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Model specific boards => Golf mk4 => Topic started by: Krispy on 14 January 2009, 18:51

Title: 1.8T Nightmare (continued) - Please help
Post by: Krispy on 14 January 2009, 18:51
Right, I have this problem with my 1.8T AUM.

I’ve had it plugged in to vag-com and no fault codes come up, I’ve also been to many mechanics out there including ‘vw specialists’ and ‘turbo specialists’ but no one seems to know what is wrong with my car.

I’m going to try explain this as well as I can because it is very hard to understand without driving it.
Basically, I can be driving along normally and the car will completely loose power, the only way power is back is if I let go of the accelerator and press it again.
It can also happen at any time, for example sometimes when im pulling away at the lights it will happen straight away, or if im driving normally, and when I put my foot down.

The other day it lost power again on the m25, so I thought id try something, I completely pressed the accelerator and nothing was happening, the revs would just slowly drop, I then dipped the clutch and left the accelerator fully pressed, the revs dropped to 1200rpm and just sat there until I let go of the accelerator and repressed it.

The thing is it doesn’t happen every time I drive the car, but when it does happen it gets really, really annoying, I don’t enjoy driving my car anymore.

Thanks for reading and any help will be greatly appreciated..
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare - Please help
Post by: Jkctr on 14 January 2009, 18:56
Maybe intake valve or spark plug related? A common problem on polos is the butterfly intake valve getting clogged and the car stalling or losing power (this was on the 99 model though)

Im not sure what using a cleaner spray would do on your engine so lets see what other people say first!
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare - Please help
Post by: Rhyso on 14 January 2009, 19:02
a common problem on the AUM is that the injector loom breaks down - might be worth having a look at that

also clean your throttle body as these can get clogged up - there's a how-to in the maintenance and info section  :smiley:
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare - Please help
Post by: Krispy on 14 January 2009, 19:05
ill check the injector loom mate,

i have already cleaned out my throttle body, and this didnt help, to be honest it was quite clean..
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare - Please help
Post by: Rhyso on 14 January 2009, 19:07
ill check the injector loom mate,

i have already cleaned out my throttle body, and this didnt help, to be honest it was quite clean..

could well be electrically related then

have you checked all your pipes for splits, cracks, leaks etc?
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare - Please help
Post by: Krispy on 14 January 2009, 19:13
apparantely jabbasport checked them, but didnt find anything.
It would be good to check them again, but the thing is it can happen at very low revs, before the turbo even kicks in??
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare - Please help
Post by: topher on 14 January 2009, 19:14
has anyone replaced or at least looked at the TPS?
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare - Please help
Post by: Krispy on 14 January 2009, 19:15
what a tps?
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare - Please help
Post by: golfgtidan on 14 January 2009, 19:16
throttle postion sensor
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare - Please help
Post by: Krispy on 14 January 2009, 19:18
I had my whole accelerator pedal replaced, cz some1 said it was that, but not luck... or is the throttle position sensor somewhere else??
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare - Please help
Post by: Krispy on 14 January 2009, 19:20
oh.. something i forgot to mention...
ive noticed that this happens sometimes, if i go over a bump or take a sudden turn also..
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare - Please help
Post by: topher on 14 January 2009, 19:38
tps is built into the throttle body

is this happening mostly when there's engine movement? as in enough to be yanking/trapping a dodgy earth?
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare - Please help
Post by: Krispy on 14 January 2009, 19:59
ye, it only happens when the engine is moving
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare - Please help
Post by: topher on 14 January 2009, 20:13
tbh if it was an earth issue it would kill more than throttle, dash/lights/servo/pas etc.. happened to me once at 60mph in the wet, exciting!

here's a list of earth points to check anyway.. its yank so some things might be reversed for RHD http://mit.edu/dennis/www/vw/grounds.html

check the injector loom too though

it could be either of those but my gut still says tps.. maybe you can find a cheap or damaged 2nd hand throttle body on ebay and pinch the tps off it (vw don't sell it separately iirc)
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare - Please help
Post by: Krispy on 14 January 2009, 20:22
alright mate ill give them a try, cheers for the advice~!!
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare - Please help
Post by: rheady on 15 January 2009, 13:07
I have the same problem but its very intermittent. Took it to VW to check and they said it was the throttle sensor, funny they didn't find this when it was under warranty?? The throttle body I was quoted at £150. They said the cleaned the throttle housing and it was OK for a while. Looks like I'll be getting a new throttle body when I get paid. What made me laugh is that they said it would take 2 hours to fit and would cost £150 in labour.
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare - Please help
Post by: Rhyso on 15 January 2009, 13:10
I have the same problem but its very intermittent. Took it to VW to check and they said it was the throttle sensor, funny they didn't find this when it was under warranty?? The throttle body I was quoted at £150. They said the cleaned the throttle housing and it was OK for a while. Looks like I'll be getting a new throttle body when I get paid. What made me laugh is that they said it would take 2 hours to fit and would cost £150 in labour.

