UK-POLOS.NET - THE VW Polo Forum

seems i may have the generaic polo problem, 60k on clock, car will start but has no real power too it, takes a month to get up to speed, and redex in the carb did no good, are these the symptoms for the temp sensor? or do i just need to look at spark plugs, and where do the spark plugs reside? i can't find them because i'm lame lame lame
cheers for any help

that doesn't sound like the temp sensor, more like

a) dodgy leads
b) dodgy spark plugs
c) dodgy distributor cap

is the car missing beats at all?

yeah, it revs kinda inconsistently, and the hum of the engine sounds ticky (sorry i don't know proper terms lol) someone has suggested it is not firing on all cylinders, feeling a bit of a fool for not being able to locate spark plugs, distributor cap is ok

sparks are on the front of the engine - just follow the HT/distrib leads

thanks, will look shortly

yep, there they be, now just gotta find something long to get at them, looked at throttle body, is all nice and shiny, if only slightly dusty, can that be ruled out? we also have the battery off to reset the ECU

Ye it can be- if its all oily and yuck then it needs cleaning, but it doesnt hurt to get some carb cleaner. I'd recommend replaceing the temperature sensor anyway - its only a fiver from GSF or VW.

Youll probably need a spark socket plug to get them out - most other tools wont do it unfortunately

Right, so we've come to a vague conclusion its not the plugs, we are egnerally confused as to why its very sluggish when idling, and chugs up till about 3000rpm then is smooth as anything, except when it comes to accelerating off theres no ooomph whatsoever. we are considering taking it for diagnostics tests, and another thing we noticed, the area around the handbrake is very warm, this normal?

no idea about the handbrake!

sounds like either your leads or distributor cap - check the inside of the cap, and the rotor arm for pitting / signs of wear.

all them bits seem fine, we'll now have to see what the diagnostics people say

you can't tell if a lead is faulty until you pull it off and check the spark - but you don't want to do this as it's high voltage!

also the rotor arm could be faulty and it's hard to tell. how much is the diagnostic costing? I'd rather spend the cash on new leads and plugs.

have no idea how much, they did work on a ford probe we once had working, was about £30 i think

when were they last done? might be worth doing them anyway before you call them out, if they need doing.

we're taking it to them, this car has about 24 pages of service history at dealership, so was probably done recently

keep us posted on the problem, cheers