the other night i went to my friends house and parked up by some snow outside of her house to pick her up. my car was off for maybe 5 minutes. it drove perfectly there besides stalling once from not paying attention. we get back in my car, the car started and it just died literally right after. clutch was all the way in and it was in neutral. i called my dad to drive out and come look at it. it kept dying for like 10 minutes. my dad eventually got it going by flooring the gas and it went. he drove it home with no problems. it drives it normally now like it did before, but it makes this weird noise when I start it. it doesn't lag or anything when it starts, it just makes a weird exhaust-ish noise right when it starts like its been holding its breath, it's very hard to explain. what could be wrong with it? it's only got 88k miles and its a 2001. I'm getting it looked at the mechanic tomorrow, what should I expect to be told that's wrong with it?
weird starting problem
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The noise at start up is the SAI pump (Secondary Air Injection Pump). It's part of the emission system helping the car to warm up quicker. The seal gets old and starts leaking air. you can replace the pump ( pretty expensive) or you can take it apart and fix it. The rivets can be drilled out and you can tighten the pump back up with some bolts and nuts. There is a great DIY out there on how to do it.
You should get the car scanned for codes and post them here in order for us to give you some advice on what might be going on.
One more thing. Did you have the very important timing belt and water pump service done yet?
If not you are living on borrowed time. When the timing belt goes so does your engine. Actually your head since it's an interference engine, meaning when the timing belt breaks the pistons collide with your valves and cause major damage. Do you have a 1.8 or a 2.0 engine?
Keep us posted and Good Luck
You should get the car scanned for codes and post them here in order for us to give you some advice on what might be going on.
One more thing. Did you have the very important timing belt and water pump service done yet?
If not you are living on borrowed time. When the timing belt goes so does your engine. Actually your head since it's an interference engine, meaning when the timing belt breaks the pistons collide with your valves and cause major damage. Do you have a 1.8 or a 2.0 engine?
Keep us posted and Good Luck
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It's probably a dirty starter... Its very typical. Here's a link to a sound clip: http://www.fallastarmedia.com/vortex/starter/starternoise.wav
Here's how it gets fixed: VWVortex.com - DIY - Starter Motor Grind Fix and Starter Motor Replacement
My bug did it for years in the cold weather.... It never got worse...
Here's how it gets fixed: VWVortex.com - DIY - Starter Motor Grind Fix and Starter Motor Replacement
My bug did it for years in the cold weather.... It never got worse...
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Woah, I have the same sound with my starter. Thanks for sharing!
@IndyTom- when we first bought the car my mechanic said i'd have to get it done within the next 6 months. it's at 88k miles. We are not sure if the timing belt was done..i don't think it'd really be much of a problem to get it replaced since we got the car for cheap. we got it for 4k by a private dealer who's wife drove it around a little. it's really nice with very minor cosmetic issues and something rattles in the inside but I'm not sure what it is. anyways, it might be that. but would that cause it to not start for just one time? I took it for a drive the other day to make sure that things were fine, all normal. I have a 2.0!
@Toad- Yes it sounds just like that! But a little less loud. It didn't do that when I first got it, but it just started getting super cold here in Indiana so I didn't know if it was just because it was cold.
@Toad- Yes it sounds just like that! But a little less loud. It didn't do that when I first got it, but it just started getting super cold here in Indiana so I didn't know if it was just because it was cold.
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Yeah, once summer comes back, it will go away for awhile if its not that loud.I really wouldn't worry about it too much until after you get the timing belt done. That's much more of an issue. I had mine snap on my 2.0 and thankfully I got a junkyard head cheap, otherwise it would have been a lot more painful to the wallet.
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I totally agree with Toad. The timing belt on your car is way past it's prime. Regardless of mileage that timing belt and plastic water pump are over 10 years old and way overdue to be changed. I wouldn't trust a dry rotted 10+ year old rubber band to keep my engine from self destructing.
The below zero windchill weather here in Indiana aren't helping the situation either.
The below zero windchill weather here in Indiana aren't helping the situation either.
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The Timing Belt service on a 2.0 is cheaper than on the 1.8 cars. I would only take it to a VW specialized shop that knows what they are doing. But not the dealer since they will rip you off big time.
Expect to pay about $600 - $650 for a complete timing belt Service which should include: The timing belt, accessory belt, water pump, tensioner, thermostat and coolant.
Here is a pretty good Timing belt kit which includes all the parts you need minus the coolant. In addition you will need about 3 liters of coolant.
Volkswagen New Beetle 2.0 > Search > Timing Belt > ES#2238 ECS Timing Belt Kit - Ultimate - MK42LTBK V2
Here is one gallon which is 3.8 liters and plenty for what you need :
Volkswagen New Beetle 2.0 > Search > Coolant > ES#1878309 G12 Coolant - 1 Gallon - G012A8G1G
Labor to install all of the above shouldn't be more than 4 hours. I know a very good shop here in Indianapolis called EP Werks which will install these parts for $400 dollars. So your total cost including parts and labor will be around $560 dollars. The dealer will charge you over twice that.
Or if you have someone that is handy and knows their way around VW's you could save the labor and do it yourself for about $160 bucks.
I just checked EP Werks page. With parts and labor they charge a total of $609.45 for a VW 2.0 timing belt service which is pretty fair. If you buy your own parts ahead of time you may safe a few bucks and I know EP Werks will install them for you, a lot of other places will not install parts purchased elsewhere since they can not guarantee them.
You can call around your area to see what people are charging but it really shouldn't be more than around $600-$650 for the 2.0
http://epwerks.com/index.php/specialspagelink.html
EP Werks could also take a look at your starter and clean it if necessary.
Not sure if related, but my 200GLX was recently stalling and not starting again if I shut it off for 5 mins or so then tried to start it. It was fine starting when cold, or if I left it for an hour or more. If I floored it, it would sometimes start and run really roughly. It turns out it was worn out spark plugs. Had them changed an now it starts fine.
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Yup, Spark Plugs and Coil Packs would be the first thing to check out. Also on the 200GLX it is always wise to check if Fred Flintstone has his feet firmly planted on the ground
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