Lovin the CR thread....pipe in CR owners.

tdi90hp

Veteran Member
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Feb 5, 2002
Location
Canuckland
TDI
2011 Golf TDI 6 speed(gone but NEVER forgotten)
emissions and power....look at all the manufacturers all over the world...struggling to eek out a few more MPG, (new civic under 2% on manual transmission...big deal)..VAG had to build a competitive powerful, quiet diesel with super clean exhaust. it is what it is. OilH says it's overly complicated....nicklockard says the benefits are down...I say...we have a current Mark 6 loaded Golf with 55% more power and 55% less noise that makes an ALH look like a slow dog...more content all over, better ride, better seats, better stereo, and virtually no loss in features(more actually...6 speed manual etc..) except for the cool blue lights that just is centuries ahead in day to day fun and performance. yes mileage is a bit lower. if i drove a New ALH then drove a CR and they were both about the SAME MONEY 8 yrs later....well...I will take my chances with the expensive exhaust(potentially...but we really dont know) and the fuel pump challenge (my dealer has never had a bad one but we are canadian)...I would never even hesitate. CR is the future. we have to just embrace the new world.
 

oilhammer

Certified Volkswagen Nut & Vendor
Joined
Dec 11, 2001
Location
outside St Louis, MO
TDI
There are just too many to list....
Hehe, my ALH will run right alongside your CJAA :D. And last tank I got 53 MPGs, so if this is slow and noisy and unrefined, I'll keep it!

When your Golf can claim this (and I know it can), then we can celebrate the CR:

 

tdi90hp

Veteran Member
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Location
Canuckland
TDI
2011 Golf TDI 6 speed(gone but NEVER forgotten)
Hehe, my ALH will run right alongside your CJAA :D. And last tank I got 53 MPGs, so if this is slow and noisy and unrefined, I'll keep it!

When your Golf can claim this (and I know it can), then we can celebrate the CR:


low mileage guy!!! only 400K?
 

elconquistador

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Joined
Mar 29, 2011
Location
St. Peters, MO
TDI
2011 Jetta TDI
Common rail technology isn't that new right? I mean Duramax engines have been using it their entire Resistance and Cummins engines picked it up in the dodges in about 2003 right?
 

oilhammer

Certified Volkswagen Nut & Vendor
Joined
Dec 11, 2001
Location
outside St Louis, MO
TDI
There are just too many to list....
It is not that new, no. It was new in 2009 to VAG 4 cylinders, and unlike all other previous EDC technologies, North America got CR at the same time Europe did. So we get to experience all the teething issues too. The PDs were out for 4 years before we saw any here, and the VE TDIs were out for about 5 years before we saw any here as well. So for the most part, by the time we did see them *most* of the bugs were worked out. We just had to deal with the bugs manifested for EPA regs, like the poor 1996 Passat's 5th injector nonsense, or the 2004/2005 PDs' glow plug fiasco, which took three tries to get sorted out.

But the CR, we get a double whammy, because we not only get the new EDC teething troubles, we also get the EPA regulated troubles compounded on top of that. This is why there have already been several software updates, and why so many early reports of MILs on, sensor failures, etc. happened. Then we get the HPFP issues that apperently are traced to poor lubricity fuel here. I'm thinking by the 2012 model year, they'll have them all sorted out. Right about the time the emissions regs will kill off the diesels once and for all :(.

So while the 1996 EA827 TDI had some specific issues, by 1999 the last of the A3 Jettas sold here were pretty much bulletproof. And 1998 and 1999 EA113 TDIs had some goofy issues, by 2003 they too were bulletproof. And much of the PD's woes, especially for 2004 models, have mostly been corrected with software and updated glow plugs, which the 2006s never had to deal with.

The other wrench in the works is that the platform change recently can also add to the newness factor. While the 6th gen Golf is not radically different underneath than the 5th gen before it, the 2011 Jetta sedan is TOTALLY different.
 

oilhammer

Certified Volkswagen Nut & Vendor
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Location
outside St Louis, MO
TDI
There are just too many to list....
Seriously about what? Them having the bugs worked out, or the EPA regulations causing light-duty diesels to go away?
 

