Idle air control valve or oxygen sensor or what?

I believe that you are running an aftermarket ign coil. I have not seen many or any of those survive for long. I have seen them died within a week and never last past 1 year. I refuse to use them!!! I ONLY purchase them from the dealer to get their TEMIK brand.

"dave AKA vwdoc1" wrote in news:oAk0k.95$L snipped-for-privacy@flpi150.ffdc.sbc.com:

The garage assured me it was the German original one, but I'll pay heed to your warning, and maybe try to get a good look at it. Thanks for the reply.

I've come across aftermarket coils that have failed on a regular basis as well.

On another note, are there any stored fault codes? I'd have to assume no, because I see no mention of it. If that be the case, I'd be investigating a possibly failing fuel pump. It could be cutting out under certain circumstances causing the car to stall.

Maybe a faulty hall sensor (inside the dis.) Also check the crankcase breather pipes. Try running without the o2 sensor see if that makes a difference.

SFC

"vampire chicken" schreef in bericht news:Xns9AAFAE3D2FBCvamchi@66.250.146.158...

If it's the IACV (& it's a common failure) then cleaning & oiling it should briefly fix it.

"SFC" wrote in news:484258b7$0$6026$ snipped-for-privacy@news.kpnplanet.nl:

I'll have the garage look into these. Thanks for replying.

"Duncan Wood" wrote in news:op.ub2c5va3pmo3dt@lucy:

They said they "adjusted it" and it ran great for about 2-3 miles. I'll see if I can have them look at it again. Thanks for the reply.

Madesio wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@4ax.com:

Good to hear a confirmation of the possible problem.

I am VERY ignorant about cars. Stored where? The only code I've seen was the one in the garage whose scanner that said the oxygen sensor was bad.

I'll mention that to the garage. Thanks for replying.

"dave AKA vwdoc1" wrote in news:CFB0k.6211$ snipped-for-privacy@flpi146.ffdc.sbc.com:

After some time on Google, I found out it's actually spelled Temic and made by Bosch (Temi*k* is a very potent pesticide). I will go down in a few minutes and check it out.

They showed me where it was, I just didn't look at it closely. So it shouldn't be TOO hard to find ;-)

In my Googlings last night I read HORRIBLE things about all the "better then original" parts, like Beru!

BION, I also ran across a page whose URL has vanished on me, but it extensively described a virtually identical problem with a 95 Golf GTI!!! So I think we're on the right track here! Most of my symptoms were mentioned, and the rest were mentioned on a couple of other pages where the coil was also the problem!

In the next little while, I hope. I have to do a /few/ RL things before I get back to this.

Thanks again for you help. vc

vampire chicken wrote in news:Xns9AB09043F3B6Evamchi@66.250.146.158:

Well, it's a Temic, but it's "Made in Mexico". Brazil and Mexico manufacture an enormous amount of VW's and many parts come from there as well. I guess I'll have to look for a real German Bosch Temic - I hope I can find one.

Right?

Thanks again for all your time. vc

Just take a look yourself and see if it is a TEMIK. Lift the hood and follow the center wire from the distributor to the coil. Takes 10 seconds. ;-) You don't want an aftermarket one, not just German, not OEM, not HUGO, not BERU, only TEMIK!! The aftermarket coils can even spark but the spark might be weak creating a lot of running problems or non-starting problems.

I will wait for your visual confirmation.

"dave AKA vwdoc1" wrote in news:z0H0k.2281$ snipped-for-privacy@nlpi069.nbdc.sbc.com:

OH NO! And here I thought it was solved!

Even a Mexican one? AFAIK, the previous 2 (one lasted 6 months, one about a week) were the same ones. The /original/ lasted over

12 years - but for all I know it may have been a Mexican one as well! Still, I think it might be worth checking to see if any real Bosch Temics can be found.

Fuel pump and fuel filter were changed not that long ago.

I did (while still groping around in the dark) find an original Bosch o2 sensor for a really good price. I'm tempted to get it, although my garage guy says "if it runs OK, why spend the money?". But it's NOT running OK /again/! So maybe it IS the damn o2 sensor, as the scanner in that one garage indicated. MY garage's scanner said, first time, coil, second time, AIV. So maybe similar symptoms can cause very different diagnostics from different scanners and it IS the o2 sensor???

