OBD-II trouble code
P0214: Cold Start Injector 2
SAE J2012 APR2002: cold start injector 2. Injector 1 is P0213. A second cold-start injector is not implied by the existence of the first. The printed pair is diagnosis labor only.
Quick facts
- System
- Powertrain
- Category
- Fuel Injectors
- Severity
- Medium severity
- Drivable
- Usually safe to drive short-term
- Repair cost range
- $130 – $180 (check engine light diagnosis and testing, labor only; cold start injector 2 was not found as a parts-and-labor total)
- DIY difficulty
- Advanced DIY
Browse every code in P0200–P0299, or start from the full code library.
What does P0214 mean?
SAE J2012 APR2002 names P0214 Cold Start Injector 2. P0213 is Cold Start Injector 1. The standard's letter and number rules do not promise that an engine with injector 1 also has injector 2. Section 3.8 says a lettered component starts at A and is manufacturer-defined. These two codes are numbered, not lettered, and the diagram still decides whether injector 2 is fitted.
The D-Jetronic cold-start description on jetronic.org, section 13.4.11, is written for a cold-start valve in the singular: one valve, one thermo-time switch, commanded during cranking on the variant that page describes. It does not document a second valve. Do not split that procedure into injector 1 and injector 2. If this chart has two cold-start injectors, each gets its own connector test. If both codes are stored, look for a shared feed, a shared ground, or a shared switch before replacing two valves. A shared fault is a hypothesis to test, not a finding the SAE titles make.
Above 35°C and roughly 20 seconds at −20°C are sentences on that D-Jetronic page about the switch it describes, with the instruction to read the exact values on the switch. They are not P0214 limits.
Circuit tests stay split. Ignition off, unplug injector 2, measure the winding against this chart's spec. Continuity of its wire uses both ends disconnected. Short to ground and short to voltage are separate, with the module disconnected so a driver is not called a short. Applying 12 volts to open a valve is the D-Jetronic test for the valve that page names. It is not a test for injector 2 unless this workshop manual says that injector is energized the same way.
Depressurize before a fuel connection is opened. If a thermo-time switch has to come out of a coolant passage, the engine is cool and the cooling system is depressurized. No parts-and-labor total for cold-start injector 2 was found. The pair below is diagnosis.
Common causes
- A diagram with no second cold-start valve, so there is no part on that circuit to buy
- A connector or wire that belongs to injector 2, not the injector 1 circuit
- P0213 and P0214 stored together, which is a reason to test a shared feed before two valves are bought
- The D-Jetronic single-valve procedure used as if it named injector 2
- A short to ground and a short to voltage treated as one unplugged reading
- A 12-volt open-the-valve test used on an injector the manual does not energize that way
- A coolant switch removed while the cooling system is still hot and pressurized
Symptoms
- P0214 stored
- P0213 stored as well, which still does not prove two injectors have failed
- A cold-start complaint only if this engine's cold-start device is in the cranking circuit
- No second valve to find, on a diagram that shows one or none
- A fuel smell or a rich reading if a valve that should be closed is leaking, after the leak check
Diagnostic steps
- 1.Read the diagram for cold-start injector 2. Absence ends the parts diagnosis.
- 2.If only P0213 is stored, stay on injector 1. P0214 is the second SAE row.
- 3.If both are stored, compare the feeds and grounds on the schematic before either valve is condemned.
- 4.Do not divide jetronic.org section 13.4.11 into a second valve. That section describes one.
- 5.Ignition off, unplug injector 2. Winding resistance against this chart. Then continuity, short to ground, and short to voltage, module disconnected for the short checks.
- 6.A pressurized leak check is live fuel: engine off and cool, depressurize before opening a fitting, no ignition source, catch the fuel, extinguisher within reach.
- 7.A switch in the coolant comes out only after the engine is cool and the cooling system is depressurized.
- 8.The priced work on this page is the diagnosis. The valve is not in the dollar pair.
Repair cost
$130 – $180 (check engine light diagnosis and testing, labor only; cold start injector 2 was not found as a parts-and-labor total)
RepairPal's check engine light diagnosis and testing, updated 3 September 2026, is $125–$183 labor, rounded to $130–$180. No parts-and-labor total was found for cold-start injector 2. The D-Jetronic page does not price a second valve. Do not read this pair as two injectors. Fuel and coolant connections use the depressurizing steps in the procedure.
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DIY vs shop
This is an advanced DIY job. It typically requires specialty tools, scan-tool access, lifting equipment, or careful sequencing to avoid causing new failures. Plan for extended downtime and have a backup vehicle. Most owners are better served by a shop that has done this repair before.