Good old Capitol in Merthyr i take it mate?  :rolleyes:
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare - Please help
Post by: rheady on 15 January 2009, 13:33
The previous owner took it to a few dealers as the fault was intermittent but it should have been picked up. Capitol are good at finding the faults its just the cost of the repairs. You'd think they'd drop their prices because of the credit crunch. They must just be doing services at the mo.
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare - Please help
Post by: Krispy on 18 February 2009, 20:47
Bought a throttle body for £60 and put it on today hoping that it had cured the problem but 5mins after i left the garage it started its SH!T again.
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare (continued) - Please help
Post by: scoobynutta on 18 February 2009, 22:08
Had something similar on an old golf tdi mk4, turned out to be the previous owner had fit the wrong air filter (too big) which intermittantly caused the engine to lose power.
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare (continued) - Please help
Post by: Krispy on 18 February 2009, 22:17
I have an induction kit on mine, but even before that when i had the standard one on i still had the same problem.
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare (continued) - Please help
Post by: topher on 18 February 2009, 22:19
has the maf ever been changed? and with a genuine vw one? tbh i've lost track of what you've tried
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare (continued) - Please help
Post by: Krispy on 18 February 2009, 22:21
ive tried the coil packs, checked all hoses for leaks, unplugged the MAF and driven but nothing changed, changed the throttle pedal and sensor, and today changed the throttle body with no luck again.
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare (continued) - Please help
Post by: topher on 18 February 2009, 22:26
when you say nothing changed when you unplugged the maf.. you mean it carried on doing the crappy power loss thing? or it just ran as normal?
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare (continued) - Please help
Post by: Krispy on 18 February 2009, 22:34
i mean it carried on doing the crappy power loss thing
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare (continued) - Please help
Post by: topher on 18 February 2009, 22:44
a real head scratcher then.. i can't think of anything else that wouldn't throw up some kind of fault code

anything fuelling related should give at least some kind of error for mixture... couldn't hurt to try some injector cleaner i suppose :undecided:
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare (continued) - Please help
Post by: Krispy on 18 February 2009, 22:58
That's the thing its so hard to diagnose with no fault codes and being so intermittent.
I really lost heart in my car though, dont know what else to do, the easiest thing seems to sell it.
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare (continued) - Please help
Post by: jlbrown3 on 18 February 2009, 22:59
I have been having a very similar problem with my 1.8T for about 2 years now (although mine would sometimes completely cut out, try loosing power steering and power assisted breaks at 80MPH, yikes!)

http://www.golfgtiforum.co.uk/index.php?topic=52613.0 (http://www.golfgtiforum.co.uk/index.php?topic=52613.0)

No fault codes, new MAF sensor and temp sensor fitted, various other theories persued; still no joy.  My latest round of problems seem to be battery related but I don't know whether there is a link to the ongoing intermittent power loss issues.

http://www.golfgtiforum.co.uk/index.php?topic=106378.0 (http://www.golfgtiforum.co.uk/index.php?topic=106378.0)

I do recall noticing that my battery warning light would flash on while the car was having one of it's moments, have you niticed this?
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare (continued) - Please help
Post by: richw911 on 18 February 2009, 23:01
I have been having a very similar problem with my 1.8T for about 2 years now (although mine would sometimes completely cut out, try loosing power steering and power assisted breaks at 80MPH, yikes!)

http://www.golfgtiforum.co.uk/index.php?topic=52613.0 (http://www.golfgtiforum.co.uk/index.php?topic=52613.0)

No fault codes, new MAF sensor and temp sensor fitted, various other theories persued; still no joy.  My latest round of problems seem to be battery related but I don't know whether there is a link to the ongoing intermittent power loss issues.

http://www.golfgtiforum.co.uk/index.php?topic=106378.0 (http://www.golfgtiforum.co.uk/index.php?topic=106378.0)

I do recall noticing that my battery warning light would flash on while the car was having one of it's moments, have you niticed this?

