MP.net Auto Service Center

[toki]

HELP needed. Does anybody know about the typical diagnosis of the timing belt (Zahnriemen?). My car is supposed to last till the end of the year, and i sure have to check it now after it had some weird problems. it had failing ignitions, even in higher gears. It's not about the sparks or that the motor sounds rough. It's just that it suddenly began to take no gas while driving with the typical sound of failed ignitions. It's not a car worth putting 600+ € into. I'll take it to the carshop, but i would be glad if i get a little hint beforehand. The timing belt would be the end, because i would dump it. How much is replacing it? (Any german?) Leaving it would total the motor for sure. I planned for a new car as early as december, the longer this one lasts the better. Just getting one now would create problems and i sure as hell don't pump hundreds of € into an old Saxo. I would hate to go for a lesser solution, just because i need a new one next week. Don't try to understand the finances LOL. I get quite some money later this year, but i don't want to take a credit now. (Everything carefully planned - time windows etc.) And i want a pretty or completely new car.

Oh, i forgot to say, the belt has 120.000km on it.
Anybody other ideas for the "bad ignitions"? (Argh, Car-English is not so easy.)

[red dragon]

i dont think this dealer is being honest with you.many dealer techs would rather replace caliper and rotors rather than machine rotors because of possible liability of having to rely on old rotors wich may have micro cracking or most common, replacing a rotor is a faster and more costly service than having to machine one. i think a second opinion is in order.

vw brake caliper have always been of very good quality and even hard cornering will not cause the pad to hit the rotor long enough to cause rotor warping. the things that will cause rotor warping wich will cause the grinding noise you are experiencing are:
1.a brake caliper stuck in the closed applied position

2.poor or no lubrication on caliper pins that cause the brake to apply and release unevenly.

3.water warping due to water contact , primarily hitting puddles with hot brakes and open spoke wheels .

i recommend going to another dealer, but if you want to inspect yourself, take one of the brakes appart, check for tears on the caliper piston boot, any tears found means that caliper indeed has to go because of possible internal rusting of the caliper bore. check the slider pins. they should be nice and shiny with some clear lubricant residue on them.they should have no rust or hard goo on them , if they do they must be replaced. the slider pin boots should also have no tears on them and make sure that during reasembly, you apply the proper lubricant both to pin and inside the pin boot that serves as a reservoir. to check the rotors, you would have to calibrate them with a microcaliper, many auto parts stores will calibrate removed rotors for free.

Thank you very much for your help

[toki]

don't forget me ^^^

[red dragon]

Uh, thanks for what?... making VWs in the first place?... and thanks to the Mexicans for assembling them?

[red dragon]

You should get a DS. Innovative, stylish, and a 40 year old POS.

[Herrmannek]

Stupid question, little unspecific... Can 70ties era car be started by push when battery is dead? I mean no electronics,carburetor, mechanical ignition, benzine engine...

[toki]

Uh, thanks for what?... making VWs in the first place?... and thanks to the Mexicans for assembling them?

HUH? I was not asking for a thank you. I was just afraid my post would just go unnoticed and not referring to you at all.

Anyway the american VW's are maybe assembled in Mexico, definitely not all. And no i'm not looking for another Citroen. Somewhat more pragmatic and 'boring', like a new Clio. Maybe, i'm totally undecided.


not even the sporty version... hmmpf

[tuercas]

HELP needed. Does anybody know about the typical diagnosis of the timing belt (Zahnriemen?). My car is supposed to last till the end of the year, and i sure have to check it now after it had some weird problems. it had failing ignitions, even in higher gears. It's not about the sparks or that the motor sounds rough. It's just that it suddenly began to take no gas while driving with the typical sound of failed ignitions. It's not a car worth putting 600+ € into. I'll take it to the carshop, but i would be glad if i get a little hint beforehand. The timing belt would be the end, because i would dump it. How much is replacing it? (Any german?) Leaving it would total the motor for sure. I planned for a new car as early as december, the longer this one lasts the better. Just getting one now would create problems and i sure as hell don't pump hundreds of € into an old Saxo. I would hate to go for a lesser solution, just because i need a new one next week. Don't try to understand the finances LOL. I get quite some money later this year, but i don't want to take a credit now. (Everything carefully planned - time windows etc.) And i want a pretty or completely new car.

