Fiat Panda Multijet: cranks, won't start, and the camshaft isn't turning.

What came in

A 2009 Fiat Panda with the Multijet diesel engine. The owner was driving when the engine died, and it would not start again afterwards.

In the workshop it cranked, but it would not start.

Fuel or mechanical?

A diesel that cranks without starting has two broad families of cause: it is not getting fuel, or the engine cannot make the compression it needs to fire.

The quickest way to separate those is starting fluid. We introduced Easystart into the intake and cranked it again. It still did not fire.

A diesel that will not even catch on starting fluid points away from fuel delivery. Together with the way it failed, dying on the move and never restarting, that pointed us at the timing. If the timing has jumped or failed, the valves are no longer opening and closing in step with the pistons, and there is no compression to speak of.

What we found

We turned the crank and watched the camshaft. The camshaft was not turning with the crank.

That confirms the camshaft drive has failed. The crank is turning and the camshaft is not being driven, so the engine has no valve timing at all.

Where it got to

That was the diagnosis. The next questions are what exactly failed in the drive, and whether the valves survived. Those are answered by opening up the timing end and checking each cylinder, not by guessing, and that decides whether this is a timing repair or a bigger job on the cylinder head.

What to watch for

• "Died while driving and won't restart" deserves a timing check early. Before spending on fuel parts, find out whether the camshaft is turning.
• Starting fluid is a cheap, fast test. If a diesel will not fire on it, stop looking at fuel and look at the mechanical side.
• Do not keep cranking it. If the timing has gone, more cranking will not start it. Get it checked first.

If your diesel has died on the road and will not restart, our diagnostics page explains how we work through it.