Hard Start / No Start - Is your intercooler frozen? Check Here!

[VeeDubTDI]

Regarding the reports of being sluggish, is this when the system is in bypass mode or in full flow mode? or is it sluggish all the time?

If it's only in bypass mode, that makes sense as the air stream is being forced into a small percentage of the intercooler, creating a significant restriction. I'm inclined to say that it's a normal function of the new design.

 

[kjclow]

Just wanted to report my IC freeze. During the first polar vortex (Wed., January 8th) I was driving on the NY Thruway, 65-70 mph in 5th mostly, 10 degrees (two days after heavy rain). Exited the Thruway onto tertiary streets, engine stumbled, and GPL came on. Went into limp mode but was close to the dealer, so just drove it to VW and parked it.

On Thursday the service manager confirmed it was a frozen IC, and he ordered the 10 degree kit. I'm at 85K miles, so I had little hope of having it covered. Tried anyway, armed with the service bulletin, etc., to no avail.

By Monday the 13th I had it back and have been pushing it hard since (especially now in Polar Vortex #2). MPGs are down to 32 and it feels sluggish (a little) like what Max was saying above.

What did they end up charging you? Try putting the claim to VWoA.

 

[mac5155]

I've noticed a bit of a shudder when I start my 11 jetta. Certainly hope it's not a sign of things to come as I've been good since I owned the car (now has 70k miles, 34k of which were mine, and owned for 1 year)

 

[MAXecutive]

Please, PLEASE report this to the NHTSA. It is now a safety issue.

I will once I have my kit installed next week. This is a serious issue that needs to be better addressed.

 

[2pt. slo]

Unfortunately it has happened to me. The past few weeks I have been having intermittent power lose at WOT. Came to this forum and immediately started researching the issue. I saw this thread but didn't think it pertained until last night. Weather has been cold here in NC well below freezing the past few days. Got in the car to leave work temp was around 20, issues presented itself as dead battery. Waited a few moments tried again and the car turned over but did not start. With the dead battery symptom then the car able to start turning over a few moments later I immediately thought of this thread and came and read until the wife could pick me up.

Today, I take off the belly pan and intercooler pipe and sure enough Icing. Not a little either. Temp is still in the low 20's today.

After getting as much as I could find out of the piping the car turns over but refuses to start. I will be calling VWOA and my local dealership to discuss options as I'm at 85k miles...

 

[mac5155]

Whoa. that's bad.

 

[VeeDubTDI]

It looks like the ice has managed to restrict almost the entire airflow... that'll cause poor running, for sure.

I think it's time for another round of boost pipe pictures. Folks who have had the new intercooler installed and folks who are on the original intercooler, please post pics of the insides of your boost pipe (as pictured above) if you have the wherewithal and desire to crawl under your car.

 

[bassman5066]

Unfortunately it has happened to me. The past few weeks I have been having intermittent power lose at WOT. Came to this forum and immediately started researching the issue. I saw this thread but didn't think it pertained until last night. Weather has been cold here in NC well below freezing the past few days. Got in the car to leave work temp was around 20, issues presented itself as dead battery. Waited a few moments tried again and the car turned over but did not start. With the dead battery symptom then the car able to start turning over a few moments later I immediately thought of this thread and came and read until the wife could pick me up.

Today, I take off the belly pan and intercooler pipe and sure enough Icing. Not a little either. Temp is still in the low 20's today.

After getting as much as I could find out of the piping the car turns over but refuses to start. I will be calling VWOA and my local dealership to discuss options as I'm at 85k miles...

Pix

Wow I am at a loss for words on this one. I would love to see the service writer's face when you show them that...

Sent from my XT1080 using Tapatalk

 

[MonsterTDI09]

It looks like the ice has managed to restrict almost the entire airflow... that'll cause poor running, for sure.

I think it's time for another round of boost pipe pictures. Folks who have had the new intercooler installed and folks who are on the original intercooler, please post pics of the insides of your boost pipe (as pictured above) if you have the wherewithal and desire to crawl under your car.

