Big Engine Problem 150 Bhp Golf Gti Tdi Please Help, engine shaking pls help

Europe based

Can anyone please help me help my mechanic. Before xmas my car started to judder when i put the foot down. it was ok next day. snag came back and thinking it was dirty diesel. I changed the fuel filter and added fuel additive to flush the injectors. was ok for a day then engine judder came back. not happy at all. I took it to mechanic and airflow mass meter showed a fault. replaced mass meter fault cleared but engine still juddering with bit more smoke.Mechanic felt best to go to vw.

Then I took it to another mechanic who is a mate and a full time vw mechanic. He felt it was the fly wheel in trouble vibrating and knocking the timing hence the smoke. Flywheel replaced as well as the clutch little bit better but still juddering ( the dash board shaking a bit) and still not firing all cylinders sort of thing.Starting to get very expensive.....

My mate then got special fuel pressure gauges from VW and all fuel pressures checked out ok. Also inlet fuel air manifold I think he said was bit dirty and cleaned. still the same

He then drained all the fuel and the tank. Put in known clean diesel. no good.still the same.

He also swapped 2 of the injectors between cylinders to see if and change in the vibration and misfire type of thing. did not seem to be any change.

The last thing he is going to try is to check the timing that requires a special tool he says. After that he says he has to give up...

If anyone has any ideas on this one . PLEASE please come back to me..

Computer is showing no fault or miss fire. my wife is expecting in 4 weeks. need car sooon

rgds
Bio Boy

I think the timing is a good possibility.

Vag-Com can be used to check the timing. Go to engine / measure blocks and select block 000. Click go then click on Timing. Your timing value should be near (but under) the top green line.

what color is the smoke? This can be an indication of it being your turbo (if it's white smoke)

Also try cleaning the contacts on the maf with some de-oxit. This may not fix the juddering, but your maf was most likely not bad.

Also check the vaccume lines, they can become damaged and cause turbo problems.

That's all I can think of with the info you gave.

1. what year?
2. is this a PD motor?
3. are you using Biodiesel?
4. if so, what type?
5. and how long?

The GT150 is a PD motor. The timing is electronically controlled. Unlike in the earlier engines with a separate injector there is no provision for adjusting the injection timing (that I am aware of).

What is the service history? How many miles and are you certain VW 505.01 spec oil has been used throughout it's life? When was the cambelt last changed? What sort of diesel have you used in it previously? Has it been pump diesel exclusively or have you had some form of vegetable oil in it?

Sorry for all the questions but there are a number of scenarios which could cause your problem.

Hi everyone and thanks for taking the time to answer me .

HI Puter, I think the smoke is white, what is the MAF (mas air flow meter new from vag )

Hi Weedeater, the car is 2003 , yes its a pd. its a gti tdi exclusive 150bhp (end of the gt tdi mark 4) no bio fuel standard from the pump.

Hi Lee Taylor, service history is full VW. then dealer changed the CAM/timing belt at 47,00miles problem started at 52000 miles , got 505 oil each time I am told cause I asked . all fuel bought at pump by me. am sure previous owner did too.

I want my car back
thanks again folks.

Seems early for a cam belt change. Normally 60,000 miles on the UK 2002 spec (now 100,000 I believe) Though I assume it was over four years old?

It's difficult to diagnose at a distance. Is the vibration throughout the rev range? Can you hear any noise at tickover? The bolts holding the engine in have to be replaced when the cambelt is changed. If not they can come out. When you rev the car does the engine shake? It shouldn't put out white smoke. Some blue smoke when you first start up maybe and some hazy smoke when you are driving it hard. White smoke would indicate burning oil. I am sceptical about your mechanic claimng he needs special equipment to adjust the timing. This is unecessary if the correct tools were used to lock the camshaft and crankshaft when replacing the cam belt. If the cam pulley were to be moved in a pd engine relative to the crank it would theoretically change the injection timing but would also change the valve timing.

Lee_Taylor said:

I am sceptical about your mechanic claimng he needs special equipment to adjust the timing. This is unecessary if the correct tools were used to lock the camshaft and crankshaft when replacing the cam belt. If the cam pulley were to be moved in a pd engine relative to the crank it would theoretically change the injection timing but would also change the valve timing.

Click to expand...

Vag com is required to check the timing and is required for a TB replacement.

I believe that is the special equipment he is referring to.

If vag-com is not used then the TB change was not done correctly. The fact that the mechanic knows that he needs it makes me feel like he knows what he's doing

if its an auto which it most likely is not maybe some torque converter shudder? Or maybe DSG

Lee_Taylor said:

Seems early for a cam belt change. Normally 60,000 miles on the UK 2002 spec (now 100,000 I believe) Though I assume it was over four years old?

