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Engine & running faults

Car shaking or vibrating at idle

Idle is where small faults show up most, because the engine has no load to smooth them out.

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Symptoms drivers describe

  • Vibration through the seat, wheel or gear lever at a standstill
  • Idle speed hunting up and down
  • Smoothing out as soon as you drive off
  • Engine light on in some cases

Possible causes

  • A misfire on one cylinder
  • Collapsed or split engine and gearbox mounts
  • Air leaks in the intake or breather system
  • A sooted EGR valve or dirty throttle body
  • Fuel pressure or injector faults
  • Low compression on one cylinder

What you can do

  • Note whether it shakes in gear, in neutral or both
  • Mention whether it improves once warm
  • Have the mounts checked as well as the engine — they are often the cause

How we check it in the workshop

We watch live idle and misfire data, check mounts under load on the lift, test for air leaks and inspect the EGR and throttle.

Is it safe to keep driving?

Not urgent unless a warning light is flashing, but it usually points at something worth fixing.

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How we can help

Engine DiagnosticsEngine faults are usually a chain of events rather than a single broken part. We test fuelling, ignition, air, compression and control signals to find where the chain breaks.Read more EGR Valve Repair & ReplacementThe EGR system recirculates a measured amount of exhaust gas back into the engine. When it sticks, everything downstream suffers — including the DPF.Read more Engine Repairs in IverEngine faults are where guesswork gets expensive. We test, measure and read live data before anything is replaced.Read more Car Diagnostics & Fault Finding in IverA warning light tells you something has been detected — not what has failed. We diagnose the vehicle first so the repair that follows is the repair the car actually needs.Read more

Engine & running faults

Other symptoms in this group

Car stuck in limp modeLimp mode is a protection strategy, not a fault in itself. The control unit has seen a reading it does not trust and has reduced power to keep things safe.Read more White smoke from the exhaustColour, smell and whether the smoke clears once warm are what separate normal condensation from a coolant or fuelling problem.Read more Blue smoke from the exhaustBlue smoke points at oil reaching the combustion chamber or exhaust. When it appears — start-up, overrun or under boost — narrows the cause.Read more Black smoke from a diesel exhaustBlack smoke is unburnt fuel. On a modern diesel with a DPF it usually also means extra soot heading into the filter.Read more Car losing power when acceleratingLoss of power is either a fuelling, air or protection issue. Live data under load is what separates them rather than guesswork.Read more Car cutting out while drivingIntermittent cut-outs are among the most important faults to record properly, because the evidence disappears the moment the engine restarts.Read more

Want this looked at properly?

Send us your registration and describe the symptoms — we will tell you what the next step is.

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