Earth strap fault?  :undecided:
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare (continued) - Please help
Post by: Krispy on 18 February 2009, 23:04
I have been having a very similar problem with my 1.8T for about 2 years now (although mine would sometimes completely cut out, try loosing power steering and power assisted breaks at 80MPH, yikes!)

http://www.golfgtiforum.co.uk/index.php?topic=52613.0 (http://www.golfgtiforum.co.uk/index.php?topic=52613.0)

No fault codes, new MAF sensor and temp sensor fitted, various other theories persued; still no joy.  My latest round of problems seem to be battery related but I don't know whether there is a link to the ongoing intermittent power loss issues.

http://www.golfgtiforum.co.uk/index.php?topic=106378.0 (http://www.golfgtiforum.co.uk/index.php?topic=106378.0)

I do recall noticing that my battery warning light would flash on while the car was having one of it's moments, have you niticed this?
I haven't actually left it that long to come to a stop so i wouldnt really know if it would cut out. Usually when it happens to me i just let go of the accelerator and press it again and all power is back.
As for the battery warning light, i dont get that coming up mate.
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare (continued) - Please help
Post by: Josho on 18 February 2009, 23:41
I know this is a bit stupid, but it's not something silly like the arm on the accelerator pedal is it? So when you let go it catches again?  :undecided:
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare (continued) - Please help
Post by: monzablue16v on 19 February 2009, 01:01
Is it drive by wire or drive by cable?
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare (continued) - Please help
Post by: Krispy on 19 February 2009, 01:11
It's drive by wire mate
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare (continued) - Please help
Post by: monzablue16v on 19 February 2009, 01:24
I believe that with Vag-Com you can log the TPS and the drive by wire to a graph this might point at a problem. It does sound like a problem with the link between pedal and throttle body. Not heard of it before but might be worth sticking a post on VW vortex as they have answered loads of questions that nobody could pin down :)
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare (continued) - Please help
Post by: rheady on 19 February 2009, 09:09
Mine has no stored faults for this either. Did you buy a new throttle body. Could be the one you bought was Fooked. Think that why VW never believed the previous owner or she did'nt explain the problem properlly. They told me it was the sensor in the throttle housing. There was a post from Nick of       R-Tech about turning the ingnition on and off while tapping the throttle to release the sensor.
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare (continued) - Please help
Post by: Krispy on 19 February 2009, 13:08
ye but how likely is it that both the throttle bodies i bought have the same problem? Also i wasnt prepared to pay £400 when i wasnt even sure it was that.
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare (continued) - Please help
Post by: rheady on 19 February 2009, 13:49
So the throttle body was a used item and not new, thats what I'm trying to get at. Call VW, i was quoted £150 for the throttle body. As the fault is intermittent it could be the used item is the same. Could be worth having a chat to Nick at R-Tech for some advice.
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare (continued) - Please help
Post by: Krispy on 19 February 2009, 13:54
I have called vw mate and they quoted me £380
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare (continued) - Please help
Post by: ben1.8T on 19 February 2009, 13:57
I have called vw mate and they quoted me £380

For the throttle body? :shocked:
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare (continued) - Please help
Post by: Krispy on 19 February 2009, 14:00
yep  :undecided:
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare (continued) - Please help
Post by: ben1.8T on 19 February 2009, 14:04
yep  :undecided:

Fooking hell that aint cheap.  :shocked:
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare (continued) - Please help
Post by: redevo1 on 19 February 2009, 14:14
I had a simliar problem with an Evo turned out to be a loose conection into the ECU have a look at where the loom goes into the ECU? If conections loose it'll be a intermittent fault? :undecided:
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare (continued) - Please help
Post by: rheady on 19 February 2009, 14:34
F@@king hell thats steep. I'll call my local dealers and check again..
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare (continued) - Please help
Post by: rheady on 19 February 2009, 21:24
Called VW and quoted £350 was gobsmacked at the cost
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare (continued) - Please help
Post by: sambo on 19 February 2009, 21:59
Hi mate sorry to hear about the prob's.

Don't know much about the DBW set up, is there a pedal sensor that could be replaced?

How often does it do it?

Hope you get it sorted soon!

Sam

Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare (continued) - Please help
Post by: Krispy on 19 February 2009, 22:02
Hi mate sorry to hear about the prob's.

Don't know much about the DBW set up, is there a pedal sensor that could be replaced?

How often does it do it?

Hope you get it sorted soon!

Sam


yes mate there is also a pedal sensor but i have changed that too..

People over at vwvortex reckon it might be my MAP sensor or im getting a fault code on vagcom about a faulty brake switch, they think it could be one of the two.

Also it happens everytime i drive it... very frustrating!
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare (continued) - Please help
Post by: sambo on 19 February 2009, 22:20
can you not record some logs as previously said on vag com and take it for a drive until it does it?

