higher gear at too lower revs causing it to labor/bog down/almost want to stall.

[mantaray]

I think the quick changes are all designed for fuel efficiency,If mine seems t be getting sluggish, just drive a bit more spirited for a week or so and the computer seems to relearn. Seems to work for me. I also have stopped worrying about the fuel economy and drive to enjoy, might cost a few bucks more- but it is a real beaut motor.

[2i30s]

I think the quick changes are all designed for fuel efficiency,If mine seems t be getting sluggish, just drive a bit more spirited for a week or so and the computer seems to relearn. Seems to work for me. I also have stopped worrying about the fuel economy and drive to enjoy, might cost a few bucks more- but it is a real beaut motor.

yep,its a car,not a lounge chair.  and the auto trans can be taught your driving style,its adaptive. 

[Knight4474]

Hi, have tried the car with the air con ON and the problem seems to be fixed..... seemingly the EGR valve is at fault....now travelled about 10k so when the 15k service is due will have a chat to the mechanic (ex hyundai mechanic) and see what he suggests? have also read about blocking off the EGR valve which seems to run the engine cooler/cleaner and a bit more power, I know I will open a can of worms here but would appreciate you input.
ps would have gotten back earlier but had a seniors time and forgot my password......

I'm sorry to say that after all this time that the problem HAS NOT been resolved and nothing has progressed for several weeks now.  I had the part replaced, but as I have found out since, all they did was change the air filter (why not just tell me that instead of all the stories), but that didn't fix the problem.  Had it back again and after  they fitted a 'flight recorder' to my car for 2 weeks where each time it played up I would press a button and it would record data for them to analysis.  I did this with each day the car playing up so thought good, some data they can work on.  Was told they would be in contact within a week.  5 weeks later I call them up as I was getting tired of this problem and NO contact from them with further embarrassment after the long weekend of driving people around with them all experiencing the problem, I'm told that the computer didn't report anything wrong, the person who was dealing with this is on holidays, call back in 3 weeks.  Why, is the car still playing up?  We can hire a car to you if you want to leave yours with us while we sort out the issue.  I'm seeing red right now and looking for a replacement car from one of the name brands, not a want to be with NO CUSTOMER SERVICE or resolve to fix their faulty merchandise.  Not to mention that a car 5 months old has gone from my purchase price of 31K to now being valued at 20K. At this rate in another 12 months this car will be worthless, (well it's that now)

Very unsatisfied customer who will not be returning to this brand.

[Phil №❶]

Most cars depreciate significantly in their 1st year, there are exceptions but they are usually exotic cars. Hyundai can not be blamed for that. Generally that scenario is offset by the purchaser's intention to keep the vehicle and obtain use from that vehicle for some years. It is sad that you have had difficulties with your car and that the service department are obviously incompetent.

Rather than trash the car and brand, might I suggest some official complaining to Hyundai Head Office and an immediate change of dealership. Most people on this site are happy with their purchase so you are definitely in the minority.

Keeping the car and getting it running correctly might restore your faith in the vehicle and will certainly save you money in the long run. 

[Dazzler]

Most cars depreciate significantly in their 1st year, there are exceptions but they are usually exotic cars. Hyundai can not be blamed for that. Generally that scenario is offset by the purchaser's intention to keep the vehicle and obtain use from that vehicle for some years. It is sad that you have had difficulties with your car and that the service department are obviously incompetent.

Rather than trash the car and brand, might I suggest some official complaining to Hyundai Head Office and an immediate change of dealership. Most people on this site are happy with their purchase so you are definitely in the minority.

Keeping the car and getting it running correctly might restore your faith in the vehicle and will certainly save you money in the long run. 

Couldn't have said it better myself Phil (I do understand why Knight4474 feels like he does though - VERY frustrating)

I wonder if this is the same problem that the manual diesel has (5 speed anyway) when these three things coincide:

1 High gear (5th)
2 Low revs (about 1500)
3 Light throttle

The engine shakes prompting a change down but if instead you press the accelerator firmly it smooths out and will gently accelerate suggesting that while it was low on torque it was not so low that a change of gear was mandatory from the point of view of available power.

With the auto it would be difficult to do the same thing without forcing a kickdown but I reckon if you manually swap to 3rd when it happens all will go away just as it does with the manual.

I've written about this before somewhere and my feeling is that a resonance that occurs at 1500rpm is not sufficiently damped by the engine mounts.  Pressing the accelerator will summon more torque which will "roll the engine" straining and compressing the mounts which will "stiffen them up" marginally increasing the damping sufficiently to mask the resonance.

Any takers this time around on my theory?

If it's not this then it has to be related to the light throttle and a fuel metering problem causing the shuddering.

Either way it's design fault and ought to be able to be fixed.

[Dazzler]

What you say Pip makes good sense and is entirely feasible 

[Phil №❶]

Reading Pip's post sounds quite feasible to me. I would like to add these thoughts as well.