Ok Tuesday have having my 60k service done. I will pull it off and take some pictures. I have a stock I/C with bottom grill block off for the past two weeks

 

[MonsterTDI09]

Unfortunately it has happened to me. The past few weeks I have been having intermittent power lose at WOT. Came to this forum and immediately started researching the issue. I saw this thread but didn't think it pertained until last night. Weather has been cold here in NC well below freezing the past few days. Got in the car to leave work temp was around 20, issues presented itself as dead battery. Waited a few moments tried again and the car turned over but did not start. With the dead battery symptom then the car able to start turning over a few moments later I immediately thought of this thread and came and read until the wife could pick me up.

Today, I take off the belly pan and intercooler pipe and sure enough Icing. Not a little either. Temp is still in the low 20's today.

After getting as much as I could find out of the piping the car turns over but refuses to start. I will be calling VWOA and my local dealership to discuss options as I'm at 85k miles...

You are lucky. You just saved you engine.

 

[PlaneCrazy]

We've had perfect IC weather all week, and I did about 400 km in -20 to -30C weather. I might pull mine tomorrow, look at what's in there and snap some pics. I park in an unheated garage that's just about 0.5 to 1 degree above freezing these days, with the car plugged in. It's started flawlessly through all this, even when left unplugged at work in -20C all day. I have the IC kit. At the 105k service in December, under similar weather conditions, the dealer found the IC hose choked with ice, I'm assuming like that picture. They removed the intake snorkel so that air is drawn from the allegedly warmer engine compartment.

 

[STRANGETDI]

Wow I am at a loss for words on this one. I would love to see the service writer's face when you show them that...

With that said, there is no way anyone should be paying for this out of pocket regardless of mileage. We should use the pics from this website and tell the dealers that these are our own cars and press to get the kit installed at no charge.

TSBs should always be paid for by the dealer...always. TSBs are out there because of an issue inherent with the vehicle.

If this happens to me, (and I have had a few stutter starts recently) I will not pay for this at all. I will mention that I have had issues at my next service interval, and go from there.

 

[STRANGETDI]

The LP/EGR opens up when there is a load on engine and higher rpm range.This is why blocking the grill helps by keep the warm water vapor from condensing.I hope this helps.

So do we lug the engine and drive like a granny? No LP EGR!

 

[bhtooefr]

I would suspect that the LP-EGR would open up any time boost exceeds a certain amount.

So, lugging it would open it up.

Driving to avoid boost entirely would be what you'd need. So, the most critical thing would be very light throttle application.

 

[VeeDubTDI]

IMO, driving style won't change this phenomenon very much. There is only so much you can do to avoid driving a certain way, and even those modifications in driving style haven't been proven to make a difference one way or the other.

 

[bhtooefr]

That's the other thing, these cars end up boosting at idle, and running full boost with not much throttle at all...

 

[JD_TDI]

Hey Everyone,

I just found this thread via vwvortex.com and thought I'd post up that I am taking my 2013 TDI Sportwagen with just under 13k into the dealer in the morning for a couple hard starts this month. I'm in just north of Atlanta and it's been colder than normal, but nothing too crazy. Both hard starts happened around 5:30p after leaving work and the temps were about 35 respectively. I also had a couple time where the car idled very rough after leaving home in the morning only after about a mile of driving and coming to a stop.

I'll post back what the dealer says. I'm going in armed with the TSB and everyone of my fuel receipts since day one (use the same 2 stations 90% of the time).

-JD

 

[rocketride]

Update: VWoA is going to reimburse me for the tow and drain/blowout (~$200) but refuses to install the TSB kit because they "don’t proactively replace components without a current vehicle concern" They said if I experience IC issues in the future I should contact my dealer!

I'll push a littler more.

On another note I was under the car this weekend changing the oil and looking at the IC piping. Where the hoses connect to the IC there is some sort of metal band/clamp system (rather than simple hose clamp). The one on the passenger side is firmly affixed. The one on the driver side can be wiggled a bit and has some oily residue around it and on the plastic belly pan just below (always been this way since I've had the car - just never worried about it). I'm guessing that is not normal. Any thoughts?