Also would the lambda sensor cause it? I think i remember hearing lambda failure doesn't show up as a fault sometimes but if you check the reading via vag com it will be 0 or something like that?

A few stab's in the dark really, sorry can't be much more help  :nerd:

Sam
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare (continued) - Please help
Post by: monzablue16v on 19 February 2009, 23:22
Take some logs and post them up dude, you can log to a csv file iirc :) log as much as you can and we may be able to see something :)
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare (continued) - Please help
Post by: Krispy on 19 February 2009, 23:46
ill try mate, gonna have to find someone with vag-com though..
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare (continued) - Please help
Post by: Rhyso on 20 February 2009, 08:01
ill try mate, gonna have to find someone with vag-com though..

PM Kalu over on ukmiv's - i think he's in London somewhere lol

he's a bit of a VAG COM guru  :nerd:
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare (continued) - Please help
Post by: sambo on 20 February 2009, 08:05
It's worth buying an ebay lead for your cause mate. I got mine for about £14 delivered. Just need a lapptop then and away you go.

Sam
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare (continued) - Please help
Post by: Krispy on 20 February 2009, 13:55
Don't you need to download any sort of program for the laptop mate?
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare (continued) - Please help
Post by: monzablue16v on 20 February 2009, 15:26
Usually comes on the disc from the ebay sellers tbh matey, not a great deal to buy from Ross tech though :)
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare (continued) - Please help
Post by: Rhyso on 20 February 2009, 15:35
Usually comes on the disc from the ebay sellers tbh matey, not a great deal to buy from Ross tech though :)

the software is FREE to download from Ross Tech

the cost is in the license in the lead  :nerd:
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare (continued) - Please help
Post by: T_J_G on 20 February 2009, 15:56
Or buy it from VAGproducts.co.uk like I did. Can't do autoscan which is a pain though.
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare (continued) - Please help
Post by: Krispy on 20 February 2009, 17:11
i see, might have to buy one then.
isnt it hard to use though?
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare (continued) - Please help
Post by: T_J_G on 20 February 2009, 17:23
Not at all mate. Pain to get working on Vista though but XP works fine.
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare (continued) - Please help
Post by: Rhyso on 20 February 2009, 17:50
i see, might have to buy one then.
isnt it hard to use though?

if you can operate a mouse with a fair degree of accuracy then you'll have no problems
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare (continued) - Please help
Post by: Krispy on 20 February 2009, 18:05
just bought one for £13.99 off ebay..
Ill do some logs when i get it and let you guys know what happens..

In the meantime im going to replace a faulty brake switch that i have been getting a fault code for, over at vwvortex they think this may be a possible cause, fingers crossed.
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare (continued) - Please help
Post by: T_J_G on 20 February 2009, 18:06
Umm..can you do logs on the demo?
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare (continued) - Please help
Post by: Krispy on 20 February 2009, 18:12
which demo?, did i just buy a demo?
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare (continued) - Please help
Post by: T_J_G on 20 February 2009, 18:24
Well the doftware you'll download will be a demo.
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare (continued) - Please help
Post by: Krispy on 20 February 2009, 18:29
cheeky f@@kers, so i bet to buy the full version will be around £80?
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare (continued) - Please help
Post by: T_J_G on 20 February 2009, 18:36
Yeah although you can scan different parts of your car with the demo fine :)
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare (continued) - Please help
Post by: sambo on 20 February 2009, 19:06
PM'd you
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare (continued) - Please help
Post by: topher on 20 February 2009, 19:30
In the meantime im going to replace a faulty brake switch that i have been getting a fault code for

ahhh see you never told me about that! if the ECU senses that you're pressing the brake pedal, it'll cut the throttle.
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare (continued) - Please help
Post by: Krispy on 20 February 2009, 19:59
lol sorry topher, only came up the other day though. People have been saying that but i thought it was just the tdi's that had that feature?
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare (continued) - Please help
Post by: topher on 20 February 2009, 20:30
no all dbw engines are like that.. try tapping the brake pedal with your left foot while driving and see what happens :wink:
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare (continued) - Please help
Post by: Krispy on 20 February 2009, 21:31
tried wt u said topher but nothing happened..
Title: Re: 1.8T Nightmare (continued) - Please help
Post by: vestax96 on 20 May 2018, 20:43
i know this is a very old post but im hoping you got to the bottom of this? i bought a new mk4 2.0 gti last week and it has this exact same issue i've cleaned the throttle body and the issue is completely random, sometimes it does it sometimes it doesn't...

i'm hoping you can tell me what you did to fix it so that i can fix mine without spending a lot of money especially as i cant afford to spend loads.

please email me :)