Turbo losing power after 10/15 miles?

ok so my turbo wasn't working for the past 7/8 months and my mechanic found out that the wastegate was jammed open and broke so we replaced that and the turbo is working great now but the problem is after driving about 10/15 miles the turbo losses power again but if I pull over and turn the car off for just a min then turn it back on the turbo is working full power again. Also my intercooler had oil in it and we can't figure out if it's supposed to be there or not and we think that when the intercooler warms up the oil and junk inside gets gummed up and blocks the airflow stopping the turbo again. Should we drain the oil in it? or just replace the whole intercooler? Were not sure of any other reason the turbo would lose power. any thoughts?

First you do NOT have a wastegate.......

Second you should consider finding a new mechanic that at least uses a VCDS to read the codes in the ecu.

Any check engine lights.

Which transmission it can make a difference.

Turbo wasnt kicking codes only code was glow plug which we've known and don't worry about, my mechanic is better then any jackass I've taken my car to around here and is the only one who's been able to fix it at a decent price including vw certified mechanics that had the best reviews and just said I needed to fork out $5k to replace the turbo. So the part isn't a waste gate it's vnt actuator just because I'm not car literate and just because I call a part by a different name doesn't mean my mechanic is a dumbass he's got more experience Than most people on here, just isn't a Specialist in vw. If it was as easy as just reading a check engine code I wouldn't be here.....it's a manual btw.

Dadycupcakes said:

Turbo wasnt kicking codes only code was glow plug which we've known and don't worry about, my mechanic is better then any jackass I've taken my car to around here and is the only one who's been able to fix it at a decent price including vw certified mechanics that had the best reviews and just said I needed to fork out $5k to replace the turbo. So the part isn't a waste gate it's vnt actuator just because I'm not car literate and just because I call a part by a different name doesn't mean my mechanic is a dumbass he's got more experience Than most people on here, just isn't a Specialist in vw. If it was as easy as just reading a check engine code I wouldn't be here.....it's a manual btw.

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Easy cupcakes....
Is your car working or not...you are contradicting yourself.
A little oil in your intercooler is normal more than a little may mean your turbo is leaking oil....you should drain the oil out and check again in a week or so....if your engine inhales too much oil it could "run away" or "hydrolock", resulting in severe engine damage.
If your car goes into "limp mode" the turbo vanes may be sticking or you may have othert issues like vaccum leaks.
You may well need a turbo based on your brief description....but $5k is robbery.....the turbo and oil lines can be bought new for less than $1000 and should take 3 to 5 hrs max to install.
It does sound like your mechanic still has a few things to learn about TDI's....I would look for a "TDI guru" in your area to diagnose your issues properly.
For more info search the "quotes".

Dadycupcakes said:

just because I'm not car literate and just because I call a part by a different name doesn't mean my mechanic is a dumbass he's got more experience Than most people on here, just isn't a Specialist in vw.

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No, but the fact that your super experienced mechanic didn't know if your intake system was supposed to be filled with oil certainly calls some things into question.

"limp mode" is the search phrase to use here... very common problem, many different potential causes (rarely a defective turbo, btw, and often no codes thrown) and many many good threads with diagnosis steps etc.

And yes, *some* oil in the intercooler is very very normal. Defination of "some"??? A tablespoon or two since the last timing belt change.

Probably going into limp mode due to overboosting. It will not always light up the MIL, but it will store a code. Did your mechanic follow the proper procedure for adjusting the new VNT actuator when he installed it?

Washington State, or D.C.?

Dadycupcakes said:

Turbo wasnt kicking codes only code was glow plug which we've known and don't worry about, my mechanic is better then any jackass I've taken my car to around here and is the only one who's been able to fix it at a decent price including vw certified mechanics that had the best reviews and just said I needed to fork out $5k to replace the turbo. So the part isn't a waste gate it's vnt actuator just because I'm not car literate and just because I call a part by a different name doesn't mean my mechanic is a dumbass he's got more experience Than most people on here, just isn't a Specialist in vw. If it was as easy as just reading a check engine code I wouldn't be here.....it's a manual btw.

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Following that rant, I am going to decline from suggesting a solution. Take it to your fitter instead.

I bought the tdi from someone that didn't know what they were doing when they first owned it and just drive it into the ground. Every nut and bolt was over tightened, explaining the broken off glow plug. Oil was super thick and nasty. We've replaced all the leaking tubes and fixed all the oil leaks. There's only oil leading into the intercooler but none coming out. My mechanic mainly works on mainly gas cars/diesel trucks his whole life so no experience with tdi's but he's done a good job so far and has managed to fix the turbo and everything else for a mere $300 in parts and $150 in labor, all the mechanics and vw/tdi specialists wouldn't work on it even after I said ok to paying 4-5k and waved the money in their face. That's gotta tell you something about the mechanics that live around here.
I live in Washington state.l

And yes they teach punctuation these days but when I come to "the best website for tdi question" as so many people tell me then Post into the newbie section and the first post I get is that goober kinda pissed me off when most other places I posted new that I was talking about the actuator and were aware that most mechanics have a computer to read codes.... Also I'm on an iPhone...

