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View Full Version : sharan keeps cutting out whilst moving!!!!



madmum
02-09-2006, 07:21 PM
hi,can anyone please help me my sharan is driving me insane.....:zx11: the problem is this.....some days you can go to the car in the morning and it will start first time,other days it won't....when it doesn't start it will take about ten minutes from the first try with lots of tries in between til it will start!!!then when it has started some days it can go for ever without any problem and then others like today you can only get about 200m before it will just die !!!!no warning it just dies!!!!!i take it to the filling station for petrol and end up blocking the pumps for 10 mins til it will go....the engine sounds like it wants to work but it sounds like there is something missing....have no idea what it could be and most of the garges we have seen have no idea neither!!!!!this is one very annoyed and confused mum....please help me

carelectrician.co.uk
05-09-2006, 09:01 PM
Hi mm in the first instance we need a little more info, particularly has it been plugged in to a scanner to read any fault codes, if so what? Sharans are prone to same problem as golfs with the relays number 30 or 109 in the relay box behind the fuse box, not so easy to get to on sharan though! These relays just switch off and kill power to engine management, no fault codes will be stored for this fault. Could be many things otherwise!!
www.car-electrician.co.uk (http://www.car-electrician.co.uk)

madmum
06-09-2006, 11:33 AM
thanks for the reply you are very helpful....we were told when we bought it that it had been diagnosed with an axle sensor problem....whatever that is!!!!but apart from that it was clear........to try the relays do we need to replace it first?

madmum
06-09-2006, 11:35 AM
sorry to be a pain.........my other half says would relay out of a ford galaxy work just the same?

carelectrician.co.uk
06-09-2006, 09:31 PM
Hi, I doubt that an axle sensor (or ABS wheel sensor) has anything to do with this and since there are no other fault codes it seems even more likely the fault is a power relay failure, the galaxy does use vw relays, you will need to remove plastic trim just below stering column to gain access to the fuse box assembly which must also be removed. Behind this fuse box assy are some more relays buried! one of which will have either 30 or 109 stamped in white paint on the top, this one is the one to try. (it won't have both). Disconnect the battery first! (the airbag light will probably be on later). This is not an easy novice job so take care and time. phil

madmum
07-09-2006, 09:37 AM
thankyou soooo much,i have printed your post off and am giving it to a friend who likes to delve into cars!!!!i will let you know if it works....fingers crossed....and again thanks for all your help...shame you are on the mainland and not over here!!!!

madmum
07-09-2006, 08:54 PM
hi again!!!!right i have opened the fuse panel,there are relays on the same panel but just above the fuses,not behind them!...big black chunky squares!!!with big numbers on,there is a number 30 and theres a couple of grey ones to....number 53 on the top row is upside down.....would that make a difference and do you know what that number is for?i have been to a few motor places today(not in my car) who weren't very helpful at all,all they could tell me was the price!!no one had any relay plugs in stock at all....don't suppose you have a no 30 you could sell me?

madmum
16-09-2006, 09:07 PM
hi phil...if you are there...i need some more advice.....cars got worse and isn't even starting now!!!!!we have been under the bonnet...so to speak and checked all plugs and wires etc.....hubby tested to see if there was a spark today when we turned it over,at first it just chugged over no spark then he removed the relay and put it back in and there were sparks he said it fired on three whatever that means!!!....i turned it off and tried again with the spark plugs back in their home and it wouldn't go....really at my wits end now and i can't afford silly garage prices....any ideas...hubby thinks it may be a coil because there isn't always a spark...but would that just mean it won't start would it account for it just cutting out on me like it did yesterday morning coming back from the school run...just as i was making a right turn in mad traffic....bit scarey that!!!!!all i could do was sit half on the road and half on the side road and hope the traffic coming could see my "back end"...i was sat there a good 5 mins whilst i waited to be able to turn it over again...

