Stuck
Hi,
I’ve read through this entire thread and I’m still at a loss on where I should turn.
We’re looking for a new car currently and planning on donating this one to a local tech college. I’d like to get it to start so I don’t have to tow it.
Here’s my situation.
2001 VW Jetta TDI Automatic. Replaced starter in April, (3rd starter on the vehicle). As it’s gotten very cold up here in MN, the starter was giving me problems once the temperature was below about 20 or the car sat too long. The starter would crank for a few turns and the just zing like the solenoid was the only thing working. Essentially if the starter was under a difficult load, it failed internally. I was hoping to replace the car soon so I was just trying to limp it along.
Saturday it was very cold in the morning and the car barely started. I had to crank and turn the key off and back on and then it would turn the engine a few rounds. Needless to say the engine finally started but it took going back and forth for 8 minutes or so. I’m sure putting undo stress on the whole system.
I took off and was 10 minutes into my drive when the vehicle went into limp mode, not uncommon as the EGR valve leaks and it occasionally does this. I typically put it into neutral while driving, shut it off and turn it back on and I’m good to go. Except when I did it this time, the vehicle didn’t restart. I drifted over the side of the road and was stalled. It didn’t click, crank or make any noise. I had it towed home to my garage.
I just assumed the starter finally went, so I took the 8 month old starter in for a warranty replacement. They didn’t replace it because when they tested it, it worked but they weren’t putting the starter under a load and that’s when I had problems. I explained it was failing before today, but alright I wanted to get this project over with. I bought a new one anyways. Replaced it when I got home and still nothing.
No clicking, no solenoid sound nothing.
Battery is about a month old, fully charged.
I first though maybe it was the ignition switch folks have mentioned. Easy enough, the local parts store had a switch so I ran and picked it up and replaced it. Still nothing.
Lights come on, including glow plug lights.
I took the dash apart to the 13th Auxiliary Relay panel. I flipped it around and used my multi meter to test the power coming in and out the Park/neutral relay (position 11, relay 175) and it seems to be working best I can tell and you can hear an audible click. Relay 109 has been updated with the grey version and I’m assuming I can rule that out because the glow plug light comes on.
Using my Multimeter I measured the voltage on the starter from the main cable directly from the battery at 12.4. The small wire that plugs into the starter with the clip, has nothing or very little voltage until I turn the key where it jumps to 12.4 or so. I’m assuming this is what signals the starter to engage?
I also used a piece of wire to jump from the main cable to the solenoid and the solenoid spins. So it seems the new starter is good as well.
I removed and cleaned both grounds below the battery and on transmission. No luck.
I read something about the EGR valve possibly being stuck open but I manually moved it back and forth and it’s closed.
Anyways, I’m hoping someone with much more knowledge then me sees something obvious. The first time I tested if the small wire going to the starter was getting power when the key was turned, my wife misunderstood me and wasn’t actually turning it to start when I was testing it. So I spent most of Saturday thinking I was tracing down something breaking the current in between. I couldn’t find anything and retested the small wire and realized I was getting 12.4 to it when the key was turned.
When the key is turned, there is voltage drop from 12.4-12.5 down to 11.5 on the main starter cable. I’m trying to figure out if that means something, scratching my head on where the voltage is going since the starter isn’t moving.
I thought maybe the cable was bad so I connected a jumper cable from the positive on the battery to the large cable connection on the starter, no luck. I did the same from the ground on the battery to the knob that sticks out of the end of the starter thinking it was a ground issue, no effect.
I have power to the main wire on the starter and when I turn the key, the little wire gets 12.4-12.5. Shouldn’t the starter be engaging?
Any ideas would be much appreciated. I live 40 miles from the school I’d like to donate the car to for their auto mechanic program but I’d rather not have the towing expense. Plus, for my own sanity... I really want to solve this. I've had a lot of good years with this car and want to go out on a good note!
Thanks in advance! This forum has helped me a lot over the years but this is the first time I've had to post.
Thanks for reading!
-Chris