No power and cutting out!!! FIXED

[tompolo]

Hey guys

My faithfull old mk4 had an 'episode' today, it lost nearly all power and eventually cut out and refused to restart!

Doing motorway speeds for 20 mins then 40 on an A road for 10 mins and it got lazy in fifth, i dropped to third and still no response so pulled in,
Oil was low, near the bottom of the stick, i put in 3/4L and it was at the top of the stick,
Fuel was low but another 5 litres didnt help so thats not it, so my mate towed me home

Before tow the engine started after one failed attempt but had same futile power (barely able to move itself on the flat)

Engine started off the key once during the tow, after a good 5-10 secs turnin the starter, an i left it going till i got home, punching the accelerator the engine will rev slowly but a little shakey coming down. havent tested her yet cos i dont wanna get stuck somewhere...

Car is 1998 1.0 litre 128,000 miles on the clock
24 month service done 22 months ago and got the 12 month done at the right interval, 2nd cambelt at 120,000, fairly well looked after and passed mot a month ago

Any ideas before i go to the mechanic on wednesday?
This site has worked some magic for me before, hope it and ye guys can get me back on the road again!

cheers
tom

[l0rne]

when you said it was getting lazy was it cutting out/slowing the whole car down ?

i had a problem where mine lost power in 4th so i put it to 3rd then 1 second later i lost power in 3rd and kept doing same until i came to a hault.

mine was an electircal fault so 1st check if your fog light warning light on the dash shows up randomly if not check an earthing cable just behind where the air filter is ( you will needto take it off) as theirs an earthing cable which is linked to the throttle body.

if nothing works oryou have new news let me no

[tompolo]

when you said it was getting lazy was it cutting out/slowing the whole car down ?

Lost pretty much all power in each gear changing down, I pressed the clutch before it would stall and it cut out anyway

...check if your fog light warning light on the dash shows up randomly...

No warning lights at all, except the fuel light which had just come on. I've since put in 5 litres just for good measure. fuel light went off, just like the car is!

...if not, check an earthing cable just behind where the air filter is ( you will need to take it off) as theirs an earthing cable which is linked to the throttle body.

I took off the air filter housing but couldnt find anything resembling an earth strap.. whereabouts is it?



Cheers for the suggestion though, anything else ye reckon it could be?

I tried starting it three times today, on turning the key it will bite as usual but cut immediately, even if i keep the key turned...

thanks
tom

[alexperkins]

does it try and start and then stop, or is the starter running and cutting out or even running at all?

[tompolo]

does it try and start and then stop, or is the starter running and cutting out or even running at all?

the starter is working fine, but the car will only start for a fraction of a section, maybe one or two firings, then no more, even when i keep the key turned for the entire time.
this process repeats after giving it a little break.

the day it gave in i did notice it was idling a little lower than usual causing it to be a little bit rough, but not misfiring and normal driving was not impeded at all untill it failed

the last ounce of power i got from it was after the first time i stopped it, (not stalled), just pulled over a sec cos i was worried bout the power loss, when i pulled off it was on 'futile power mode' but seemed to kick into power at bout 2000rpm like a turbo!

gonna try the shareware version of vagcom tonight fot the craic, will report back

cheers for the suggestions

[l0rne]

the earthing wire is connected, its the sealed wire going around the throttle body connected tothe top right bolt is the earth wire

so does your car cut out whenyour not accelarting and your foot is on the clutch ?

idling is normally caused by the throttle position sensor faulty give that a check! the code if is faulty is (00530) when diagnosing!

you might need a new throttle body if not

[tompolo]

SHE LIVES!!!!!

Cheers for the suggestions

Just posting for anyone interested

A friend of mine heard a funny sound on turning on the ignition but not turning the starter, and he suggested hitting the fuel lift pump with with a hammer so he lifted the rear driver side seat and hit it! (not too hard)

A few turns of the ignition and she fired up and is now idling fine. havent driven it yet, gonna get a new pump first, just in case it cuts out somewhere dangerously

VAG-COM Version: Release 409.1-US


Chassis Type: 6N - VW Polo
Scan: 01,02,03,08,15,17,19,25,35,41,45,46,55

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Address 01: Engine
Controller: 030 906 027 E
Component: MOTRONIC MP 9.0 2126
Coding: 0261203932
Shop #: 1037355854
3 Faults Found:
00561 - Mixture Adaptation
12-00 - Adaptation Limit (Mul) Exceeded
00537 - Shareware Version. To Decode all DTCs
08-10 - Please Register/Activate - Intermittent
00525 - Shareware Version. To Decode all DTCs
29-10 - Please Register/Activate - Intermittent
Readiness: N/A

I'm assuming all three faults were caused by the dodgy pump.

Codes are; 1-Mixture Adjustment Control
2-Oxygen Sensor Control
3-O2 Sensor - Voltage Low - G39

Will get another pump from the scrappies on monday and throw it in.
Just incase any of ye think its somethin else sure let me know.

Also, are the pumps the same for all petrol polos? dont wanna be paying out for one too big


Thanks anyway,
g'luck,
Tom