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View Full Version : V6 TDi Injector Pump Failed.. Now What?



EdF
14-05-2007, 04:51 PM
:mad: Had to be pulled in by the RAC last week after the engine cut on the road. Local VW main dealer think the injector pump has failed, although they are not positive.. They quoted £2,000 for a recon unit inc. labour, which seems a tad high (as usual). They say 'other faults showed on the computer' but weren't specific and they feel a new pump may not be the entire solution. I would have thought they could tell... I think mine is the only V6 TDi they see and the foreman said 'injector pumps never fail' so it seems they don't have much experience! They suggested finding a replacement and seeing if that makes the computer happy but implied I have to pay for it whether needed or not... Don't really want to spend two grand and no guarantee that's the end of it. Seems I can't do anything myself as the computer is needed to tie a new unit in. Tried a used parts search online, no luck, found a cheaper recon unit at £740 but can't get a 'sale or return'.. Car is a Tiptronic 1999 Passat. Confused as to best route, car isn't worth much more than £2k but too good to scrap. Any (sensible!) ideas, anyone?

snapdragon
14-05-2007, 05:37 PM
Have you taken the cover off the top of the engine, and looked to see if there is fuel in the clear fuel pipe?

EdF
14-05-2007, 06:22 PM
No, I didn't have the chance to investigate myself as the car stopped on the road and I had to be recovered by the RAC. The car is now at the VW main dealer. I've spoken to the guy at VW Techniker (he replied to a similar thread) and it seems injector pump failure is fairly common on the V6. Presently trying to locate an exchange unit but difficult. About a week needed to send mine away for a recon.

EdF
17-05-2007, 03:37 PM
Thought this may help anyone in the same situation. It's definitely the injector pump which has failed. It seems it's a reasonably common fault on V6's but rarely seen by VW-only garages as there are very few V6's about. Not so with Audi's. After trying every option I could think of apart from paying the VW garage £2k, I looked in Yellow Pages. I spoke to Dave at Pattersons Diesel, Cowdenbeath, who are main agents for all the main injector manufacturers. He knew the unit well, having rebuilt several, and even knew the serial no. of the electronic module on the top. He quoted me £700 plus vat to recon. mine as he didn't have one in stock. Some other reconditioners quoted less, typically £550, but this guy seemed to know all about mine. The VW garage took the pump out and I collected it and sent it to Dave by carrier (£26 return). It seems when the pump fails, spurious signals are generated by the ECU, indicating other non-existant faults on the magic box. So, I've saved about £600 + vat on the VW price providing it goes back in okay and works...

snapdragon
17-05-2007, 08:19 PM
Good luck! I'll start saving. :aargh4: How many miles have you done?

EdF
17-05-2007, 08:46 PM
104,000 miles, had the car 6 years since it was 2 years old. First time it has ever let us down. Best car I've ever owned, would never go back to a manual after this (Tiptronic), it'll tow anything, does 44mpg on a run and is very nippy. Just wish it was an estate, although there's plenty of room in the boot with the seat backs down.

EdF
23-05-2007, 06:45 PM
I finally got the car back today (after 2 weeks), and a bill for £588 for labour only for removing and refitting the injector pump. I still saved about £600 by sending the pump for a refurb myself, but I don't believe it took THAT long to do the spanner wielding...
Although we love the car, it has had a habit of giving us large bills every couple of years, not always down to VW (although one was when the pollen filter gasket leaked water onto the electrics in the passenger footwell). Couldn't believe the naff way the water from the windscreen is directed away .. I am sadly coming to the conclusion that buying a Hyundai with a 5 year warranty and accepting that by that time it will be almost worthless is worth considering.

Dozz
23-05-2007, 11:41 PM
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO :puke: Quick everybody we must restore his faith in VAG

EdF
24-05-2007, 11:54 AM
Love the car, hate the VW dealer mark-up.:zx11:

Graham Lithgow
09-02-2008, 10:11 AM
The Bosche VP144 fuel pump fitted to the VW and Audi V6 TDI's is a legacy truck fitment but appears unreliable in the VW Audi range. Mine failed at just over 100k of motorway miles and meticulous regular servicing. It was repaired by Diesel Bob 'oop North' for £500 and fitted by Monnington Motors in Newton Abbot for around £800 but this included all new belts, tensioners and water pump. VW main dealer charged around £200 to diagnose the fault and their new pump quote was nearly £2000!!!

The Passat is the worst car I've ever bought in nearly two million miles of driving in everything from cable braked 1934 Austin Seven to Aston Martin DB9. Even my old Allegro and Ital's in the 70's were more reliable and with better ride quality too. My Passat, regularly maintained (full SH) has needed replacement torque converter, ATF pump, Tiptronic Gearbox, VP144 pump and usuals like discs etc. What has finally pushed me over the edge after spending some £4000 on repairs to date is that one of the valves has dropped onto a piston and the engine is beyond repair. The cheapest second user one I can find is £1500 and I've been quoted up to £3k - plus £800 for fitting.

I've now spent over £10k including original purchase and for what; the worst car in the world by far. If you want it with nothing significant left to replace now except the engine it's yours to pick up for £1000!

EdF
09-02-2008, 11:13 AM
Thanks Graham, not entirely happy, then? As you can see above, I did get the injection pump fixed last summer and saved a bit on the VW *********** price. I doubt you'd get £1000 for a high mileage anything with a knackered motor. (Assuming it's a few years old...? How old is it?)
Last month the Passat did it to me again. It was leaking diesel onto the drive, but also, after returning from a foreign Christmas trip (by air) the alarm went off one frosty night and the car hadn't been used for 12 days. To cut a long story short, it was the dreaded 'water in the electrics' syndrome AGAIN! Water down the knackered pollen filter gasket into the loom under the passenger side carpet. The same repair was done in 2004 by my VW ***********. After some investigative work and help from the UK Passat forum I found it was a simple fix, learning that the VW *********** had charged me £200 in 2004 for replacing a £10 gasket and remaking 6 wiring connectors. One of the connectors had corroded again and come apart. A new pollen filter gasket (the 'dum-dum' type), a dry-out and a new connector sorted it. The fuel leak turned out to be the fuel return line from the tank which had rotted away about 18 inches from the tank. VW wanted £140 + vat for the two pipes (just the rear parts) but I mackled it up quite well using a new 1987 Audi pipe the VW parts guys found in their attic (which they GAVE me as the Audi franchise had moved). Just needed the connector off it and a couple of feet of pipe - which goes into the two-into -one connector under the rear right footwell. Added a bit of flexible fuel pipe and some stainless clips and altogether I saved about £500 on the two jobs.

My Passat is for sale too, but running and MoT'd. We love it, apart from these glitches, and is the same spec. as yours (Tip, V6 TDi, new alloys & tyres & new brakes last summer, 110k miles) - £2000.. We have three vehicles and only need one.. Because of my wife's knackered left leg and needing an automatic, the choice of a smallish new or newish diesel auto is very limited. I have a Land Rover 90 TD5 which isn't anything like the Passat of course, but it's easy and cheap to fix, not that anything has gone wrong yet, but it's my 16th Landy and I know my way around them, unlike the Passat... Wife can't drive it, which may be a blessing..