Sold Stripped Fred's Sharan Family Wagon (TDI Tinkering)

[stripped fred]

Oh dear. I have a ftp. I think it's gone into limp mode as I'm struggling to do more than 50mph on the uphill stretches of the motorway. Downhill I can coax it to 65/70 but it slows again when I hit a slight gradient. The gearbox seems to be changing OK. I have a spare battery so I'm going to try swapping that as the one on it is dead as a dodo. Wish me luck!

[KruJoe]

Ah FFS sorry to hear this Fred. I'm sure the charging light was working ok.

I so hope it is just the battery and your spare one makes it happy again.  Fingers crossed for you!

[KruJoe]

Any (extra) warning messages or lights on the dash?

The symptoms you describe sound like fuel supply issues - prime suspect: diesel filter. I bet that hasn't been changed in a while...

[bub2006]

I had similar issues on a Megane scenic dci. Was the egr clogged up

[stripped fred]

The new battery is working fine and it's just started on the button. No warning lights or other symptoms I can see. Going back on the motorway to see if it's still in limp mode or the battery change has resolved it. If not then it's a call to Autoaid I think as I'm not safe as too slow.

[KruJoe]

God-speed Family_Fred.

[forddeliveryboy]

Could just be a slightly sticky turbo after being laid up for a bit, causing the occasional boost pressure spike which is panicking the ECU.

 

Ignition off/on would reset things to normal operation until another spike spooks it, repeated Italian tune-ups usually cure them, if that's what's happening. Usually happens at 2-3k revs under load.

 

If gentle driving makes them return to limp mode, it's time for the Mr Muscle.

[NorthernMonkey]

+1 for sticky turbo vanes. Need to get it scanned for any logged codes...a decent scanner will retrieve stuff that a cheap obd jobby won't necessarily show. Anything in there relating to boost issues will likely be the above assuming it's intermittent, whereas a split hose etc will likely manifest itself all the time.

[stripped fred]

Got back on the motorway and it was fine, it drove really well, until 1 mile before the next services, which was convenient. We are gradually leap frogging home. When my old Audi used to occasionally go into limp mode I used to turn it off and on again while driving. Only happened a few times but it worked. I'm a bit reluctant to do this in an automatic, unless I can slip it into neutral. Any suggestions?

[Cavcraft]

Do these have those 'N75' valve things that older VAG stuff did? My old Passat used do have this sort of fault, and when turned off/back on again it would go away for a while. It wasn't an expensive fix, about £50 inc. fitting I seem to recall.

[Dirk Diggler]

Don't roll an auto in N; don't know about these but you can do harm to many apparently

[KruJoe]

For a very short distance it's ok.

My old Volvo auto would sometimes stall at speed (while in "D"), I'd nudge the shifter to "N", restart on the key, drop it back to "D", and continue on my way.

If you can do that while coasting along, then it should be fine. (The starter motor won't turn if it's in "D".)

[SiC]

I believe when you are rolling along in Neutral with the engine stopped won't turn the engine side of the torque converter and this side is where the ATF oil pump is. No ATF oil pump means the fluid can overheat if left for everything to stay sloshing around in whatever oil is left around the bits. I imagine it'll be alright for short distances, as the fluid will not overheat that quickly.

[beko1987]

Tried flooring the fuck out if it and see if that blasts whatever it doesn't like out the back?

 

Hopefully that won't include important bits of the engine...

[dollywobbler]

I agree with the others about the turbo. We have an LT minibus that had been sitting around for ages when we got it. Often needed a reboot after it slipped into limp home mode. Sticky actuator arm as I recall. Got lubed up, did it a few more times, now been fine for years.

[0ldCh0d]

It will be something simple, i mean look at how many Skoda Octavia taxi's are hitting about with gung ho mileages.

[stripped fred]

On the hard shoulder at the moment as limp mode happens after about a minute of driving. About 25 miles from home.

[KruJoe]

Oh damn.

Would it be safe to limp it to the next junction and A/B road it home?

[Pillock]

Do these have the little rod on the side of the turbo that works the vanes? I think my old rotary pump VAGTDI did, I was getting manky performance and just lobbed some WD40 at that bit and waggled it around a bit to free it up.

[J4mes]

My 110hp Seat Toledo does this when the variable vanes on the turbo get gunked up, when you are home search for the mr muscle trick on Google, do it, then blank the EGR!

[stripped fred]

We're home! That was emotional. Will update when I've got the kids to bed.

[Mr_Bo11ox]

Well done SF. Sounds stressful.

[SiC]

Well done getting it back by its own steam. I guess the missus is not best pleased with you right now?

 

Have you got a KKL lead and a copy of VAG-COM/VCDS?

[forddeliveryboy]

https://www.briskoda.net/forums/topic/243533-the-mr-muscle-vnt-turbo-treatment-thought-we-needed-a-guide-of-sorts/ is the near-guaranteed method of freeing up sticking vanes, but loads say they've had success with http://www.forteuk.co.uk/product-detail/34/Diesel-Turbo-Cleaner.

 

It's worth a good check of all the vacuum pipes for splits and cracks, a small leak will throw all the electronics into confusion.

[SiC]

Before doing anything else, get the error codes read!

[KruJoe]

I'm glad you're all home safely, gutted it has been such a ball-ache.

[stripped fred]

Back home now, sitting having a glass of wine with Mrs sf. She wasn't too happy but mainly because it was throwing it down on the way back and she doesn't like driving when it's like that. Visibility was very poor. It helped me in some ways though as many drivers slowed to 55/60 so at least I wasn't on my own! The limp mode problem seemed to get worse the further I went until it was coming on all the time even when I was hardly touching the accelerator.

 

I'm very pleased with the car overall. It feels pretty tight, has loads of space and storage and feels a good buy for the money. The tiptronic gearbox is great and the engine is quiet. The suspension all feels tight. It wears its miles well. When I've sorted this problem it will be just the job.

 

I've transferred the insurance now so need to try and get it sorted tomorrow while I'm off work.

 

My plan is:-

 

Look into getting a lead and vagcom although this may take me a few days to sort. Any suggestions on this much appreciated.

 

Have a look to see if there are any leaking pipes.

 

Try and remove the egr valve and clean it up.

 

Try the Mr muscle fix.

 

Change the fuel filter.

 

Hopefully the above will sort it. I then have a few more jobs but stopping the limp mode is the most pressing at the moment.

[KruJoe]

Hopefully ... sort it. 

 

I sure hope so too!

I'm glad you're still pleased with it otherwise, but it has some work to do to prove itself before your hols in France...

[Dave_Q]

Should just need the basic lead like this one: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/New-VW-Audi-Seat-VCDS-USB-409-1-OBD2-VAG-COM-Cable-OBD-Diagnostic-Scanner-/182332464866?hash=item2a73dc9ee2:g:ZZkAAOSwImRYEyVs

 

Free version of VCDS is enough to scan for codes. 

 

http://www.ross-tech.com/vcds-lite/download/index.php

 

Will work on any windows laptop.

 

 

Scan codes and report back, no need to start chucking Mr Muscle about if it's something else - sticky turbo is very likely though and Mr Muscle should do the trick.

[Pillock]

Will a bog standard Bluetooth OBD reader plus an app like Torque tell you enough or does it have to be VADGECOM?

(I've got a Bluetooth one you can borrow if you need)