I will also ask if they just "adjusted" the air valve or whether they actually cleaned it properly as well. Although they really are a pretty conscientious garage.

This gets worse and worse!

I /believe/ they put in some Japanese spark plugs last time they changed them and washed the injectors, etc. The dist. parts are new as well, but I have not inquired into their /exact/ origin.

At least, AFAIK, there are NO Chinese parts in the car.

I'll see what I can do.

I'll see what my garage says.

I'm tired of waiting for the tow trucks with everyone honking at me!

I'm going to need it, it seems.

Thanks again very much for your help! vc

Oh well that blew my theory. lol I would probably not think it was the coil now with a new Temic there.

So maybe like others have said, fuel pump, fuel filter, 02 sensor, etc. :-( I have taken out some Bosch Platinum Spark Plugs that were causing horrible running problems in engines. I use the long life original spark plugs and Bosch distributor caps and rotors. The aftermarket distributor rotors can also cause some hard-to-find running problems. With excellent quality parts installed hopefully you don't have to worry about those parts too while searching for the main problem(s). ;-)

Diagnostic Trouble Codes (faults) are usually stored in the car's computer which might require a scanner to read the codes. I don't think your car will blink out the codes for you so a special scanner is needed. I believe you have a 1995 Golf, I don't think Autozone or other stores can read your OBD-I system. They can only read the OBD-II systems AFAIK.

Good luck!

I don't believe Temic is related to Bosch. It's just another elec. auto parts manf.

SFC

"vampire chicken" schreef in bericht news:Xns9AB09B2725E6vamchi@66.250.146.158...

"SFC" wrote in news:4843bdbd$0$6003$ snipped-for-privacy@news.kpnplanet.nl:

You are correct, I just got confused while Googling. Actually it /appears/ that a lot of Temics DO seem to come from China these days - as if /anything/ didn't - so I guess I should be glad I have a Mexican one.

This whole thing is very very sad. I hesitate to say too much, because the most obvious comment is, the people who are alleged "mechanics" are plain and simple incompetent. First off, if you have a very high CO level that indicates the car is running rich. A faulty distributor or ignition coil will not cause you to run rich. Faulty timing might if its EXTREMELY bad but thats detectable with a timing light.

I'd suspect a clogged fuel filter and/or the O2 sensor. A car with 30k miles on it shouldn't have a messed up O2 sensor though. On the other hand, driving a car 2300 miles a year is very tough on a car. Thats 44 miles per week. If you can get 400 miles on a tank, that means you are on average going at least 9 weeks between refuels. Gas does degrade, and humidity condenses in the gas tank which just sits there and nastifies your gas.

That said, if it were me, I'd positively diagnose it, and if you can't do that, take it to someone who is willing to, and not just throw parts at it, or guess about it because it will never get fixed that way, and you'll never be sure. You can positively diagnose the problem if its a faulty sensor, period.

BTW, Temic is a German company, as is Beru and Bosch, they are all completely seperate companies.

wrote in news:g24hni$d2u$ snipped-for-privacy@grapevine.wam.umd.edu:

Thank you for your empathy.

I have found this out, even though I have only owned 3 cars in my life. I once had a VOLVO dealer set the idle on a Volvo stick shift station wagon to 2000 RPM, so I had to step on the gas AND on the brake to have it idle normally! The hills and mountains were especially enjoyable!

The permissible aircheck CO level was just lowered from 2 to 1 -

6 months ago my car passed with flying colors. Now my CO emission level was between 1.5 and 4.5 (per ?) depending on the 2000/4000 RPM readings and depending on whether the "mechanics" who do these things here messed with the timing first. FWIW, it was BETTER (under '2' /both/ RPM's) /before/ they slowed it down!