PaulGiz

Veteran Member
Joined
Feb 19, 2010
Location
Rhode Island
TDI
None any more. My heart couldn't take it.
Hehe, my ALH will run right alongside your CJAA :D. And last tank I got 53 MPGs, so if this is slow and noisy and unrefined, I'll keep it!

When your Golf can claim this (and I know it can), then we can celebrate the CR:

The longevity of any vehicle is directly linked to the owner's attitude. If you love a car, you'll do what it takes to keep it running. If you don't, any excuse is good enough to move on.

I've spent time and money keeping cars 'til there wasn't much left of them, I've also dumped cars using the first sign of trouble as justification.

There is no reason to think that the MkV and MkVI cars won't get their owners as jazzed as the earlier cars. They're not that different in many ways.

While I wish I could get my hands on a perfectly maintained, excellent condition. low mileage MkIII it is unlikely. I'll see what the JSW does for me and what I'm willing to do for it.

P.
 

oilhammer

Certified Volkswagen Nut & Vendor
Joined
Dec 11, 2001
Location
outside St Louis, MO
TDI
There are just too many to list....
The EPA dooming diesels.
The emissions regs are changing over the next few years, and there are just not going to be much room for diesel engines I'm afraid. Not that they cannot overcome these challenges, but at what cost? We already see the newer technology, while cleaner at the tailpipe, costs more money to build and uses more fuel. When you can now (or in the next model year) purchase 10+ gasoline powered (not even hybrids!) models that get 40 MPG for thousands less, how many people in the next 5 years will really be wanting diesels besides the few die-hards like myself? Hybrids will become more common, and cheaper, and more efficient.

The current TDI engine option is already a multi-thousand dollar option on Volkswagens, and they have to hide it behind higher-priced trim levels just to break even, and even then it is only sold in a limited configuration in limited numbers. The EPA rules in this country just do not favor high MPG diesels, just the way it is. If they did, we'd have them everywhere.
 

hysterwv

Veteran Member
Joined
Aug 10, 2006
Location
WV, OH, KY
I wonder if VW or anyone else is considering diesel/electric hybrids. Probably cost prohibitive. In my world, CAT, Volvo, and Komatsu have already developed and are marketing Diesel/Electric machines.

For example the CAT D7E has the engine run at constant rpms (easy to control emissions) and the drive duties are carried out by electric motors.

More interesting is JCBs (we're a dealer) development of their Ecomax engine. This 90-125hp engine meets Tier IV requirements without a DPF or urea injection (the only one in the market)! JCB and their engineering partner have many patents pending on this design. We hope it delivers. This will give our machines a tremendous competitive advantage over the competition.
http://www.greencarcongress.com/2010/03/jcb-20100319.html

 
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oilhammer

Certified Volkswagen Nut & Vendor
Joined
Dec 11, 2001
Location
outside St Louis, MO
TDI
There are just too many to list....
JCB has some impressive technology, always seems to be at the cutting edge of their field. Who'd think the same country that brought us Lucas electrics could do this! :p

I wonder how this equates to on-road emissions regs, though? I do not foresee too many 4.0L+ 4 cylinders making 100hp and 400tq in passenger cars.:)
 
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oilhammer

Certified Volkswagen Nut & Vendor
Joined
Dec 11, 2001
Location
outside St Louis, MO
TDI
There are just too many to list....
That sounds about right. And in 2014 the even more strict standards start the phase-in process, and this is where the poop is gonna kit the fan as to whether or not diesels remain available in any automotive applications in this country.
 

Marc_TDI

Veteran Member
Joined
Jan 1, 2011
Location
Madison, Wisconsin
TDI
2010 Jetta TDI
I love driving to work
I love driving to go buy groceries

I just love driving this car - 12K so far so good.
It's gonna get TLC, all the right fluids and some AM goodies too.
I hope it lasts me for at least 10 years.
 

beartooth91

Well-known member
Joined
Jan 2, 2004
Location
Janesville, WI
TDI
2014 Passat SE with Sunroof and Nav
What a depressing thread! HPFP will crater. CR engines are junk. No more diesel cars in the USA. What a depressing thread!

