View Full Version : Help needed
scott-mk3
13-06-2007, 01:31 AM
Hey,
The problem has just started and I dont know what it could be.Tried a few things but no luck.
I go to start it and it starts and revs but then the revs just die and the car cuts out and the oil light flashes.Its on a mark 3 1.8 and its had a new rotor arm,distributor cap,oil filter,oil change,plugs etc changed.
Even trying to keep the revs high while starting doesnt do any good as the revs then just die again.
Any help out there? Iv got a video of what happens if its of any help.Here it is:
http://s87.photobucket.com/albums/k145/scott-v10/?action=view¤t=fault.flv
The fouth time it starts when i put the key to the first clik and allow the light on the far left to go out.However this only worked on some tries and didnt always resolve it.
scott.
Fettler
13-06-2007, 08:13 AM
Probs not much help but after watching your video, my view is an electrical fault.
Eshrules
13-06-2007, 08:17 AM
Hey,
The problem has just started and I dont know what it could be.Tried a few things but no luck.
I go to start it and it starts and revs but then the revs just die and the car cuts out and the oil light flashes.Its on a mark 3 1.8 and its had a new rotor arm,distributor cap,oil filter,oil change,plugs etc changed.
Even trying to keep the revs high while starting doesnt do any good as the revs then just die again.
Any help out there? Iv got a video of what happens if its of any help.Here it is:
http://s87.photobucket.com/albums/k145/scott-v10/?action=view¤t=fault.flv
The fouth time it starts when i put the key to the first clik and allow the light on the far left to go out.However this only worked on some tries and didnt always resolve it.
scott.
i presume being a mk3, it does not have a diagnostic port? from what you've described, the first few things id check would be :
throttle body - over time, these can become clogged up, sometimes a simple clean of this can resolve the issue. although you say you try to keep revs high, i presume you mean giving it all the gas, be careful doing this as you could risk flooding your engine.
Fuel filter - again, over time these can become clogged up, they arent an expensive part, so to replace it would not do any harm, make sure you get someone who knows what their doing to do it though, being a petrol, im unsure how you would go about doing this.
Fuel Pump - these become increasingly ineffcient as the car gets older, it is a fact of life, so this could also be responsible. im sure there is a way to check to see if fuel is passing through the fuel lines, i will look into this and see what i can find.
carb/idle control valve - this bit im not too sure about, im unsure when carbs were discontinued and im unsure if yours would have an idle control valve (i suspect it should) however, a faulty idle control valve normally means the idle is erratic or the car stalls itself, the engine is usually able to at least turn over.
i would recommend checking the first 2, as these are the easiest and cheapest fixes. there may be a techie about who can offer further detail :beerchug:
Eshrules
13-06-2007, 08:19 AM
Probs not much help but after watching your video, my view is an electrical fault.
an electrical fault where?
scott-mk3
13-06-2007, 01:35 PM
eshrules thanks for the detailed help alot for me to go and try.I will ry cleaning the throtle body as thats easy to access.Im going to go pop down and get a fuel filter aswell as when i did a serice on the car that was the only filter i didnt cange.
I dont mind doing it myself and will just clamp off the fuel lines going into it while working on it.
The mark 3 does have a port for diagnostic software although i was trying to sort it without having to go to a main dealer for their time and charges. I have however started to ask about if there is anyone in my area who has the software and wouldnt mind giving me a hand.
On topic of the carb/idle control valve i have read alot of people who have had problems with this on their mark 3's however it mainly seems to be the car cutting out when they are actually driving where as mine the problem lies when trying to start it. Its fine once its started but after you saying about being careful flooding with fuel it has been noticed that if it is tried to much to be started then unburnt fuel ends up coming out the exhaust.
I shall go and try a few of the things mentioned and see if i have any luck.
Again though thanks for the help :biggthump
Eshrules
13-06-2007, 01:56 PM
whereabouts are you? my geography skills are terrible, i have vagcom and a mini code reader. ill read codes for a pint ;)
How old is it ?
Reason being;
Older ones had an idle control valve
Newer ones controlled the idle from the throttleplate.
I'd do all the above and also suspect the coil output and look at;
water temp sender (ecu might think the engine is warm when it isn't)
crank positon sensor (this went dud on our MK3 2.0 GTI and caused starting probs)
As above get it read for faults or buy a lead and do it yourself to be exact. Otherwise you could end up spending the cost of a lead and some !
Good luck
Eshrules
13-06-2007, 02:28 PM
How old is it ?
Reason being;
Older ones had an idle control valve
Newer ones controlled the idle from the throttleplate.
