B4 Passat TDI manual transmission help

1996 Passat TDI manual transmission:

Car has sat for three years with a full tank of fuel. Before that she ran fine with no problems for seven years.

I replaced the battery and test drove it myself for 20 miles or so. No problems with power or nothing. I let my son run her to work 60 miles away. No problems. After work (2am), he tries driving home but reports not having any power so we got her towed home.

Current Symptoms:
Motor starts and revs perfect.
Put it in any gear and release the clutch and it barely wants to move if at all. With the clutch fully out and car on, I can barely hear that it wants to engage but doesn't

I believe he burnt up the clutch and needs a new clutch. What do ya'll think? Could low tranny fluid cause these symptoms or bad fuel?

Forgot to mention, the car was having trouble going into 1st and reverse so I adjusted it the best I could and I now have reverse, 1st through 4th gear but no 5th.

so the clutch engages fine now? how does the shifter feel? maybe a bushing or something suddenly crumbled?

strange is goes from what "sounds" like you are describing as was "bad clutch/good shifter" to now "good clutch/bad shifter"

Or is the clutch and shift linkage now both bad?

No the clutch does not engage. The shifter does not feel smooth. It feels like it's low on oil.

Current Symptoms:
Motor starts and revs perfect.
Put it in any gear and release the clutch and it barely wants to move if at all. With the clutch fully out and car on, I can barely hear that it wants to engage but doesn't

actually I don't think the clutch doesn't really "engage" anything...the pressure plate and flywheel close their gap when the spring pressure is released , seizing the clutch disc in the middle and all three items suddenly become one, singular rotating mass...

I wonder if some gears inside the trans are stripped? Even if the clutch disc was completely stripped it would still wanna spin once the gripping force of the pressure plate was applied...

I would first check the trans fluid level if you think it's low or empty...better yet, drain the trans oil and check for metal...if it comes out clean (not nessessarily light colored but absent of shiny metal particles) and close to a full amount comes out I would say you are ok so far...

check linkage and bushings at trans and shifter next...they do crumble...shifter was super loose until I replaced all the missing bushings...buy I would think you could still get it in gear

Jack a front wheel up and drop her in gear...see what happens...basically take the rolling load of the car's weight off the driveline...I would think a burnt up clutch would engage "ok-ish" with no load and spin the wheel..

how many miles on the clutch? if even known...

Not sure how old the clutch is. I've driven it 80,000 miles or more. Thanks for the info. I plan to replace the trans oil asap. If that doesn't help and all connections look good, I will have to think about replacing the clutch $$$$$

Croghanite said:

Not sure how old the clutch is. I've driven it 80,000 miles or more. Thanks for the info. I plan to replace the trans oil asap. If that doesn't help and all connections look good, I will have to think about replacing the clutch $$$$$

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Replacement trans oils are not easy to come by now, it must be a 75w90 GL4 gear lube, cannot be a GL5, and factory fill was synthetic.

Having gone through this before I can tell you that finding a GL4 locally that fits the VW specification is not easy to do. Most places have moved on to the GL5 specification but that's known to be problematic for VW transmissions.

You could try going to the VW dealer but some types of trans lube are a bit on the expensive side. I would call before going, to see if they have something.

Steve

I don't have an issue finding tranny fluid at my local NAPA. I switched to a blend of Amzoil MTG and Syncromesh and it shifts so much better. Both are compatible with the transmission and the MTG is GL4 synthetic and not GL5. I just find it a little thick to run in the winter, hence the blend. It'd probably be fine for SC, however.

Sounds like the clutch, or maybe the PP. It's not uncommon for older clutches to snap a spring or finger off the flywheel, but I have even seen cracked clutch forks going into the bellhousing. I highly doubt it's low fluid since the transmission will still move, it'll just sound horrible and be really hot.

Abacus said:

Sounds like the clutch, or maybe the PP. It's not uncommon for older clutches to snap a spring or finger off the flywheel, but I have even seen cracked clutch forks going into the bellhousing. .

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My geo metro suddenly had a clutch fail last year...it's been sitting in storage since...I kinda suspect the PP springs snapped or something of that nature...I had just the week before swapped the trans and the old clutch assembly looked fine so I just re-used it...then suddenly a week or so later the clutch suddenly failed, not slipped but flat out failed...the cable is still good but something inside the bell housing ain't right...


as for fluid, I've been running Penzoil GM syncromesh fluid for the past few years...no problems. I think several members here use that stuff...available at any Autozone for under 10 bucks a quart.

I have run the Penz syncromesh fluid in 020 units because there are a bunch of those around, but that fluid doesn't have a rating sufficient for VW transaxle nor is it synthetic.

I have always worried about it having long term negative consequences.

I have in the past purchased GL4 synth fluid from Blau Parts, I think it was Ravenol, the price was lower than Penz syncromesh off the shelf locally IIRC.

Steve