Lastly, what is the proper way to drain the water? From the drivers side or passenger side? From the banded connection at the IC or the hose clamp at the other side of the hose? Thanks.

 

[gregert12]

Lastly, what is the proper way to drain the water? From the drivers side or passenger side? From the banded connection at the IC or the hose clamp at the other side of the hose? Thanks.

both sides, driver and passenger, have the residue. on the passenger side, I undo the hose clamp and the driver is the quick connect

 

[MAXecutive]

Would a boost gauge help detect a frozen IC as it is happening? When my car lost all power on the highway, would I have seen a gradually decrease in boost a few minutes prior to the incident?

 

[gphone]

Hi folks

This is my first post on the forum.

About 2 weeks ago I was driving my 2010 TDI Golf and had a check engine light come on while driving the highway, took it in and sure enough - "iced up intercooler". The dealership replaced it with the TSB Cold Weather one. Upon receiving it back, it definitely had improved driving (the month prior or so I noticed that it was running rougher and that my heating system wasn't warming up the way it should have).

However, since then I have noticed almost every time I drive that it seems sluggish. In particular, after accelerating in 1st, 2nd, or 3rd gear, if I am running a constant 1600-2200rpm, the car starts jolting and jerking on me. I worry that this is not a good thing and that there is damage being done.

I had a civic before that went through a large puddle, after which had some similar "bucking" tendencies. Do I have water in my engine? The car starts fine. This jerking motion is happening sometimes closer to the beginning of the drive, but I've also had it after driving for an hour...

Help if you can!

 

[ctmoore79]

gphone, I had similar issues after my IC kit was installed. They forgot to replace one of the hose gaskets. I did throw a code a couple days later though. May need to have them double check all the connections and ensure there are no leaks.

 

[MAXecutive]

Oh great. I'm getting the kit installed tomorrow. I hope this isn't the start of a week after week trips to the dealer.

 

[Jollyman]

New to the world of TDI

Just put a deposit down on a 2014 Jetta TDI Premium, very excited to sign the paper work tomorrow and get my car. These forums have been very helpful in choosing my next car, so thank you all!

My question: Worth demanding the kit be installed before I sign for the vehicle? I live outside Boston, MA and the weather has been exactly as described: 0 at night, 40 the next day. I drive a lot for work (25,000+/yr) and will blow through the the warranty within a year and half.

 

[MAXecutive]

I would definitely bring it up. I can't see them doing anything but it's worth a shot.

 

[Kristiyan]

Just put a deposit down on a 2014 Jetta TDI Premium, very excited to sign the paper work tomorrow and get my car. These forums have been very helpful in choosing my next car, so thank you all!

My question: Worth demanding the kit be installed before I sign for the vehicle? I live outside Boston, MA and the weather has been exactly as described: 0 at night, 40 the next day. I drive a lot for work (25,000+/yr) and will blow through the the warranty within a year and half.

Brave man!

I would have definitely gone a different route had I known about this issue.

Are you buying the car from a dealer? If so, before you sign the papers you should tell them to install the kit. If they say "No," well, you know what to do...

 

[MAXecutive]

Brave man!

I would have definitely gone a different route had I known about this issue.

Are you buying the car from a dealer? If so, before you sign the papers you should tell them to install the kit. If they say "No," well, you know what to do...

I think the dealer will prefer to lose the sale honestly.

 

[rocketride]

I would have thought the kit was standard on a 2014 model.

 

[Jollyman]

I would have thought the kit was standard on a 2014 model.

I'd have thought so too, but the 2014 Jetta is listed in the TSB, so...?

I figure I'll askto have it installed (if its not already) and settle for getting it in writing that they'll honor it under the 60,000mi Powertrain warranty.

 

[MonsterTDI09]

It was clear.There was just some black oil.Just tea spoon of water if that

This after the car started in 0* and drove 50 miles at speed 70 MPH . I would say it was at 190 about 5 miles down the road. This was with bottom grill covered and part of the top.