Help Please my audi is driving my to drink

[dbscorps]

Can anyone help me i have an Audi 80 Avant 2.0 ltr 16v, year 1994.
i has a mind of it's own. At the moment it is not wanting to start at all. it will fire. but not start, it has had many new parts see list

Spark plugs
Leads
Coil & power out put
Hall sender
Distributor cap & rotor arm
Catalytic converter
Lambda Probe.

it's even had a wash and polish lol
the car has not even done 60,000 miles yet.

it's been into the garage for 3 months, it even came out of the garage working for one month went back in and they could not find anything wrong with it. but it still is doing much the same as what it went in for i the first place. cutting out, not starting. lack of get up and go.
Even now as it sits their looking at me smug!!! i can sometime just go to it somedays and just jump in and it will start first time. it will even run as sweet as a nut.
But the last 2 weeks it is not wanting to even start, if it dose it will just run for a min or 2 then just stop just like if you had turned it off not even a misfire. just stop. if you do get it to start again it will run ruff as hell. will not rev over 3 to 4,000 rpm.

it has a mind of its own. please help. before i really do turn to the bottle.

many thanks Dave

[RJS_90q]

It could be due to a vacuum pressure in the fuel tank - this would not allow the fuel to flow properly.

Have you tried removing the fuel cap whenever it refuses to start ?
Listen carefully when you try this - can you hear any inrush of air ?

Just an idea and worth a try,

Hope it helps,

Bob

[dbscorps]

Hi Bob,
i have tryed that more then once, everything sounds normal, you can here the fuel pump as well when you turn the key, i have found one fault that when your turning the key and holding it in the start position. with out moving the key the car will stop cranking over. i have taken the ignition switch out only to find that the contact block at the back has a crack in it. so i will get a new one.

you can smell the fuel come when your trying to start the car, but it just will not run, it will fire but just not run.

thanks for your help. i have got the the stage were i will try all most anything.

[brd]

Not sure if you found out anything... but if you can get a timing light, you can see if there is ignition on each cylinder. If you smell fuel, then could be an ignition problem - then start with plugs, plug leads, distributor cap, and rotor.
B.

[dbscorps]

Hi Brd,
i have found some faults with the fuel meter unit. the fuel was going into it, but not coming out of it to the injectors. so after some shopping around and banging of my head. as a new Part from audi was going to be over £260.00. so after looking for a secondhand part with out no luck. i ended up taking apart myself and taking the old seals etc to a local shop that sell goods to make new seals / gasgets i got that fixed For £7.45. yes now i have the fuel going to the injectors. i even have a spark.
as i have put a new coil, leads,plugs hall sender, fuel filter.

and it still will not run, the engine will fire like it was going to start, but thats it

I'm thinking it could be the ECU. Because it use to start and run quiet happy one day, then the next nothing at all, then leave it a few day come to it and yep it would start.

one thing now it not even doing that it fire but just will not run.

What a car. thats why i think it could be the ecu ??????

[Fettler]

ECU sounds dodgy to me to. Would be good if you knew someone with a good working ECU just to swap and test.

[dbscorps]

Hi Fettler,
i would like to be able to have that chance to swap my ECU with a good working order one to see if it is the ecu or not, But seeing as i live in the channel islands it's not that easy. their is not that many models like mine with the same engine to be able to do that. so i don't have that choice. i can try to get hold of a secondhand one on the net. but as one of my work mates told me a Ecu normaly will just stop working completly, not even giving the engine a spark, But my car dose have a spark and fuel going to the injectors it will fire but just not start / run. thats what has got me and the garage who had my car for 3 months but still did not get it working all i got from the garage is a very very big bill.
i would not mind if the car had done lots of miles but it not even hit 60,000 yet. hay that what comes with living on an island with the speed limit is only 35mph lol the car it's self is in very good nick. considering it's a 1994. so if anybody who reads this i can really do with some help Please. its had quite a few new parts on the engine but it will still not play ball.

[Fettler]

On a lighter note with a speed limit of 35mph :aargh4: Would it not be cheaper and less hassle to sell the Audi and buy a horse?
:D

[dbscorps]

Hi Fetter,
even if i had a horse you still get vet bills instend of garage bill. you get a smoother ride in an Audi than on a horse. lol

just as well that my VR6 Golf is working. plus i olny have to feed my Golf once a week. one good thing is petrol is cheeper here. just as well.

[dbscorps]

Hi Fetter,
even if i had a horse you still get vet bills instend of garage bill. you get a smoother ride in an Audi than on a horse. lol

just as well that my VR6 Golf is working. plus i olny have to feed my Golf once a week. one good thing is petrol is cheeper here. just as well.