Mike_R
16-09-2006, 09:38 PM
Madmum,

It's probably completely unrelated but have a look at my post under the Passat forum, "Stuttering stalling Passat". I've had a nightmare recently and at one point ended up stranded in the outside lane of the A34 - I've done some scary things in my life but that almost comes top of the list!

It would be worth having a quick look at all of the connections around the fuel pump relay and all of the earthing points. A Haynes manual will have the wiring diagrams - not that it's entirely obvious where everything is! Try looking for the simple things first and if you can't find the problem go to an expert - I'd recommend keeping well away from the main dealer though. Sorry VW UK but you haven't a clue!

Good luck,

Mike

madmum
17-09-2006, 10:00 AM
hi mike......just read your thread....oh my god!!!!!and they call them selves experts......a simple thing like a screw...i've just read your thread to hubby so hes of out to the car now to have a look at all the screws in the fuse box......fingers crossed its something that simple...did the garages all use the diagnostics machine?i have heard some dodgy things about the people using them.its all in the way the results are read isn't it?....we have a friend coming round this evening with his machine from work so i am hoping he knows how to interprett it properly!!!thanks again for your reply

Mike_R
17-09-2006, 10:46 AM
Madmum, I've had diagnostic tools, meters and oscilloscopes attached to mine. I think there was no output from the ignition coil amplifier but the diagnostics weren't showing any faults anywhere. On the positive side, at least I know that everything else works OK!

Hope you've got a screw loose!

Mike

madmum
17-09-2006, 04:04 PM
hi mike...the guys just been...he had 2 machines attached to it and both never recorded any faults!!!!!hes got it working for now...there was a suppressor between the distributor cap and the coil lead and there was an earth wire off the cylinder block,hes cleaned the air flow meter and the crank sensor by god there was a right smell...my house now smells like rotten eggs!!!!!going to go for a drive now to see if its ok....wish us luck!!
sharon

madmum
17-09-2006, 06:04 PM
hi again....it never cut out on me...but did refuse to start once....which is a miracle!!!!!so its not quite fixed but its certainly a lot better to drive its not shuddering anymore......we have noticed though that when you turn the key and the dash lights up you can hear if it is going to start....if theres a buzz....we think the fuel pump.....it starts if its quiet it just doesn't go!!!!!so we think maybe it is a relay connected to the fuel pump!!?////on the mad search for one now and then maybe...just maybe i can do the school run in peace without worrying over the silly thing cutting out......but then it is only early days it was driving some days and not others anyway........heres hoping
sharon

Mike_R
17-09-2006, 10:06 PM
Good to hear you're having some success! The fuel pump relay is connected to a lot of the sensors that make the car go. Phil the electrician mentioned relay 30 or 109 in an earlier post, this may be the fuel pump relay? I've seen somewhere that relay 109 is prone to cracks opening up in the circuit board when it gets warm, which will cause all sorts of problems. I think that the new relay fitted in mine was ~£22, so it's not too expensive to replace if it's bust.

Good luck!

Mike

madmum
18-09-2006, 05:18 PM
well i took the kids for a drive to the beach today and on the way back the car cut out again!!!!!in the middle of the road...good job its only a quiet road.....anyways i out of curiosity opened the fuse box where the relays are and bingo....3 of the relays were roasting hot....black 30....grey 167 and grey 18......i have found out what these are as the vw dealership cd manual came today and it says they are///30-current supply relay
18-x contact relief relay
167 is the fuel pump relay........
great little cd when you can work out how to use it!!!!!
so i think i have found the problem although after its little clean yesterday it does run smoother...we were out last night for a couple of hours whale watching and it was perfect thee whole time....funny how it does that though.....
sharon

madmum
26-09-2006, 06:25 PM
thanks guys for all your help...my car is running again,just changed the 3 relays and its great apart from the chugging!!!but at least its not stopping on me now....fingers crossed...just have to get the chugging sorted and she'll be good as new again!!!!
thanks again
sharon