New to VW and Golfs

[Will T]

Hi,

We're new to VW's having migrated from a long line of Fords (gasp!), mainly estates. We're family users and became desperate for a higher quality vehicle after our more recent Ford Escort experiences i.e. forget it after 70,000+ miles! I'd heard so many endorsements for the diesel Golfs (from users and garages) that I decided to jump ship, however money is tight so we had to try and find an older, reasonably low milage example and reasonably close to where we live. This proved difficult! Anyway, eventually our Golf turned up, not too far away, 85,000 miles, FSH and looking immaculate in dark blue. And the dealer took our Ford Escort Finesse Estate in part ex. (although I don't think he really wanted to!). It's a 2003 Golf Estate Mk4 TDi Sport PD 130. We weren't looking for a 130PS or Sport trim blah blah but this was the first Golf that met our criteria so we went for it. Cost : £3,800 incl. our Escort Finesse in px (70,000 miles FSH, but with issues)

First impressions : WOW! Fantastic performance after the 1.6 Zetec petrol - nearly killed myself when I put my foot down the first time! Plus better ride, interior, loads more gadgets incl. Climatic. So as newbies to VW, Golfs, and diesel owners for the first time I wonder if could I trouble forum members with some questions? (sorry there's so many of them!). I wasn't sure whether to put the questions into one large post or split them up into lots of small ones and went for the all-in-one-go approach (I've used an outliner for clarity). No doubt the moderator will put me right if this approach is wrong! :-

1) RE THE USER MANUAL - the manual has an asterisk against some headings which suggests they are options. My queries below are for items that *DON'T* have an asterisk so I'm assuming they're standard features (but maybe not on our Golf...?) :-

a) ... states the trip computer can display the approx mileage remaining for the fuel currently remaining in the tank (the Range). But I can't get this display. All the other readouts are present but this one appears to be missing...

b) ... suggests the mirrors can fold back electrically, but our mirror control doesn't have a symbol opposite the "0" position as illustrated in the manual and sure enough I can't get them to fold back electrically. Can I fold them back manually without damaging them?

c) ... says that the near-side mirror should dip down when reversing then revert to it's original position when the car is taken out of reverse. No dice on ours though, but maybe this function is dependant on having electric seats (which we don't have) with user fob memories. We do however have an auto-dimming rear view mirror!

d) In fact, is there any way one can tell exactly which options our car has?

2) OTHER STUFF :-

a) Sometimes the glow-plug dash light illuminates very briefly and other times stays on for many seconds, seemingly regardless of engine temperature. We're tending to start the engine without waiting (petrol habit, trying to stop it) and it always starts without hesitation (so far!). Can the engine be harmed by not waiting for the warning light to extinguish?

b) There's quite a loud low rumble coming, I think, from the near-side rear of the car at low speeds, audible from 10-20 mph. From around 20 mph upwards it completely disappears. It's not a typical 'throbbing' wheel bearing sound that gets louder the faster you go, but then I'm new to VW's. Any ideas? I should add that the rear tyres are quite worn...

c) Every time the ignition is turned on there's the sound of a device engaging/starting coming from underneath the car somewhere. Fuel pump? (a la Morris 1000s - a distant memory!)

d) I noticed the driver's mirror has a fine black, vertical line on the glass. I though for a moment it was a crack but it's not, and I've now seen it on other Golfs. Any idea what it is?

e) Should the central locking lock all the doors after a certain speed has been reached e.g. 20 mph or whatever?

f) When we first bought the car the rear screen washer wasn't working and it was found that a pipe had come adrift from it's connector behind the washer fluid container (devil to remove to get access!) After replacing the pipe the rear washer worked fine and I held the pump on for a good 20 seconds to make sure the pipe wasn't going to come off again. No problem. Several hours later a message appeared on the dash saying the rear door wasn't closed (but it was). Then the alarm started going off on it's own, displaying the same behaviour as I've now seen previously documented in this forum. It seems to be a common Golf problem if water is leaking from the rear washer assembly. After about a day though, during which deliberately didn't use the rear washer, the alarm problem disappeared and hasn't come back so I guess any water on the rear door contacts has evaporated. We've been using the washer normally since (i.e. max. 2-4 sec bursts) and it's still O.K. Nonetheless, if there is a leak I'd like to fix it if poss. There are some repair guides in the forum but they might only apply to the hatchback. Anyone tried a repair on the estate? Getting the back panel off sounds very tricky!

