What is wrong with this car i mean seriously!

I have a 2004 golf bew pd. It had a loud tick so i replaced the cam shaft and the lifters this was done with OEM parts from bora parts and the work done by autobahn the only trusted TDI group near me. Well it comes back and still has the tick so i just forgot about it because by this time i had done the turbo and a few other fixes to it to keep it running. At this time i'm only about 3400 dollars into it. So then winter comes and it does not want to start i check the codes and it says glow plugs so i test the glow plugs via instructions from TDI club and sure enough they where bad so i changed them with new OEM parts from the dealer and the car did not start any better. What it would do was just sit there and try to fire and barrell out smoke for about ten minutes then finally start. Around this time i noticed the i was starting to lose all my power and my fuel economy dropped about ten mpg. So i decided to take it back to autobahn to have it diagnosed and tested to figure out the tick the loss of power and fuel economy and why it would not start. Well here is what they told me they told me that my new glow plugs where bad and they said the tick was a sticky lifter and they said the loss of power and fuel economy was related to my egr(this was only a quick look at it not even test driving it or anything). So i replaced the glow plugs again with expensive OEM parts and it still does not start any better, the lifters i yelled at them for because they replaced them and it still made the same noise so why did they not tell me i had a bad part a when i took it to them in july. Then the egr thing i still have not figured out but they told me it just got stuck most likely because of the cold weather since then the light for the egr has not come back on. So after 4500 dollars and a lot of time and patience my car is still not starting and has a loss of power and fuel economy. What do you think all this could be relating to? What else can i check to solve these problems? my thought is it might be an injector if i have a bad one it would not start, have decreased fuel economy and power and it would probably tick. Please let me know your thoughts and what i can check so i can fix this thing before i roll it off a cliff!

Timing could be off,
Fuel filter clogged,
Low compression,
Bad MAF,
Dead lift pump,
etc

To name a few things...take it to a different shop that knows VW TDIs. EGR would have NOTHING to do with bad starting.

I had an injector go and although it did struggle to start, the real indicator was surging and stumbling under load. It was really significant too, to the point I thought the motor was seizing up.

When the injector got so bad that the engine went down to 3 cylinders it eventually threw a code. Even then, I didn't think it was an injector, so we tinkered around with it for a few more weeks until eventually the code came on persistently.

Maybe others here can chime in and let you know what kind of tests to do, but I think if you look at the injector balance in the vcds, you might get a hint.

FYI, the injectors aren't cheap, and not easy to replace. Expect at least a couple of hours labour and I paid 780 CDN for my injector. It's now running quite well.

ok things to check but the fuel filter is fairly new replaced about a thousand miles ago. Did not check compression and wouldn't a bad MAF sensor through a code same with a lift pump considering they are both electronically monitored?

Don't let this experience discourage you about autobahn. They are experts and I really mean that. Probably the only people in the state that have all the proper tools and process to repair these properly. At this point, I would recommend you have the dealer diagnose this. As much as I hate Ken Garff and as much as I think they are swindlers and crooks, I'd suggest you take the car there and pay for the diagnostic fee... Perhaps even have them do the repair, depending on the issue.

My personal opinion? I think you've got injector issues. Those injectors can tick as loud as a noisy lifter, especially if working improperly. Perhaps the injector(s) isn't even popping open, thus the loud click. The PD injectors are supposed to be a bit quieter than the rotary pump variety.

Either way, I'm frustrated for you and hope you get it figured out soon. If you end up doing the repairs yourself, I'd be happy to give you a hand. I'm in Spanish Fork.