brianewman
New member
I have a stock 2002 Jetta TDI 5-speed manual with 157K miles. All was well until about a week ago, when it refused to start when it was hot. After cooling down, it started right up. I took a couple of short (~ 1 mile) trips and all was well, but after driving a significant distance it would not start again.
When it's hot, it cranks and cranks but will not fire. (The glow plug light comes on, so it's not relay 109.) Since this initial trouble I have also noticed a loss of power, especially when climbing hills, and increased difficulty starting even when cold or warm. Also, once after a long drive it died when I slowed down exiting the freeway. I had to leave it there for a couple of hours until it cooled down and then it started right up.
The clear fuel line gets quite a few bubbles after trying to start it, but it's never empty.
I have 73K miles on the timing belt. Could that be it? My mechanical ability is limited and I'm short on funds right now so I don't want to replace the timing belt yet if that's not going to fix it. I can only afford one repair at a time. BTW, I could also use the name of a trusted TDI mechanic in Houston (preferably on the south-east side). Anybody know one?
When it's hot, it cranks and cranks but will not fire. (The glow plug light comes on, so it's not relay 109.) Since this initial trouble I have also noticed a loss of power, especially when climbing hills, and increased difficulty starting even when cold or warm. Also, once after a long drive it died when I slowed down exiting the freeway. I had to leave it there for a couple of hours until it cooled down and then it started right up.
The clear fuel line gets quite a few bubbles after trying to start it, but it's never empty.
I have 73K miles on the timing belt. Could that be it? My mechanical ability is limited and I'm short on funds right now so I don't want to replace the timing belt yet if that's not going to fix it. I can only afford one repair at a time. BTW, I could also use the name of a trusted TDI mechanic in Houston (preferably on the south-east side). Anybody know one?