Engine quit and stumbles at 1000rpm/white smoke. (RESOLVED)

ngolf

Member
Joined
Sep 28, 2017
Location
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
TDI
2004 Golf (BEW)
Hello fellow TDI drivers,

I was accelerating quickly onto a road when I heard a very faint pop and the engine went dead. Pulled over to the shoulder and saw a puff of white smoke go past my car. Car will now not run. It stumbles and bucks now and will die after a few seconds. Any ideas will be very appreciated.

Thanks guys,
Nate.
 

wonneber

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Oct 12, 2011
Location
Monroe, NY, USA
TDI
2014 Jetta Sportwagon,2003 Jetta 261K Sold but not forgotten
Check if any of your boost air tubes came off or any of the rubber connectors popped a hole.
From the turbo to the EGR valve.
Do you have VCDS to scan for codes?
 

csstevej

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Aug 12, 2004
Location
north nj
TDI
2001 golf tdi 4 door auto now a manual, mine, 2000 golf 2 door M/T son's,daughters 98 NB non-TDI 2.0, 2003 TDI NB for next daughter, head repaired and on road,gluten for punishment got another tdi 2001NB,another yellow tdi NB
I’d check your TB to see if it jumped time.
Even with the boost pipe off ,car should start and idle with no issues, you wont have any boost but the car will run.
 

ngolf

Member
Joined
Sep 28, 2017
Location
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
TDI
2004 Golf (BEW)
Check if any of your boost air tubes came off or any of the rubber connectors popped a hole.
From the turbo to the EGR valve.
Do you have VCDS to scan for codes?
I do have VCDS. However, there is no check engine light.
There are also definitely some loose boost connections... But I've had loose boost hoses before and my car drove for literally hundreds of miles... So there's got to be a different issue than lose boost hoses.
 

ngolf

Member
Joined
Sep 28, 2017
Location
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
TDI
2004 Golf (BEW)
Ok. So I checked my boost hoses and they're fine. My engine oil looks fine... however my coolant is a lot lower than I remember a short while ago. But it is still clear and doesn't smell weird.
I pulled the TB cover off and everything looks fine. Belt it tight with no missing teeth. I didn't check for proper timing though since I don't have the resources yet. But pulleys are tight and secure. No leaks in the TB area.
My VCDS program is run off a laptop that needs to stay plugged in... and I can't access an extension cord or outlet here at my apartment. So... I guess VCDS will have to wait for a bit.

I also attempted to start again and the engine ran weakly for a few seconds until bucking/stumbling. I saw a bunch of smoke/steam coming from from the engine bay... and found the crankcase recirculation connection to the intake was blown off.
 

STDOUBT

Veteran Member
Joined
Jul 30, 2007
Location
Portland, effing Oregon
TDI
dos jettas
Belt it tight with no missing teeth.
Just have to ask, does that mean you actually eyeballed the whole run of the belt and saw every single tooth?
Even if you did, yeah, verifying your mechanical timing is what I'd do next. Don't need VCDS for that part.
I would try turning the crank a full round, maybe with the glow plugs out to make it easier.
 

ngolf

Member
Joined
Sep 28, 2017
Location
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
TDI
2004 Golf (BEW)
Hey guys, update here...

Long story short... I replaced my Tandem Pump and primed the system. It stumbled to life for a couple seconds and then quit.
I also found some metal fragments inside my induction piping while doing the pump work. I'm guessing it came from the CCV pipe or my turbo went ballistic (but I can hear the turbo whistle while cranking the engine).
The biggest issue is... a second pair of hands removed my dipstick while I cranked, and engine came to life! But it spurted oil EVERYWHERE from the tube. Soooo looks like it's bad rings or at least something at the lower end. I'll take a deeper look soon.

Why would the engine come to life if the crankcase pressure is released?
 

ngolf

Member
Joined
Sep 28, 2017
Location
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
TDI
2004 Golf (BEW)
Figured the issue out. My old KP39 overboosted and exploded the compressor wheel, destroying the shaft seals with it. The intercooler and piping was filled with about 1.5qts of oil and was keeping the engine from breathing (thank God the engine didn't run away). I now believe the oil spraying from the dipstick tube was due to the wrecked turbo shaft seals. Exhaust gasses were being pushed into the turbine housing, past the shaft seals, through the turbo oil feed line (which then obviously connects to the front of the engine at the filtered oil supply) and then into the crankcase. This was feeding pressurized gasses into the engine. I installed a new VNT17 and all is well. Hardly any air coming from the dipstick tube and engine purrs at idle like a kitten and roars when punched.

Thanks guys.
 

Tdijarhead

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Nov 10, 2013
Location
Lawrenceville PA
TDI
2003 TDI Jetta Daughters Car, 2001 TDI Beetle, Wife’s car, 2005 Golf TDI Mine, all 5 spds
To many questions/ problems asked about with no resolution. Glad this is a thread that has resolve.
 
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