It's difficult to diagnose at a distance. Is the vibration throughout the rev range? Can you hear any noise at tickover? The bolts holding the engine in have to be replaced when the cambelt is changed. If not they can come out. When you rev the car does the engine shake? It shouldn't put out white smoke. Some blue smoke when you first start up maybe and some hazy smoke when you are driving it hard. White smoke would indicate burning oil. I am sceptical about your mechanic claimng he needs special equipment to adjust the timing. This is unecessary if the correct tools were used to lock the camshaft and crankshaft when replacing the cam belt. If the cam pulley were to be moved in a pd engine relative to the crank it would theoretically change the injection timing but would also change the valve timing.

Click to expand...

Hi Lee taylor. the belt should be changed at 60000 or 4 years. so I requested the dealer to change it as was 4 years old. the vibration comes when you put your foot down with lack of full power. slight sound of unhappy engine when tick over . the smoke i am not sure if its blue or white . will check.
the bolts you mentioned should have been changed. which ones? ones on the cam belt pully or where ?
yes the engine shakes when you rev it. the dash board shakes like mad! it started off coming and going now hard fault.
I hope to hear from my mechanic by tomorrow... if no good news i will put to him what you mentioned thanks again
rgds
bio boy

Bio boy the bolts I refer to are the ones holding the engine to the car. They are called "stretch bolts" and are intended to be used only once. Have a look through the instructions here on cam belt changing.

http://tdiclub.com/articles/

If it was done by a dealer they should have changed these and you should have an invoice showing them. As Accounting Troll points out the PD engines have had problems with camshafts when the incorrect oil was used. However you state that 505.01 oil has been used so this shouldn't be an issue. The other problem is when the cam belt is changed and for example the tensioner isn't adjusted correctly or the mechanic doesn't lock up the engine properly and the belt is installed incorrectly. I have read on here of owners finding they have valve damage some time after a cam belt change. I don't want to alarm you but you need to have someone inspect the cam lobes/followers to make sure they are ok.

puter said:

Vag com is required to check the timing and is required for a TB replacement.

I believe that is the special equipment he is referring to.

If vag-com is not used then the TB change was not done correctly. The fact that the mechanic knows that he needs it makes me feel like he knows what he's doing

Click to expand...

I'm sorry to disagree with you but you are incorrect. This is a PD engine and does not have provision for timing adjustment the way the older engines do. There is no separate injector pump like there is on the older engines. The injectors are in the cylinder head that is why it's called pump deuse. The timing is controlled electronically.

This is how it's done......

http://pics.tdiclub.com/data/3419/BEW_timing_belt_procedure.pdf

This could also be a fuel delivery problem. Which may mean you also need to check both the tandem and in-tank fuel pumps. On this side of the pond, these items were known to have issues.

Usually, when the intank pump fails, the motor quits. When it starts going bad, the motor runs rough.

The tandem pump is on the end of the head. We've seen them develop air leaks or internal leaks resulting in the same thing: not enough fuel.

Lee_Taylor said:

I'm sorry to disagree with you but you are incorrect. This is a PD engine and does not have provision for timing adjustment the way the older engines do. There is no separate injector pump like there is on the older engines. The injectors are in the cylinder head that is why it's called pump deuse. The timing is controlled electronically.

This is how it's done......

http://pics.tdiclub.com/data/3419/BEW_timing_belt_procedure.pdf

Click to expand...

I missed the post that it was a PD, sorry.

Lee_Taylor said:

As Accounting Troll points out the PD engines have had problems with camshafts when the incorrect oil was used. However you state that 505.01 oil has been used so this shouldn't be an issue. .

Click to expand...

There have been a few reports of excessive ware even when 505.01 oil was used. I think white dog had one. However, I could be wrong.

Hi All in TDI world. My Buddy feels the problem on my TDI is an injector. He wants to try get his hands on another car to slave in an injector to be sure as bit to expensive to buy one and if not the problem VW will not take back if fuel went through it.

Anyone know good place to get one at best price ??
regards
BIO BOY

Hi, i have the same problem and been told to replace the wiring harness for the injectors. By any chance does anyone on here know the part numbers, and is it possible to replace this part yourself?

The ECU has no errors and VW say it's a problem with the flywheel. i find that hard to believe lots of people have had this problem replaced the flywheel and it's failed to resolve it.

When the juddering occurs on mine i here a hissing sound coming from the turbo, is this the same for you? also when the car is ticking over sometimes i feel a misfire.

Any help would be grateful or a point in the right direction.