05 Passat TDI will not start

Jetta2001TDI

Veteran Member
Joined
Jan 10, 2008
Location
Florida
TDI
2001 jetta
Friend of mine has 05 Passat TDI that will not start. He had developed a fuel leak right at the filter. which he remedied by replacing the fuel line clamps. Now the car turns over, but will not start.

Is this a fuel priming problem, electrical or ???

I have not looked at the car yet, but I was hoping to get some points on what to look for when I get there.
 

leicaman

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Dec 24, 2004
Location
Sheboygan, Wisconsin
TDI
2015 Golf TDI SE, 2005 TDI GLS, RIP
Does he have the original battery? If so that could be the culprit as it might not have enough juice. Also, is the filter primed? With a loose clamp he might have air in the system.
 

Jetta2001TDI

Veteran Member
Joined
Jan 10, 2008
Location
Florida
TDI
2001 jetta
I think it is the original battery and he ran out of juice trying to start it. I will bring my Mytivac and a battery charger with me.

I know he replaced the fuel filter about 1 year ago (12k miles).
 

Jetta2001TDI

Veteran Member
Joined
Jan 10, 2008
Location
Florida
TDI
2001 jetta
The lift pump is working, my buddy says he can hear it when he turns the key on.

I can test it when I get there, by jumping the lift pump fuse and disconnecting the fuel inlet line.

I am thinking of connecting the Mytivac to the fuel return line at the filter filter and draw fuel (to purge the air).
 

v8volvo

Veteran Member
Joined
Aug 1, 2004
Location
WA
TDI
2001 Jetta
If the lift pump is working and the filter is not plugged and the fuel is not gelled, it will start eventually unless something much more serious is going on.

Tell him to connect a big battery booster, cycle the key 5 times for 5 sec each, then put his foot to the floor and crank it until it starts. If he's cranking for 30-40 seconds and there is still no sign of action at all, even a sputter, then he needs to consider other possibilities. If it doesn't start but shows some signs of life, sputtering, etc, then it needs to be cranked more after waiting a bit to cool off the starter, and then it will eventually start. But I consider it likely that the first big hit of cranking will get it running.

Is he sure he got the lines back onto the filter in their correct positions? Was it already not starting before he went in and tried to fix the fuel leak, or did the no-start occur only after he attempted to fix it? If the latter is the case, then he just needs to double-check his connections, cycle the key a few times, and crank the hell out of it. It just needs to recover prime.
 

DanG144

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Aug 2, 2007
Location
Chapin, South Carolina, USA
TDI
2005 A4 Jetta 5spd
I tend to agree.

IF the lift pump is running, it will fill and vent the filter, with the key cycles.

It should run about 1-2 seconds for each key cycle.

Once a PD has tried to start and ran out of fuel (because you did not cycle the key about 10 times), then one long 20-30 second crank will usually do it - after you cycle the key 10 times.
 

speedeagle

New member
Joined
Jul 15, 2008
Location
Largo, FL
TDI
2005 Passat TDI
Still not starting...

Hi all! I am actually the one that has the discussed NON-starting challenge. Thanks for all the input! I did as advised, but to no avail. The engine is turning over but not starting.
Double checked the hoses attached to the fuel filter and they are in the right spot. Also verified that fuel is being delivered to the fuel filter - it is.
By now my battery is drained down quite a bit again and is on the charger to get re-juiced!
I certainly do appreciate any good ideas on how to continue. We will check out the error codes in the next days to see what the brains of the machine have to say...gotta go back to work.

Tanks again everyone! You're great!
 

MOGolf

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Jun 27, 2001
Location
underneath something
TDI
2001 Golf GLS TDI Reflex silver, rough road suspension and steel skid plate, 2004 Passat Variant, Candy White, rough road suspension and geared balanced shaft module, and much, much more. 2016 LR RR HSE TD6, 2019 Jaguar I-PACE

Jetta2001TDI

Veteran Member
Joined
Jan 10, 2008
Location
Florida
TDI
2001 jetta
This problem turned out to be a weak battery. The battery had enough power to turn the engine for 7-10 seconds at a time, but not quite enough to amps to force the compression where it needed to be, it was reading 8.5 volts during cranking....

New battery and its all good.
 

bbq

Active member
Joined
Sep 8, 2009
Location
Marin County, CA
TDI
2005 Passat GLS TDI
Hi - this morning, my car decided that I should join this thread!
Two days ago, I had the first experience of the car seeming normal with dash lights, etc., but not firing on crank, and then after a couple of seconds not cranking. A jump start had everything OK for the next couple of days.

This morning, I was the last to leave the house, and car would not start. I called for service, and then hooked up a charger--noticed that the charger had a "go for it" crank-assist mode (6 sec. on / 5 minutes off), and the engine fired up in the usual 1/2-second with that. As I was leaving and on hold to cancel the service call, the service truck arrived and ran a diagnostic on my battery-which he identified as a 2004 product (i.e. original battery) and that it needed 660 amps cold crank and was good for about 500 amps. That makes it time to replace the battery.

I'm on the forums looking for anyone who has replaced their battery with a new-style gel unit (the sort that look like bundled cylinders). Those seem to be fairly resistant to vibration, and, well, ever since I replaced my balance shaft I *might* be bouncing the car around a bit more on turns and stuff ;^)
 

Ski in NC

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Jul 7, 2008
Location
Wilmington, NC USA
TDI
2001 Jetta ALH 5sp stock
AGM and gell batteries require different charging voltages than OEM batteries. Before you put one in your car, measure charging voltage and compare it to what manufacturer requires for their battery. Wrong charge voltage means shorter life. Alternator voltage is higher when alt is cold, and drops off as things warm up, so you need to check it both cold and hot.
 
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