Insignia Auxiliary Heater Problem

My 2012 Vauxhall Insignia diesel's auxiliary heater refuses to kick in. The system says 'Parking heater cannot be activated', and there's an error stored. Heat control, ventilation system, all seem fine otherwise. Temperature sensor seems alright too. What gives?

4 comment(s)

Interesting. I had a similar issue with my old BMW. Though not the same model, the symptoms sound familiar. Was a code reader involved? Is it pointing towards a specific component, like maybe a glow plug, or is it more vague? Those parking heaters can be quite sensitive.

The code reader pointed to glow plug failure. Though it's strange, I thought glow plugs were mainly for starting in cold weather. Does that mean the aux heater on the Insignia relies on them too? Seems a bit overkill, doesn't it?

Yes, it does rely on them. In my case, on the BMW, a defective glow plug prevented mine from activating. Apparently, they are integral to the auxiliary heater's operation for pre-heating. Unfortunately, it requires a visit to a workshop to be done.

Right, thanks for confirming. Booked it in, and you were spot on. Glow plug was the culprit! Cost me 440€ to get it sorted, but at least it's fixed.

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