Engine stalls out - Yes, I've checked the troubleshooting thread

2012 jetta sportwagen TDI with a KEYED ignition.


Situation: Engine starts then immediately stalls out. "Key not in range" is on the display, though no other indication of "anti-theft" or anti-theft icon displayed. It is NOT a keyless ignition. I use a key to start my car.

Background: 1.5 months ago began running a blend of 20% biodiesel (B20). No identifiable problem, figured I'd have a fuel filter change in the near future. 2 weeks ago (hate to admit it) I ran a blend of 50% kerosene, 30% diesel, 20% B99. At this point probably one full tank of that mix has gone through with no apparent problems.

Recently somehow my "lights are on", "key's left in the ignition" audible alarms turned off suddenly. I left my lights on by accident and the battery drained. I jumped the car, placed a trickle charger on it, I get 11.9 volts via multimeter now. I "reset factory setting" through settings function on the display.

Next day (?, could have been 24 hours later), I go to start car on 18 F morning, I get the engine starts immediately cuts off. I figured it was fuel filter. I changed the fuel filter amateur-style with no software to flush my fuel lines, just topped off the filter and canister with new fuel and was careful not to drain fuel from the lines while they were disconnected. Still have the same problem.

A locksmith came out and assessed my key functions/antenna/etc, said everything works right but didn't think "re-programming" my key would do anything to help me. I'm not sure why he figured that.

I've tried the witchcraft tips of touching the battery leads together for 20 seconds, locking the car/opening it manually, leaving the key in accessory for greater than 1 hour with a trickle charger connected, changed the battery in the key. Nothing has changed the issue.

Questions:

If it's the anti-theft activation, would I get a display that clearly says that as opposed to the "key not in range"?

What's up with the "key not in range"? Is that the most suspicious thing?

Did I F my car up by running ONE tank of 50% blended kerosene through it?

Air bound?? I can't imagine, the exact problem was happening before the fuel filter change and same problem afterwards. The engine has only ever "ran" for about 1 second or less any time I've tried starting since the original problem.

Not a fuel issue so far as I can tell. You need to deal with the code, It's the issue.
Basically you have an immobilizer fault and need to research that to find the solution. Exactly what you describe is an immobilizer shutdown
I believe the key in your vehicle can only be matched once, someone will confirm. But you might just need a new chip for your key and programming of it to your car.

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JSP12 said:

2012 jetta sportwagen TDI with a KEYED ignition.
Situation: Engine starts then immediately stalls out. "Key not in range" is on the display, though no other indication of "anti-theft" or anti-theft icon displayed. It is NOT a keyless ignition. I use a key to start my car.
Background: 1.5 months ago began running a blend of 20% biodiesel (B20). No identifiable problem, figured I'd have a fuel filter change in the near future. 2 weeks ago (hate to admit it) I ran a blend of 50% kerosene, 30% diesel, 20% B99. At this point probably one full tank of that mix has gone through with no apparent problems.
Recently somehow my "lights are on", "key's left in the ignition" audible alarms turned off suddenly. I left my lights on by accident and the battery drained. I jumped the car, placed a trickle charger on it, I get 11.9 volts via multimeter now. I "reset factory setting" through settings function on the display.
Next day (?, could have been 24 hours later), I go to start car on 18 F morning, I get the engine starts immediately cuts off. I figured it was fuel filter. I changed the fuel filter amateur-style with no software to flush my fuel lines, just topped off the filter and canister with new fuel and was careful not to drain fuel from the lines while they were disconnected. Still have the same problem.
A locksmith came out and assessed my key functions/antenna/etc, said everything works right but didn't think "re-programming" my key would do anything to help me. I'm not sure why he figured that.
I've tried the witchcraft tips of touching the battery leads together for 20 seconds, locking the car/opening it manually, leaving the key in accessory for greater than 1 hour with a trickle charger connected, changed the battery in the key. Nothing has changed the issue.
Questions:
If it's the anti-theft activation, would I get a display that clearly says that as opposed to the "key not in range"?
What's up with the "key not in range"? Is that the most suspicious thing?
Did I F my car up by running ONE tank of 50% blended kerosene through it?
Air bound?? I can't imagine, the exact problem was happening before the fuel filter change and same problem afterwards. The engine has only ever "ran" for about 1 second or less any time I've tried starting since the original problem.

Click to expand...

"Key not in range" is generic wording for car cannot find a valid Immobilizer key, regardless if you have KESSY or not.

I think your instrument cluster has an internal failure. The clue being two other functions that cluster is in charge of just stopped working.

I jumped the car, placed a trickle charger on it, I get 11.9 volts via multimeter now. First, I never recommend jumping a VW because of the electrical issues these cars can have, but you do what you have to. Second, 11.9V is not going to do it. Some cars I have worked on will not reset their issues until a steady 12.5V is seen by the computers. And most modern cars want more than 11.9V to function. We have a $600 charger/maintainer at work for this purpose during any computer coding/programming job.

I think your locksmith found the key looks ok, programmed and authorized to car, ECM active and valid, etc. Nothing wrong that should need any reprogramming, even though car thinks so. That again points to a failed instrument cluster.

One last thing you can try, with little to lose. Take the cluster inside and warm it up for several hours. Get it warm and dry, like in front of a heater. Not any hotter than you can stand bare skin. Some Immobilizers fail below freezing, but that was mostly Beetles. Jetta wagons around your year tend to just have clusters fail.

Jason

Did you try your other key?

Well...

I'm glad I haven't been scolded for the kerosene bit. Thought that was for sure coming.

Should I replace the battery? Or try charging it more?

I have no idea where the cluster is or how to remove it or probably the time for the next few days. Is it easily accessible? Can I just stick a small electric heater in my cab for a little while?

I would take the battery out and try charging it inside (garage?). Fully charged should be over 12.6V. If its easier then you could just replace the battery with a CORRECTLY SIZED battery. Last time I priced batteries, the correct diesel battery cost less at the dealer than most all other sources, such as Autozone, Napa, Costco, Pep Boys, etc.

Cluster is that thing you look at every time you drive to see how fast you are going or how soon you need to fuel up.... Instrument cluster = gauges, AKA fuel, speedo, RPMs.

Pretty easy to remove, but I think its a long shot. If you have another key, try it. If you still can't start the car it's probably time to head to dealer for new cluster.

Jason