NAW73
New member
Back in spring I bought my son his first car - 2006 Jetta TDI with just under 280k. Good shape, all the options and ran well, but had sat a while so some things needed attention. So we did brakes, wiper armature, battery and tires. All said and done into it for about $2750. He was doing his first oil change the other night and mistakenly took the oil cooler off thinking it was the filter. He put it back on when he asked me "what the heck" so I (the old out of touch guy) googled it and watched a video. I showed him the error of his ways and he finished the oil change. Unfortunately, I was sick that day and not helping him. He didn't tighten the oil cooler enough and when driven the car was screaming "low oil pressure - shut down engine" after 1/2 mile. Got it home and figured it out - got more oil in. Now we have a P0299 turbocharger and P0131 O2 sensor code. Car has squat for power and smells a little funny. I am thinking he torched the turbo (and potentially caused other damage). He's also coming due for the timing belt. The local VW repair shop (not a dealer) says it's a big project for the turbo, potentially other issues and he recommends replacing at least the water pump with the timing belt. Any input? Would I be better off putting in a different motor w/turbo in case something in the engine got scorched? Junk it? Rather frustrated with my 19 year old who's favorite phrase is "I know Dad!"