g) The disc pad warning light appeared on the dash a few days ago. My local garage (not VW) checked the car over and said there was at least 2,000 miles wear left. As the car's telling me a service is due in 1,000 miles time I'm minded to leave it until then (also I've read here that the the disc wear sensor is somewhat conservative!) The garage advised against turning the warning light off so it remains on as a reminder. Unfortunately they also warned the front discs will need replacing too because they're grooved.

h) When I first started using the intermittent front wiper mode it seemed to have a mind of it's own! (I guess I was expecting fixed intervals using the four position switch e.g. 2", 4",6", 8"). Then I found out there is a rain sensor behind the mirror mount. Even so there didn't seem to be much or even any difference between the four settings. Because the rear screen wiper blade was very worn I bought another from a VW garage. While I was at it I thought I might as well change the front blades as well ("Rigid or floppy type, sir?" Mine were the latter). Since the front blades were fitted the intermittent mode is now working far better with the settings obviously changing the sensitivity to rain drops on the screen. For a minute I was thinking 'surely the car doesn't know I've changed the blades?!!' But then it became obvious - the old blades weren't clearing the screen under the sensor with total efficiency! (even though they weren't obviously worn out). Very impressive function from VW. I can now leave the intermittent mode on permanently and let the car decide (machines taking over...) I guess this also reveals another function of the rain sensor - as a wiper blade condition monitor.

i) The Golf was displaying temperatures in Centigrade (both on the dash and the Climatic). I prefer F (I only understand C from 10 deg down!) and gleefully read in the forum that this can be changed via the Climatic. However, having successfully switched it into diagnostic mode, I forgot where to find the C/F toggle and ended up trying random things (dumb). Later I noticed the manual clearly states how to make this change and it doesn't involve going into the diags - simply press Auto and Manual together to toggle C & F. Anyway I hope I haven't changed anything I shouldn't have (thinking of the missing Range function on the Trip computer). Is there a way to get back to the factory settings, just in case? I should add that the Climatic itself appears to be functioning normally... (excellent piece of kit)

j) A couple of people I talked to who had owned Golfs years ago said they were always blowing light bulbs. No sign of this yet except ...

k) The ashtray and cigarette lighter aren't illuminated - normally they are in other cars. But there is a red transparent plastic insert in the removable ashtray insert that may be the lens for a lamp. If there's a blown bulb in there somewhere it would be nice to fix it, otherwise no matter!

l) Somewhere around the ashtray area a squeaking/creaking noise has developed since we bought the car. It 'sounds' like deforming plastic. Taking the ashtray insert out makes no difference and I've tried applying pressure with my fingers to various parts of the fascia trim to in an effort to locate, but no luck. Anyone else had this and if so were you able to cure it?

m) And finally! The car is fitted with a 6-CD auto-changer, the type that's integral to the player rather than in the boot. My initial research suggests there's no way to connect an iPod or similar into this particular configuration. Anyone know differently? I'm using the radio interface that I was using with the last car which works quite well, but I'd rather have a direct connection if there's way...

I got a little nervous reading & learning about the PD engines. Should I get paranoid about this? Before we bought ours people had been saying to me "never had a problem", "mine's done 150,000 miles" or "we had one in for a service with 200,000 on the clock and still going strong" and I'm now wondering if these were examples of pre-PD diesels. As far as I can ascertain the critical PD areas seem to be a) regular servicing (we've always adhered to that anyway) and b) using the correct PD-certified engine oil, because of the strain put on the extra camshaft lobes that directly operate the high pressure unit injectors (whereas pre-PD engines used an injector pump = lower pressure system). That's my understanding as a novice anyway!

Loving the car, many thanks in advance for your indulgence!