The shop we bought the actuator from said that it was set to vw factory default and we shouldn't need to adjust it so that's why we didn't immediately expect that.

I came across this posting earlier this morning after someone in another forum said to Google limp mode

http://uk-mkivs.net/topic/34834-vnt-tdi-turbo-how-to-adjust-actuator-cure-boost-problems/

So I'm going to take it over to my mechanic and show him and give it a go.

We drove around with the computer plugged in reading the codes while we were driving and nothing was poping up either.

We're cleaning the egr today since we figured out that was all clogged up and doesn't even move.even though the manifold was almost perfectly clean. So I guess I'll post The results of cleaning that.

There is no "factory default" setting for the VNT actuator, so the shop you got it from was either BSing you or didn't know what they were talking about. Here's a link to a great write up on how to do it correctly:

http://www.myturbodiesel.com/wiki/v...ustment-repair-replacement-on-tdi-engine-mk4/

And, by the way, a little oil in the intercooler is normal.

What part of washington state are you in? It's next to impossible in my area to get anyone to do any sort of work on any rig. I have all but given up on everyone and do all my own work.

Yeah I thought it was kind of odd that we didn't need to make any adjustments to the actuator. Just goes to show even further how bad/Lazy the mechanics are out here. Thanks for the link we'll definitely take a look and do what we can. He didn't have time last night to finish the egr so he's gonna finish that today. Hopefully that helps out. I do notice the boost its there when I floor it and drive hard but when I drive normal it doesn't seem to give it much boost at all and accelerates at a sluggish rate, so I'm guessing that has more to do with the adjustments on the actuator.

I Live in Puyallup if you know where that is, it's East of Tacoma and south of Seattle.

Dadycupcakes said:

...He didn't have time last night to finish the egr so he's gonna finish that today. Hopefully that helps out…

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What is your mechanic doing to the EGR? If he's just installing a block off plate between the flanges, you will be okay, but if he physically removes it without making changes to the ECU, you will get an EGR code.

2TDIs_1Cup said:

No, but the fact that your super experienced mechanic didn't know if your intake system was supposed to be filled with oil certainly calls some things into question.

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If the intake is "filled with oil" as you say, then there is a problem! A little oil is normal, "filled" means something is very, very wrong.

Dadycupcakes said:

Yeah I thought it was kind of odd that we didn't need to make any adjustments to the actuator. Just goes to show even further how bad/Lazy the mechanics are out here. Thanks for the link we'll definitely take a look and do what we can. He didn't have time last night to finish the egr so he's gonna finish that today. Hopefully that helps out. I do notice the boost its there when I floor it and drive hard but when I drive normal it doesn't seem to give it much boost at all and accelerates at a sluggish rate, so I'm guessing that has more to do with the adjustments on the actuator.
I Live in Puyallup if you know where that is, it's East of Tacoma and south of Seattle.

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I know exactly where puyallup is, go there for that fair thing you are on the wet side you should be able to find someone decent to work on your car. I'm in the NE corner of the state, our problem of finding decent mechanics are very different Lol

He removed the intercooler and it wasn't "filled" but it had a cup out two of oil so nOthing too crazy, he's just cleaning the egr and putting it back on and I talked to him today and apparently it's running allot smoother and not losing power. We still need to do the adjustments to the actuator but other than that it is running fairly well. Hopefully after the adjustments to the actuator it will be running like new. I'll update after we make the adjustments to the actuator. Another question I have is, are the front struts supposed to have so much play in them? My mechanic says it looks like someone cut some off of the top to try and lower it. If I hit the accelerator hard the front end rears up quite a bit so I think they're either shot or have been cut either way that's my next little adventure in getting this car put back together.

Blackjedi I could imagine, there's not much out there unless you're living in one of the bigger cities. Over here though everyone just doesn't give a rat's ass and just wants to get paid, I cringe every time I hear how much they charge my parents for a tune up on their Mitsubishi galant over $1000 -.- That's what you gotta pay tough to get good service around here.

Dadycupcakes said:

...Another question I have is, are the front struts supposed to have so much play in them? My mechanic says it looks like someone cut some off of the top to try and lower it...

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Sounds like you need new upper strut mounts/bearings.

one or two cups is a lot ....enough to cause a runaway or hydrolock. I would check it again after about a weeks driving....a few tablespoons are ok otherwise turbo may be leaking oil into your intake.

The intercooler has never been drained and the car has over 200k miles on it. From what I've seen on YouTube 1-2 cups isn't a-lot and seems to be average for an intercooler that's never been drained. We've checked both tubes going to and from the intercooler and none of the oil has worked it's way up the other side. I'll make sure to keep an eye on it but I think it'll be ok. It had a little less oil in it than what's in this video-> http://youtu.be/21BhxvAC8gk

Maxmoo,

You're wasting your time mate. Most of the OP's posts are contradictory to the advice been offered on the forum.

I'm going to let him get on with it and wait for the "Myengines gonebang afterarunnaway" thread.

FlyingFin said:

Maxmoo,

You're wasting your time mate. Most of the OP's posts are contradictory to the advice been offered on the forum.

I'm going to let him get on with it and wait for the "Myengines gonebang afterarunnaway" thread.

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