Oh, i forgot to say, the belt has 120.000km on it.
Anybody other ideas for the "bad ignitions"? (Argh, Car-English is not so easy.)

not too much can happen to a timing belt, it can either break or skip a gear sprocket. when the belt breaks the car will not start at all, you can crank it and it may actually get stuck.

a timing belt that may have skiped a sprocket will cause car to overheat and missfire. a missadjusted distributor is a more comon cause for bad timing. bad camshaft timing and crankshaft timing sensors can also cause bad timing symptoms.to check that the timing belt is broken, open the oil cap so you can see the cam shaft, have a friend turn the engine, the cam should turn along with the engine, if it does then the next possibility is that the distributor may have moved.

check the distribuitor mounting bolts as they can come loose on modern aluminium engines over time , they must not turn by hand , if they are loose, distributor may have moved and it will have to be retimed, this can be done with a timing ligth but its a fairly straigthforward procedure for a mechanic and not too expensive, about $80 US dollars.

another more serious possibility is that the timing belt may have skipped, this may happen on a timing belt that is very old, around 100,000 miles or on a car that is reved very high or up to redline, checking can be more complicated , you would have to find the TDC(top dead center) marks. for those not familiar, TDC stands for the highest point in compression stroke that the #1 piston will reach before the spark is supposed to go off. you would have to turn your engine manually untill the crankshaft TDC mark lines up and the #1 piston is at its highest point. the tdc marks for both the camshaft or camshafts for DOHC engines and the tdc distributor marks must line up. if the belt did indeed skip , you would replace it anyway along with timing belt tensioner and optionally the water pump since this is a good time to get to it . the timing belt is not supposed to be flexible at all since its made of kevlar. replacing a timing belt on modern cars is actually considered preventative or routine maintenance which is due at about 50,000 to 100,000 miles . in a small shop it can go for $100 to $200 US dollars plus parts, a dealer will charge much more.

Stupid question, little unspecific... Can 70ties era car be started by push when battery is dead? I mean no electronics,carburetor, mechanical ignition, benzine engine...

can you be specific as to what car?

this can only be done if the car has a manual transmision and if the ignition system is energysed by placing the key on the ON position.

[shocker1]

HELP needed. Does anybody know about the typical diagnosis of the timing belt (Zahnriemen?). My car is supposed to last till the end of the year, and i sure have to check it now after it had some weird problems. it had failing ignitions, even in higher gears. It's not about the sparks or that the motor sounds rough. It's just that it suddenly began to take no gas while driving with the typical sound of failed ignitions. It's not a car worth putting 600+ € into. I'll take it to the carshop, but i would be glad if i get a little hint beforehand. The timing belt would be the end, because i would dump it. How much is replacing it? (Any german?) Leaving it would total the motor for sure. I planned for a new car as early as december, the longer this one lasts the better. Just getting one now would create problems and i sure as hell don't pump hundreds of € into an old Saxo. I would hate to go for a lesser solution, just because i need a new one next week. Don't try to understand the finances LOL. I get quite some money later this year, but i don't want to take a credit now. (Everything carefully planned - time windows etc.) And i want a pretty or completely new car.

Oh, i forgot to say, the belt has 120.000km on it.
Anybody other ideas for the "bad ignitions"? (Argh, Car-English is not so easy.)

Just to add to what tuercas said I have ran into this problem before with any system using a bosch air flow meter. It will test good with no codes but an inspection of the signal with a lab scope will show the signal is not clean and causes the fuel system to lean out. This causes spark knock, ignition miss, no power like the exahust is restricted or the fuel filter is clogged. Mention this to the shop when you take it because it is easily misdiagnosed as an ignition problem.

[Herrmannek]

can you be specific as to what car?

this can only be done if the car has a manual transmission and if the ignition system is energized by placing the key on the ON position.

Forgot you westerners use automatic transmission. I meant manual one. As for key turned to the ON position its rather obvious. I've done a push start many times already but not with dead battery... What I want to ask is.. If alternator alone would give enough voltage/power whatever needed when car is pushed to start engine and keep it working... As far as I know engine system is a bit picky about electrical supply...

