Golf Mk4 Tdi Air intake pipe issue

[y2mash]

Hi guys, im new to the forum and needed some help with a long standing issue i have with my mk4 tdi 150.

A few months ago whilst driving, my (near side) air intake pipe became very loose with plenty of smoke coming from the exhaust as i was driving! i took it to a garage and a new pipe was fitted....end of story. A month later the pipe came loose again and blew off once more, symtoms being the same, with plenty of smoke coming from the exhaust! Yet again back to a garage and a new pipe was fitted! Now this brings me to June and i notice that when i floor the gas the pipe becomes loose and there is a mass of smoke coming from the exhaust at the back! However when i drive the car at a steady rate, i can accelerate upto 100mph and there is still reasonable pull in the car! However after every journey the air intake pipe is always slightly loose and i stick my had under the bonnet and click it back into position. VW main dealers were the last too diagnose the car and said there were no faults!
Since then i have been away for a while and return home to the same problem! VW say they will charge close to £100 for a further diagnosis as they didnt charge for the previous one as they said they did not find a fault. My uncle who is a mechanic feels it may be a faulty pressure boost of somekind! but he is not a vw specialist so is taking a stab at what the problem could be!

Sorry for the long winded story!

I appreciate your opinions, views and help on this.

Mash!

[Col]

It is a fairly common problem, TDI's throwing off their boost pipework.

In my opinion, the design of the joint and spring clip arrangement that hold it / them in place isn't upto the job.

So no help in solving it but it is unlikely that you have an overboost problem.

[y2mash]

I agree! When you look at the clip which holds the pipe, you realise it is very weak! I might try and get a 6inch jubilee clip from b&q and try that, as they are much better at holding such pipes!

Any other suggestions would we welcome!

[Skidmark]

I had a very similar problem with my GT TDI 150, After it was refitted I spoke to the VW technician who informed me that the boost pipe is designed the way it is to blow off to save the engine from damage.

I would guess that if your's keeps coming off then you have an issue with something else.

Skidmark

[y2mash]

thanks for your reply skidmark!

When you had the pipe re-fitted, did it not come off again! as mine will come off completely if i thrash the car in high revs or apply the gas for quick acceleration. It also comes slightly loose after every journey, be it a tame one at that with me driving slow!

[Karlos_Fandango]

I had a very similar problem with my GT TDI 150, After it was refitted I spoke to the VW technician who informed me that the boost pipe is designed the way it is to blow off to save the engine from damage.

I would guess that if your's keeps coming off then you have an issue with something else.

Skidmark

My (ex) girlfriend and I both have identical mk4 150 TDi's, both over 100k mileage. I havent had any such problems, but she had the same fault - happened the first time while I was driving her car! We managed to source (from a Skoda dealer) the clip for the bottom Intercooler hose and noticed that it was a fragile kinda thing. Once fitted it went again a few days later. But hasn't happened since! I think if you're lucky, you'll either get away with it or it will be a habitual problem.

Talking of which, I am about to post in the main Golf forum about an ongoing fault on my car and a new problem on her car!

Thankyou VW, for making such unreliable cars...for which fantastic forums like this would never exist!!

You know when you've been Fandango'd

[Skidmark]

The problem has never happened since. What I was saying is that you problem may lie with something else causing too much pressure which is why the pipe is becoming detached. It is designed to do that, hence the lack of a jubilee clip.

Skidmark

[y2mash]

thx skidmark! My pipe has come off twice already and i have been driving in a tame manner since to avoid a thid blow off! Im seriously considering getting some kind of a jubilee clip and tightening the pipe at its connection in an attempt to prevent it blowing off! There are some jubilee clips that when tightened can withstand 200psi pressure! so i sincerely hope the job could be done!

[aitch_js]

...I had this problem before too (on a weekend away at the Nurburgring), turned out to be one of the little metal clips was broken, as a temporary repair I put a couple of jubilee clips and some cable ties around the join and all has been well since. The clips don't have to be tight as the actual seal is made by an 'O' ring - you just have to stop the pipes coming apart.
Thinking about http://www.allardmotorcompany.com/pa...0PD-models.asp as a better solution but not sure what the effects of getting rid of the EGR are ???
(Revo'd PD150)

[y2mash]

...I had this problem before too (on a weekend away at the Nurburgring), turned out to be one of the little metal clips was broken, as a temporary repair I put a couple of jubilee clips and some cable ties around the join and all has been well since. The clips don't have to be tight as the actual seal is made by an 'O' ring - you just have to stop the pipes coming apart.
Thinking about http://www.allardmotorcompany.com/pa...0PD-models.asp as a better solution but not sure what the effects of getting rid of the EGR are ???
(Revo'd PD150)

My pipe which is loose looks the same as yours however it is located under the bonnet near the front bumper by the near side headlight! My limited knowledge now indicates that this seems like one of the lower intercooler pipes!