1. What happens at 5th gear / 1500 revs in a petrol car, anyone done a comparison.

2. No matter what engine 1500 revs is getting well below the torque / power band of the engine and it is unrealistic not to expect some complaints from the vehicle if asked to "power away" in 5th gear.

3. The diesel engine has a compression ratio of 17.3 : 1 I think, at those revs individual power strokes will inevitably start to be felt and the car is quite weighty.

4. At 1500 revs, there is no assistance from the turbo so any powering away is totally up to the little 1600cc diesel.

5. The auto probably won't let a power away scenario in top gear occur at those revs, although it may be technically possible to do. 

[Keith]

I can actually drive my 1.6 petrol in an urban environment quite comfortably in 5th gear at 1,500 RPM.... even lower actually...

However, 5th gear in my car is a very low ratio... the car begs for a 6th gear on a Motorway.

But back on topic... no issues in 5th gear at 1,500 RPM driving away... no torque but no juddering eebeejeebee's either...

[Doggie 1]

This is something that I just haven't thought of as a problem in my diesel manual (5 speed).
If the car's not happy in 5th gear and starts to shake, I change down.
I can see that that might be an issue in an auto, but not in a manual.

[Phil №❶]

Not an issue in the auto, low throttle pressure = no judder higher throttle pressure, trans changes to the best gear. 

[Mountainlady]

Hi All,
If any of you read my earlier post which resulted in my Diesel i30 being replaced after 2 weeks.(Unheard of in most car dealerships)  but had too many problems for them to fix, we came home with a new replacement two weeks ago....Running great till 3 days ago when guess what? .Yep exactly as you have all described...shuddering particularly when it is cold on first start up and under 60klm..So as we speak it is now in the workshop, expecting hubbe home any minute with their response and will post it here if it looks to be helpful.

[Phil №❶]

As you can see by the discussion on this thread that some people do experience this problem. Our family has 2008 & 2010 Diesel's & so far, no problems. I think there has been mention of a software update that fixes this problem, so hopefully that's all that will be required to fix yours.

Unfortunately, all cars made today have inbuilt computers  to manage many engine & body functions. This complexity increases the chances of something going wrong. Hopefully yours will be a small fix. I'm glad your dealer is looking after you, that's great.

Let us know what happened and don't forget to post some pics and happy times with your new car.   

[Dazzler]

That is a real shame, the i30 has been a really reliable car until this Auto issue has reared its ugly head (I'm guessing they have swapped component suppliers) they need to address this quickly to keep the i30's reputation intact 

[Talking Hoarse]

My own car's judder issues were described above.  The judder /irregular running about 2 - 5 mins after cold start was resolved with some injector /fuel system cleaner and hasnt troubled me since.  However the kick down fault (from 4th at about 1500rpm & 40-50mph) wasnt resolved by reset of injectors, oil change, ECU relearn of driving style etc and the auto gearbox has just been replaced by my friendly dealer.
Although its early days as yet, all now seems OK and I am happy again.
Just a thought .... I wonder if the auto gearbox in the Czech build 1.6CRDi auto (like mine) is same as in the presumably Korean built auto's with the other judder problems above?

[Dazzler]

Just a thought .... I wonder if the auto gearbox in the Czech build 1.6CRDi auto (like mine) is same as in the presumably Korean built auto's with the other judder problems above?

I wonder how easy it would be to check that?

[gra502]

Hi guys
Just an update,my mate has had the same problem with his Santafe. He has now blocked off the EGR valve and is rapped with the results.He said he is getting more power and his fuel consumption was about 10lph and is now getting high 8 and low 9's so he is a happy camper. does anyone have pix to do the I30?? as I see aprox 90deg elbow at the back of the egr valve,this seems to be the easiest place to block it off, but I think it would need to be blocked where it bolts on to the engine?? any suggestions
cheers

[Phil №❶]

Hi guys
Just an update,my mate has had the same problem with his Santafe. He has now blocked off the EGR valve and is rapped with the results.He said he is getting more power and his fuel consumption was about 10lph and is now getting high 8 and low 9's so he is a happy camper. does anyone have pix to do the I30?? as I see aprox 90deg elbow at the back of the egr valve,this seems to be the easiest place to block it off, but I think it would need to be blocked where it bolts on to the engine?? any suggestions
cheers

I assume you have read the discussion about blocking EGR 

[Mountainlady]

Hi All,
I know its been months since i have come back online after posting initially about the diesel auto shudder in our new i30 but we have had no change in the shudder situation even though the Hyundai people have checked it out from A-Z.  In fact, it went from just happening once after startup and between 40-50klm, then it started doing it at other times like when you slow down around the roundabout and start picking up speed again, always at the same place 40-50klm.
  The lady from Hyundai got me on the phone today to speak to a specialist that was coming in and to tell him the problem.  He immediately replied that it sounded like a 'Transmission Valve' problem and he would order one in for us straight away!   Oh Boy Where was he in February!   If this fixes it..then I will be the first to be back on and let you all know.
Cheers

[Doggie 1]

Thanks for the update and please do keep us informed.