[shocker1]

Forgot you westerners use automatic transmission. I meant manual one. As for key turned to the ON position its rather obvious. I've done a push start many times already but not with dead battery... What I want to ask is.. If alternator alone would give enough voltage/power whatever needed when car is pushed to start engine and keep it working... As far as I know engine system is a bit picky about electrical supply...

This will only work with a car with a generator. An alternator requires at least 9vdc to operate the regulator. Some may start with less but you will need a long down grade. If it is completely dead then a boost is your only hope.

[toki]

Thanks alot Tuercas and Shocker1

[tuercas]

Forgot you westerners use automatic transmission. I meant manual one. As for key turned to the ON position its rather obvious. I've done a push start many times already but not with dead battery... What I want to ask is.. If alternator alone would give enough voltage/power whatever needed when car is pushed to start engine and keep it working... As far as I know engine system is a bit picky about electrical supply...

this is what i meant by the ignition system being energized.as shocker said earlier, i will add that a car with an alternator needs voltage to power its electromagnets and generate a charge, the starter requires cranking amperes or amps, also known as CCA(cold cranking amps). a battery with a low charge may still put out 9 to 11Vdc which is sufficient for the alternator and ignition system to function. but if it has below 100 CCamps of reserve power the starter will not turn, only click. some cars have anti theft schemes where if the motor is cranked and the engine does not get running within a couple of seconds, the ignition system (spark) shuts off even if the key stays in the ON position ,making pushstarts difficult or imposible. if you have had to push start your car often, you may want to consider fixing your starter or battery problem since low voltage can damage your alternator voltage regulator.

Thanks alot Tuercas and Shocker1

you are welcome, do post how things turn out.

[towelie]

Im looking at getting a 03' VW Jetta TDI w/ 45k miles. I've heard jettas arent the most dependable of cars, but I've heard that the turbo version of the jetta is the most dependable one they have. Is this true or is it as dependable (or undependable) as the other jettas?

[tuercas]

Im looking at getting a 03' VW Jetta TDI w/ 45k miles. I've heard jettas arent the most dependable of cars, but I've heard that the turbo version of the jetta is the most dependable one they have. Is this true or is it as dependable (or undependable) as the other jettas?

VW diesels are very dependable vehicles. as a diesel mechanic i can tell you the main issue with getting any used turbo diesel, regardless of brand, is that many previous owners do not know how to use and maintain diesels properly and when they sell the cars can have mechanical problems that would not normally affect gasoline vehicles. some of the issues that can be found are clogged injectors from improper fuel filter replacements, fuel filters must be replaced at every oil change. carbon buildup from restricted air filters, air filters must be replaced at least every 2 oil change intervals. worn out turbine bearings due to oil starvation from not allowing turbo to spool down and cool down before shutting off vehicle. worn out camshaft lobes due to prolonged oil interval, diesel cars must have oil change at the most every 3000 miles and this must be done with diesel aproved oil , most automotive oils like 10w30 or syntetics are too thin for diesel and will cause accelerated bearing and cam wear.

some mechanical things you can check at the dealer during a test drive are;
.check exhaust leaks at the engine- diesels are built to tigth tolerances and exhaust leaks will be readily visible as black soot around exhaust manifold, this can be a sign of abuse such as over reving since diesels operate at lower RPM due to high compression.

.check coolant condition- coolant must be nice and clear. specially if red coolant is used. there should be no black powder or particles in coolant. if there are, this is an indication of a blown head gasket or perforated cylinder bore that is allowing carbon to seep trough.

.check for smoke at the pipe- modern diesels with particle traps and variable valve timing must not smoke, even when cold or reving up. specially automotive diesels, some medium (pickups) and most heavy duty(big rigs) still smoke a some. grey smoke indicates either worn valves or worn camshaft. black smoke indicates cloged or improperly timed injectors.

another thing to consider is that people that buy diesels, buy them for long term ownership, due to the subtantial premium that must be payed at initial purchase and diesel engine's proven longevity. this vehicle seems to have very few miles for less than 5 years ownership, less than 10k miles a year it seems. find out the truth as to why this vehicle was given up before getting it.