I'm an ALH guy that traded to an '09 Jetta TDI and now to an '11. All three were bought brand new. On my '03, I dealt with the intake manifold plugging. I had 107,000 miles on it when I traded it in July, '09. In all that time, I had 1 check engine light -> at 104,000 miles, for a bad glow plug on cylinder #3. It also had the VNT-17 (I think that was turbo model; it wasn't the Garrett) turbo. When I traded it, the car was suffering from low power and my mpg's had dropped to low-mid 40's (from 50-52). I'm pretty sure the turbo's exhaust guide vanes had galled up and were locked.
Yes, it averaged 50-52 mpg's and these CR engines don't get that. But, there's no question, these are better overall cars: less noise, more room, nicer stereo, and, for a TDI, they are F-A-S-T. A stock, 90hp, ALH keeping up with a 140hp, CR? Right!:p Ok, maybe if you factor the ALH catching up while the CR fuels. I've owned both. My ALH wasn't a slouch, but, there's no comparison to these 2L 140hp engines.
My '09 averaged right at 40 mpg, on the interstate, at 75 mph. If I slowed to 65 mph; I'd get 45-46 mpg. I put 16,000 miles on it before trading. My black '11 got 41.6 mpg, on the drive home from Denver. Lately, I've been setting the cruise at 57 mph - it gets over 50 mpg at 1800 rpm.
C'mon folks, these are good cars (and engines). Fuel pumps have always been an issue on these cars, at least back to the A4's, from lack of lubricity in U.S. diesel. Reading through the HPFP thread, VW has redesigned the CR fuel pump 3 times, and may be still having problems. My opinion its more about lack of lubricity than a bad design. And, I can't believe these turbos are as failure prone as the VNT in my '03.
I had a gas guzzling V6 Touareg, for 6 months, between the '09 and '11. I plan on keeping this one a long time. I'd be willing to bet - miles for miles - it won't be any more problematic than my '03.
 
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oilhammer

Certified Volkswagen Nut & Vendor
Joined
Dec 11, 2001
Location
outside St Louis, MO
TDI
There are just too many to list....
Other than the very early ALH turbos, also supplied by KKK, they are NOT troublesome much at all. Maybe you got a bad one, but it is a rare occurence at my shop to replace an ALH turbocharger considering how many of these cars I regularly see. Most of the time it is from driving the car too easy.

And ALH intakes have not gunked up for years (thank you ULSD!).

My 400,000 mile ALH Golf is available for test drives if you'd like to see just how well those cars can hold up and run. :D
 

WVU TDI

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Joined
Jul 14, 2007
Location
Beckley, WV
TDI
2013 Passat SE 6m
I have days where I regret buying my 2010, thinking "Man, that $400/mo car payment could've kept the '01 going for a LONG time" then I go to my parents place and drive the '01 around for the weekend...

Uhh, yeah, I love my CR :)
 

dr.tdi

Member
Joined
May 5, 2010
Location
N.J.
TDI
2004 Jetta
I am starting to love them, too! The labor time to change the turbo is a solid 2.5 hours more than the previous cars! Woot! :D

But we are not done, yet. The DPF alone was a challenge to get out... had to remove the subframe and the right axle, the backside of the engine is an albatross of tubes, wires, hoses, valves, sensors, all jammed into a VERY tight area. This engine is COMPLEX beyond any 4 cylinder I have ever serviced, by far. Let's hope they hold up better than this one has, because working on the engine is NOT going to be pleasant for the novice. 3 fuel pumps, 2 pressure sensors, 2 throttles, 2 EGRs, 3 EGT sensors, 1 lambda sensor, 2 intake paths, 4 pressure-sensing glow plugs, an EGR filter, a DPF, a de-NOx cat, a de-sulfur cat... seriously the backside of this engine reminds me of the Borg Cube.

The things you have to to make some money.
 

tdi90hp

Veteran Member
Joined
Feb 5, 2002
Location
Canuckland
TDI
2011 Golf TDI 6 speed(gone but NEVER forgotten)
I'd take that bet! :D
sorry Oil H...you are biased....you can put as many hours and cheap parts as possible to make your ALH fast and fix it till 1 Million Miles...you have a pretty substantial advantage over us ( a garage, a bench, a hoist, and a licence)....CRs are quicker (stock to stock) , way quieter, way cleaner tailpipe(no smell) for daily life and just feel built much better and have more features.....my ALH loaded jetta was 28K in 2003....new loaded Jetta is 27K 8 yrs later in Canada....I mean....C'mon....here is what a top tech at Waterloo VW told me last week...."CRs are holding up amazingly well, very few issues with some customers already hitting 150KM (nearly 100k miles)...they are looking bulletproof to me"....so yes the exhaust worries me....so I will save 500 bucks /yr and worry about it in 5 yrs...maybe you will come up with a work around for us OilH?? C'mon time to move UP in the world....any other CR lovers out there???
 