I'd do all the above and also suspect the coil output and look at;
water temp sender (ecu might think the engine is warm when it isn't)
crank positon sensor (this went dud on our MK3 2.0 GTI and caused starting probs)
As above get it read for faults or buy a lead and do it yourself to be exact. Otherwise you could end up spending the cost of a lead and some !
Good luck
good thinking ;) i wasnt sure about the idle control valve etc... i would have thought with the temp sender though, there might be an indication on the dash? such as the temp gauge being erratic?
to the OP.... if you need a vagcom cable, i have one in stock, seeings your a member you can have it at cost, PM me if you would like it ;) if you're local to any user with it, im sure they will help you out:beerchug:
whereabouts are you? my geography skills are terrible, i have vagcom and a mini code reader. ill read codes for a pint ;)
Ayrshire = Scotland = miles away :(
Eshrules
13-06-2007, 02:42 PM
Ayrshire = Scotland = miles away :(
aah... i thought it was in scotland, but knowing my luck id of said and been wrong :o there must be someone who lives in scotland with vagcom...
scott-mk3
13-06-2007, 11:59 PM
well thanks for more feedback guys,and girls out there.
I went and got some of things things ticked off the list to check today and hasnt seem to of helped.
I cleaned the throttle body which wasnt really dirty in the first place.
Got a new fuel filter for it and fittted that and all went well but still not sorted the problem.
The only way i knew the fuel pump was working as when i put the new filter on it was empty so the fuel pump would have had to send petrol through to allow it to start eventually and that worked aswell.
Iv got another mrk 3 in the driveway which i am going to take the block which the main lead goes into and see if that does anything as local motor factors dealer,ex mechanic, said he has had a few folk with the same problme and it was down to this.Ill check that one out tommorow but if all fails i think i will be rewsorting to vagcom to see what faults arise there.
Keep you posted and any other help appreciated.
Scott.
pagey
14-06-2007, 10:25 PM
Alright mate,
Because of the oil light illuminating during the problem, I would think the problem stems from an electrical base.
In particular stemming from the ignition system, as I see you have started to check the distributor etc its a good place to start.
Have you checked a good spark at the spark plug end. and continuity in HT's etc.
Where there any other symptoms, hesitation etc at certain rev range before this problem ? could possibly back up the theory of ignition problem.
A good test for the ignition sytem or to detect any fault is to start at source Personally if you had the cash go get a new coil bout £80 see if it makes a differrence if not just take it back.
I had a golf with similar problems checked tracking, sparks, filters, throttle body turned out to be coil. Started better than it ever did ?
Hopefully some sort of help
scott-mk3
14-06-2007, 10:36 PM
well today brought no more good news sadly :(
I went ahead and tried the ignition coil from the other golf which was working perfectly starting but it didnt help atal on mine.Aswell as this i also tried the leads from the other golf incase my ht leads may have been the problem.Again...nothing.
I ended up my mate took me to a garage where his m8s dad owns it and is a vw/audi specialist and he said he shall pop up in the next day or so too have a look as its getting harder and harder to start.Tried bout 30 times today,ended up just leaving it,came back later and it started.
Strange mrk 3 :biglaugh:
scott.
Handsolo
21-06-2007, 02:36 PM
I may have missed something when I read through this thread, but the description (and the video) looks remarkably like what happens if you attempt to start the car with a plain (i.e. non-immobiliser equipped) key. The engine will start, but will immediately die. It doesn't explain why it started OK on the fourth attempt of course, but could it be an intermittent fault? When I bought my Mk3 Golf, the dealer procured a second key for me (incidentally, from a key-cutting outfit round the corner, rather than from a VW dealership, thus bypassing the requirement for passport, £10,000 deposit, proof of ownership, DNA sample, note from Mother etc. (I exaggerate). He also got a plain key cut to demonstrate that it would start the car (without the immobiliser) but would not allow the engine to continue running. Of course if you already have a second key...
gilly-06
22-06-2007, 02:03 PM
hi scot first check your getting fuel threw the injector if so then you know your getting fuel if not take the fuel line off turn on your ignition if your getting fuel out of there then your injector might be blocked could also be your automatic choke it will loose power aswell if its unplugged its possablilties
scott-mk3
22-06-2007, 02:10 PM
cheers for all the replies people but i managed to get ahold of someone with vagcom and got that hooked up to the car.It brought up the problem.Its a dodgy distributor and thats what needs changed.Its had the new cap and arm but it needs the actual distribuotr changed so shal be going on the look to get one of those.
Thanks again though for all the suggestions.It did help the car get a few new parts which werent needed but cant do ne harm to making it go any better.
Scott.
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