Will T


P.S. HOLIDAY TRIP UPDATE. Taken the Golf to the Peak District for a week's break (for us, not the car!) Lots of fun, plenty of power dealing with the steep hills, a real pleasure to drive. Diesel prices NOT friendly! (saw £1.22 per litre occasionally). Having to learn some turbo diesel technique e.g. very limited power available before the turbo kicks - can catch one out pulling away uphill. Which leads me to...

a) Are the 3rd, party engine enhancements worth it? e.g. re-mapping. Re-mapping and add-on devices claim to nullify the pre and post turbo difference, but as desirable as these might be my overriding concern would be their effect on long-term reliability. In some ways I like the sound of the add-on solution because one can always go back to the original spec. whereas with re-mapping you'd presumably have to pay the cost all over again to be 'un'-re-mapped.

b) On one day the red dashboard display showed gobble-de-gook i.e. hashed up characters. Also it wouldn't toggle between the two trip memories. Switched off the ignition, re-started and it's O.K. again. Been fine since. Display electronics crash? The rest of the dash seemed normal during the outage

c) Before we left I zeroed Trip 1. When we got back home it had recorded around 1,003 miles and an average mpg of 49.3. Around 500 miles of this was motorway (mainly 6th gear, M25 notwithstanding!) and the rest hills & dales. I'm impressed. Is this typical for a diesel Golf?

[Crasher]

The miles remaining is a constant request and requires some software manipulation of the dash that not many people can do.

Power folding mirrors were an option and extremely rare. Yes you can manually fold them back.

Reverse dip was an option.

Getting an options printout is not as easy as it once was, you will have to ask your local dealer is they will do it for you, what is called a PR code list.

The noise you describe sounds like a tyre fault.

The noise is the fuel pump priming, as it should do and it will also do this sometimes when you open the door.

The division on the lens shows a different part of the road, aspherical wide angle.

The auto door lock is enabled by coding the central convenience system, it can be turned on or off with a diagnostic computer.

The rear door problem is the wiper motor leaking in the lid and dripping water onto the catch which contains the micro switch.

New pads come with new sensors.

Your car sounds like an import as it has the rain sensor which was only standard on the V6 4 Motion, it is a nice feature.

No, Golf’s do not have a habit of blowing bulbs, it was just that VW used a cheap source of bulbs for a while and they seem to be OK now.

I think you can get an I Pod connector kit.

[herby0001]

I do most of my miles on the motorway and calculate my MPG from miles and fuel used. I get up around 60mpg. 49mpg isn't all that bad. That's about the lowest I've ever got mine. That was driving quite hard and fast.

You are right about the PD engines. If not looked after and fed the proper oil at frequent intervals (many suggest every 6,000 miles), they'll become a money pit. Mine is on 110,000 miles and it's perfect, touch wood.

I fitted an IPOD/MP3 player interface recently. Very happy with it. See: http://www.xcarlink.co.uk/ It has both an ipod and 3.5mm audio type jack connectors, except if an ipod is used, you can charge it and control the tracks it plays from your VW Beta or Gamma head unit so it can live in your glovebox. I don't have a CD player, but it can co-exist with a CD player or changer as the connector for allows the existing CD player connector to plug in on top of it. You press the CD button once for the CD or twice quickly to change to ipod/mp3 input.

If you're used to driving petrol cars, then a turbo diesel will take a bit of getting use to. The range where the turbo is really effective is from about 1,400rpm to 3,000rpm, so you will find yourself shifting gears more frequently than in a petrol to stay within that band. No point red-lining it.

[M53494]

With regard to the rear screen wash/wipe. The water supply pipe runs up through the middle of the drive shaft. Its a common problem for the water supply pipe and drive shaft to corrode/sieze up, which shears the supply pipe.

It is possable to repair the pipe using some suitable tube from a model shop etc. Or, VW do a repair kit, which includes replacement o-rings and seals etc. Part No 8L0998711.

With regard to oil... there are LOADS of threads on here about the stuff in PD engines. Basically, if you want to look after your engine, use the best stuff and change it around every 6000 miles. I use VW's Quantum Longlife 3. It IS the oil for a long life service shedule (Every 20000+ miles), but I still change it every 6k.

[Crasher]

The repair kit is rubbish, I fit a new motor.

[The Muts Nuts]

The miles to empty feature is written in HEX code and its a pain trying to find someone who can read and work with it and who is willing to try it on your car.