manual_tranny

Smyth Performance- Intern
Joined
Jan 5, 2010
Location
New Bedford, MA
TDI
2001 Golf @182K; 2000 Jetta @290K
sorry Oil H...you are biased....you can put as many hours and cheap parts as possible to make your ALH fast and fix it till 1 Million Miles...you have a pretty substantial advantage over us ( a garage, a bench, a hoist, and a licence)....CRs are quicker (stock to stock) , way quieter, way cleaner tailpipe(no smell) for daily life and just feel built much better and have more features.....my ALH loaded jetta was 28K in 2003....new loaded Jetta is 27K 8 yrs later in Canada....I mean....C'mon....here is what a top tech at Waterloo VW told me last week...."CRs are holding up amazingly well, very few issues with some customers already hitting 150KM (nearly 100k miles)...they are looking bulletproof to me"....so yes the exhaust worries me....so I will save 500 bucks /yr and worry about it in 5 yrs...maybe you will come up with a work around for us OilH?? C'mon time to move UP in the world....any other CR lovers out there???
*sigh* :)
 

manual_tranny

Smyth Performance- Intern
Joined
Jan 5, 2010
Location
New Bedford, MA
TDI
2001 Golf @182K; 2000 Jetta @290K
I'd take the fuel system and ECU from the CR and throw it on a highly modified ALH in a MK2 rally car... :)

Even though we know the fuel system is fragile, I agree that it's worth the price for those who know they are paying to play. :)
 

tdi90hp

Veteran Member
Joined
Feb 5, 2002
Location
Canuckland
TDI
2011 Golf TDI 6 speed(gone but NEVER forgotten)
I'd take the fuel system and ECU from the CR and throw it on a highly modified ALH in a MK2 rally car... :)

Even though we know the fuel system is fragile, I agree that it's worth the price for those who know they are paying to play. :)
agreed on that one....
 

MayorDJQ

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Dec 4, 2001
Location
Williamstown, Mass
TDI
'10 Golf 2dr 6m, sold.
I'd take the fuel system and ECU from the CR and throw it on a highly modified ALH in a MK2 rally car... :)

Even though we know the fuel system is fragile, I agree that it's worth the price for those who know they are paying to play. :)
Would the higher compression ratio of the ALH (19.5:1 vs. 16:1 on the CR) would cause a problem?
 

manual_tranny

Smyth Performance- Intern
Joined
Jan 5, 2010
Location
New Bedford, MA
TDI
2001 Golf @182K; 2000 Jetta @290K
Would the higher compression ratio of the ALH (19.5:1 vs. 16:1 on the CR) would cause a problem?
I'm sure that the proper tuning would get things running great... though certainly there would be a dozen or more serious challenges installing the CR compression-sensitive glow-plugs, custom pump bracket, custom fuel stuffs, machining a bunch of stuff... pretty much out of my league at the moment.
 

Stuart Little

Veteran Member
Joined
May 6, 2011
Location
Denver, CO, USA
TDI
10' Jetta TDi Cup Edition - 6M, 02' TDI Beetle - 5M
I'm loving my CR to date, I've only owned it a month and put 2000 miles on it (a lot more than I normally drive), I've heard a few bad things, and a few good things, this is my first VW but I've always wanted one and now have the education and means to save a few grand every year just for in case, BUT I did get the 7 year 100,000 mile bumper-to-bumper warranty so, I'd like to think but the time I hit 100k (4-6 years) most of the bugs will be worked out!
 

Highline Driver

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Joined
May 22, 2011
Location
Cranbrook BC Canada
TDI
2011 Jetta TDI Highline Sedan
Ok, new guy question here.

My manual says I have a CJAA. Is that a CR? I read the FAQ but it stopped at 1999.

Maybe the CR is a US model and CJAA is Canadian?

Curious,

Mike
 
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