[dbscorps]

As you do when you have a sick car you leave your tools in the car.
i went to get a screwdriver to do another job, i thought hay lets try the old car see if it would go, i live in hope lol. but to my amazement the car did start but ran like crap. ran for about a min before stopping. so it can't be my ECU. when i tried it again nothing. i checked fuel that was ok their was a spark on all 4 plugs be it very weak tho, should it be a nice fat spark or is it normal to have a small weak looking spark on these ACE engines. any more ideas are welcome. i really just want to see my car on the road again. instead of being an garden Ornament.

[brd]

Its all digital ignition these days, so the spark should always be good. (Can look weak if you looking at it outdoors with sun or alot of light etc) How about your coils? Do they get hot or anything? I'm wondering if they are breaking down internally.

[dbscorps]

Hi Brd.
yeah i know what you mean, with the sunlight etc. i had a new coil, HT-leads, distributor cap, rotor arm, and plugs,
i still thing the fuel is not getting to injectors. their is fuel to the fuel meter unit. but none getting from their to the injectors.
not sure what to do next.
any ideas anybody ?

[brd]

Do you have a way of checking the fuel pressure in the system? Could your fuel be simply contaminated with water or something? How's your fuel filter? Did it get progressively worse or just one day it started acting up? Was it after a fill up? .... just thinkin out loud....

[dbscorps]

Well judging by the way the fuel cam out of the input to the fuel meter head unit. It cleared the wing of the car.
Had a new fuel filter fitted.
I would say that it got progressively worse, it started to be harder to start. Not like it use to be like a flick of the key. But it did start and run normally, then the next thing it started to do is cut out while driving, but it would always restart, then when one day I just took to long to start I sent it in to the garage, they had it a week checked a few things out tuned it up a bit changed the plugs, had it back worked for 3 ½ month the it just came back but a lot worse, so back to the garage for an other week they put a new coil , HT leads. Distributor cap, yes they got it to run, they told me to take the car back and see how it go‘s . lasted 1 month then had to be pick up and taken down to the garage were they had the car for almost 3 months. Said they were checking this out. I was getting that I had no faith in what they were doing to my car apart from giving me a very big bill. It came to the point were I marched in to the garage and told them that I wanted the car back with in a week, and that I wanted it back on the Friday fixed. Friday came I went in to the garage in my lunch time they said that they had got the car going. And I could pick it up later.
When I got their yes my car was back together. They said the keys are in it and the engine was running.
So I paid the bill which by this time accounting for the other times it had been in to £11000. Taking the ******* a bit.
As the when I got to my car in fact it was not running it had stopped and it would not restart. By this time I was a bit upset LOT REALLY. That I just told the garage that I would pick the car up after. I went back after the garage was closed went down with my tools got the car going , going but not running very well but as I was only going to be driving for ten mins I drove my car home. That was the last time I drove it that was 8 months ago.
Since then I have put a new hall sender, fuel filter, rotor arm, I even got it to run quite sweet. Drove it a round the garden fine. But it still had the same problem some day it would start some days it would not do anything . that’s with out changing anything, very strange !!!!!
Now it just will not even start and stay running, it has a spark, as of 3 days a go, half a tank of fuel. A fully charged battery . But as far a I can see there is no fuel getting to the injectors from the fuel meter unit on top of the air filter.
that’s as far as I have got any ideas please ???

[brd]

wow... thats rough.
I saw on ebay (the German version) that there are alot of parts for these cars online... and not even that expensive just to get the fuel injection components (manifold, injectors, etc). I mean, there are only so many parts involved, and swapping out some with parts from breakers or etc may be the way to go on the fueling side.
What ECU do you have? I read somewhere in trying to fix my own prob (intermittant stuttering any any revs anytime - a different thread) that the ECU acting up could cause such problems.
But unfortunately I don't know anymore than that really...
Good luck!!!

[dbscorps]

I will have to have a look at the German sites as well for second-hand parts as well I think, my car is not getting any ware, Everybody I here talks about the 2L 8 valve ABK Engines, But I Do Not here Much about the 2L 16 valve ACE Engines Which I have in my Audi. I guess the 2L 16 valve ACE was not as popular as the ABK.
My ECU is A 8AO 907 404 K, I have been told that it’s been super seeded by a 404DX now.
The car has a good spark, just looks like there is no fuel getting to the injectors, I have fuel coming from the tank to the Fuel Meter Block, But from that point it dose not get to the injectors. Could this still be my ECU, or another part, that I may have just over looked. The fuel pump is ok also put a new fuel filter on
Not sure what road to go down now ECU or some thing else ????
Any help would be great Thanks