Recent content by Jimmy

There are several threads regarding glowplugs and hard starting. Yes, if your glow time is too short and it is cold, it will be very hard to start. Last summer I noticed the temperature guage intermittanly falling back to zilch when the car was obviously warm and running. No one makes coolant...

Not sure if everyone here heard the news: Thursday night Petro Canada had a little problem at their refinery that produces lubricants. With a tremendous bang, heard the other side of Lake Ontario, the "hydro treater section" blew up. Fortunately, no one was injured, and the rest of the plant is...

FYI - Most Toshiba laptops can be powered directly from the accessory power plug in the car. I made a direct cable to run the 12V to the computer (with a fuse of course!). When you start the car the laptop wil go into charge mode as the 12.5V rises to 13.8. This works with a Sat. Pro 490, a...

For those of us with a "historical" interest in where all this synthetic stuff got started, the following link may be of some interest: http://www.fischer-tropsch.org/Bureau_of_Mines/tom_toc.htm These were a reports of a comittee that investigated German Oil production technology after WW2...

Greetings - I'm in the process of reviewing my insurance coverage. Anyone with any good or bad things to say about State Farm? In the bunch I have looked at so far they appear to be the best price/performance leader.

No doubt you hit terra-firma hard with the oil pan, and I seem to recall you are not the the first: Search for "Oil Pan" amongst the forums. I think this particular issue is bit of an oversite on the part of VW. I know many owners have opted for the 1" lowered springs - but based on the...

Chrysler is building a 2.5L TDi version of the Liberty for export. The engine specs are quite nice - take a peek at: http://www.4wdonline.com/Jeep/Liberty/Liberty.html This is an Australian site (some locations may need to view screen upside down). Power comparison: 3.7L V6 power: 157kW at...

I parked next to a white TDi Jetta at lunchtime today, and noticed rust, lots of it, on the thin triangular strip of metal between the rear window glass and its lower frame (rear guide). A further look at the car showed the owner was none too careful about maintaining it either. A dog was shut...

Hmm. It seems that VW has finally come to recognise some of the things we have talked to each other about in these pages for some time: A new TSB dated Dec 8th 2000 or http://tech.vw.com/vwpdf/v200003.pdf touches on "non-winterised (clouded)" diesel, air leaks into the system and water in the...

You may want to take a quick read of the following link. Sort of confirms what we all have been enjoying for some time. http://www.auto.com/autonews/cwirb28_20000928.htm In particular I quote: "Automotive Industry Data analyst Peter Schmidt said Volkswagen is leading the march for better...

You may want to take a quick read of the following link. Sort of confirms what we all have been enjoying for some time. http://www.auto.com/autonews/cwirb28_20000928.htm In particular I quote: "Automotive Industry Data analyst Peter Schmidt said Volkswagen is leading the march for better...

I e-mailed Fred pictures and a blurb on how to add an emergency release to the trunk on the A4 Jetta. I used a piece of nylon cord, attached it to the lock mechanism and threaded it around to the right side of the lid, then through a hole on the right side of the right hand closing grip. To...

I am now at 30,000kms, which is 18,750 miles for you who are not metric (yet, heh heh). I pulled the rubber tube between the EGR unit and the intercooler. and took a peek. What a sight! As repoted here elsewhere, the EGR is dishing up a ton of crud - sorry, my son is away with the digi camera...

I am going to Kiel next week (U-Boat Schule, just kidding). Seems I will be driving a Ford Focus for two weeks, and have a weekend to kill. Any ideas on a few interesting places to vist in this area of Germany? I thought of Peenemunde, original home of the V2 rocket; Wolfsburg is a bit further...

There appears to be another recall for MY2000 cars entitles "Replace Coolant system Sealing ring". The tech-vw web site seems messed up in this area I cannot download the info. Does anyone else have a problem reading this area or know what this is about?