Still, they ALL said I need a new 0² sensor, as the plug-in scanner whose reading I /personally/ saw did. But my mechanic said it was the coil - so I have a 3rd coil in 6 months or so. A Temic (albeit a Mexican one as I assume the others were, but no has said anything about that making them worthless) - which impressed me - I had never heard of Temic let alone that it was "the only coil to get" until Dave replied to me. OTOH, 3 Temics in 6 months is NOT so impressive. OTOH, the original lasted over

12 years but who knows what THAT was and where it was made?

I am tempted to buy a real Bosch 0² sensor but my garage says not to waste the money if the car runs OK. It will be cheaper than taking it to a dealer for a (hopefully accurate) diagnostic but at this point (see below) I am just going to wait until the next disaster strikes.

The current situation is:

It ran GREAT for the first 5 miles after they put in the 3rd coil and adjusted the AIV.

Then when I started it next day it started instantly (as it ALWAYS has) but idled even MORE roughly than before! The needle actually went down to 400 at one point! But it ran fine, although I /fully/ expected total disaster at some point.

The next day it started, idled and ran just perfectly - and I stopped and started about 4 or 5 times that day.

Yes, I read they last 60K miles.

Sometimes it's 10 miles a week, sometimes it's 80. There's nothing I can do - I am not going to drive it just for the sake of putting miles on it, right? I live in a huge city with horrible traffic. It's hell.

As I said, I always warm it up and religiously change oil/filters. It has always run perfectly well, and when I started having some problems about a year ago, another garage cleaned the injectors and a few other things. It was OK for a few weeks, than it started up again.

I was recommended /this/ garage. They tuned it up, put Bosch spark plugs in (Dave - I was wrong, Bosch, not Japanese, I checked the invoice), new dist. cap and rotor, re-cleaned the injectors, and a few other things (I am reasonably sure they checked the fuel filter, which was changed a couple of years ago anyway along with the fuel pump - original German pump was installed [then THAT garage closed down, of course].).

Anyway, after these guys did all that, it ran better than it has //EVER// run. (I have been driving it since the car was about 3 years old, for about 10 years now.)

The tank is about 15 gallons and I seem to get about 16-20 mpg. It's always been that - AFAICT because since I drive it so little I never paid much attention to the gas consumption.

It does vary, but I am sure I have gone 5-8 weeks with no refill. The gas gauge is a little "moody", and it' not worth getting into the tank to fix it. But I believe I get more like

200-250 miles per tank. I fill it up full every 100 miles or so and it usually takes 4-5 gallons to get it full. I reset the "trip meter" to judge when to fill up.

My garage told me I have to run about 150 miles on it before they can do a new accurate scanner reading. That's how I knew last week that I got about 20 mpg - I wrote down the numbers. The BAD news is that was 90% on the freeway!!!!

Well, I didn't know that, and it sounds bad, but short of stuffing a petrol-resistant rubber bag inside the tank and inflating it so the tank capacity is reduced to 5 gallons, what can I do?

*I* personally certainly can't do it. I have learned more about this car in this thread than I ever knew before.

These ARE words of wisdom and I appreciate them.

AT /this/ moment it seems fine. Maybe the super-erratic idling (which only happened once since the last service) was just the new coil/AIV adjusting themselves to their "new home" (I know, I sound like an idiot). If it screws up again, depending on what my garage says THEN, I MAY bite the bullet and take it to a VW dealer. If anyone can /positively/ diagnose it, /they/ should be able to. It will probably cost me 1/8 the current worth of the car, but that's still better than buying a new one.

Well, as I said, a garage I happened to be passing by at the end of a hellish day (and figured, what the hell, let's see what /they/ say) did a scanner reading and it indicated the 0² sensor as bad.

But MY garage said THEIR scanner indicated a faulty AIV, and that they adjusted it and also put in a new coil (another Mexican Temic) since the coil had just died at the same time, more or less. (Good thing insurance includes towing.)

Thanks, I got confused when Googling.

Thanks for your comments. I will keep you "posted".

Regards vc

If you're going to keep it find somebody with or buy vag-com, it lets you read all the faults yourself, it's better than generic scanners and as good if not better than the vw one on a car that age. A new O2 sensor is cheaper than a dealer scan though.

I would be looking at the egr valve and maybe replacing the iacv.