trouble 800 miles from home

I am traveling from iowa to Florida with my family, and about 10 miles from chattanooga Tn I suddenly had no power, and could hear no noise from the turbo. The car was running fine before that. We stopped for the night at a hotel here. I let the car sit for about 20 min and then took it out for a drive. All seemed well, I have full power and could hear the turbo. What would cause this ? Why is everything fine after I shut the car off and restarted it ? And do I need to go to a mechanic in the morning or can I continue the trip and hope for the best ? I have tools with me so if I know whats causing the problem, I could hopefully fix it myself. I guess i should add that the check engine light has been on for 2 years due to a glow plug harness code. So I cant tell if it threw a new code.

No expert. But sounds like limp mode to me....

Would be nice to see the codes...

Good luck
Tony

Sounds like typical limp mode problem. Few things to check and might need replacement:
1. Vacuum hoses need to be replaced if they are still original cloth covered with white stripes, should replace with OEM cloth covered
2. Turbo actuator is bad not holding vacuum, fairly easy fix by replacing with new one then rod needs to be adjusted and checked with mityvac for proper operation. with vacuum applied actuator rod should start moving between 3-5 in.hg and stop between 18-21in.hg.
3. N75 valve is bad causing over/under boosting issue. Easy replacement as well

Defiantly limp mode. If you weren't 3 hours away I would be over to help.

How does the brake pedal feel? As in do you have adequate power assist? And does the power assist remain after the engine is shut of for a few minutes? I ask because you might have a vacuum leak. The hard plastic vacuum pipe from the tandem pump to the brake booster is known to crack on its underside, inside the tight bend. The crack is perpindicular to the pipe (is accross it). You can't see it, but can feel it with your fingernail. If this is the problem, wrap the split with electrical tape and this will hold you until after your trip and you can then replace it.

--Nate

Thanks for all the quick replies. We r leaving now and hoping for the best. I will check for vacuum leaks be for we go. Will keep u updated or call for help!!!!

Well, after another 600 miles we have reached our destination without further problems. I must say I drove like an old lady. I didn't want to push the car at all. I will take it to an auto parts store and see if they will read the codes for me.

glad you made it home safe

Just got back from autozone, there are no new codes. I have not been able to find any vacuum leaks so I am going to assume its the N75 valve. I will attempt to give it a little cleaning in case its sticking or something. The car is running great right now, its hard to fix something when everything seems to be working correctly. I will just have to take it easy on the 1400 mile trip to get home !!

A lot of the time their OBDII readers won't pull up codes stored that VCDS can, so that's no entirely out of the question yet.

Have you checked the vag-com locator on here to find somebody close by that might can scan?

farfignuegan said:

Just got back from autozone, there are no new codes. I have not been able to find any vacuum leaks so I am going to assume its the N75 valve. I will attempt to give it a little cleaning in case its sticking or something. The car is running great right now, its hard to fix something when everything seems to be working correctly. I will just have to take it easy on the 1400 mile trip to get home !!

Click to expand...

Read my post above that should give you an answer, if you still unsure what to look or replace feel free to contact me.