1998 VW Jetta starting problems

[Carcarius]

My jetta intermittently starts; at times it will not start at all, other times it starts after the second attempt or 3rd or 4th, etc..., and sometimes it starts right up the first try. It seems worse during wet weather or if the car has been sitting for a long time (>2 days). I have had a tune-up done (new dist. cap, rotor, s-plugs,wires), an ignition coil pack replacement and the ignition wires replaced. The car has ~73K miles on it.

My car has been sitting at the Atamian VW in Tewksbury MA for 2 weeks. They could NOT figure out the problem or fix it. (To those of you in the MA area, avoid this dealership at all costs). I assume that when they replaced the distributor they would have also made sure the timing is correct.

HISTORY:

My problems started in November 2002. My car has had hardly any problems prior to this. The weather was wet due to a weekend of rain, it was a Monday and rather cold, but not cold enough for the water on the ground to turn to ice. The car wouldn't start on the first try (no big deal, it's cold and may need a few attempts). Well, 8 attempts later, it finally turned over, I let it run for a few minutes to warm up, then as I started to drive off it stalled out, almost like it it wasn't getting fuel. I tried starting it again, I beleive if my memory serves it started up, and as I was driving away, I noticed that as I started speeding up a bit it would get worse, and come closer to stalling out (loss of power?), and when shifting into second gear and accelerating, it stalled out and there was a loud pop under the hood (much like an old carburator when it lacks air flow). The check engine light turned on and I decided to leave it parked on the side of the street.

At this moment I left it to call my boss to let him know I would be late to work. About a half hour later I tried it again and it seemed to be much better, almost like I had not had the problems just a half hour before. I drove it to a local garage who told me they couldn't work on it so I just drove to work. It was fine for a few days after that, since the only issue was a check engine light (which I knew I needed to have checked out) I figured it was a one-time occurance due to bad weather and inactivity. I figured the check engine light was due to the loud pop, maybe a sensor wire was popped lose, no biggie.

Well a week or so later I had a similar issue, but not with the popping or power loss, but with the car not starting. After that I brought it to a garage and they replaced the ignition cables. The car was good for about a month. During this time the weather was bad and I was travelling again so the car would at times be sitting for a few weeks of inactivity. When I came back from my business trip the car had problems again. During the period of December to June 2003 there was a 2 week period of inactivity each month due to business trips.

In February 2003, I brought it to a dealership and demanded they replace the ignition coil pack, due to a recall I heard about in regards to faulty ignition coils. They replaced this free of charge and the car started without error for about 3 months. Now, in June 2003, I have the same problems, although it seems worse. This month, I had taken the car to another dealership (Atamian listed above, the same dealership I had used to give the car a 40k mile service in 2001), and here I am, with no fix and no confidence in my car.

Has anyone experienced similar things, if so, do you have any advice, wisdom, or suggestions to share?

I thought it was purely electrical, but now I wonder if it has anything to do with the fuel line or the fuel injection, but I am not too sure. I have had alot of important electrical items pertinent to ignition replaced, so I am now at a loss as to the extent of this problem and whether it is fixable. At the moment I beleive I have a lemon.

[mfk5150]

Hi, I own a 1997 Jetta and I am having the EXACT same problems. I have not been able to figure out the problem. Have you had any success in correctly diagnosing the problem?

[Carcarius]

Hi mfk5150,

In fact, I brought my car to a local mechanic, not a dealership. He found that the crank sensor was bad and when that went it shorted out the computer. In short, I needed a new crank sensor and a computer. Luckily, the mechanic had a used computer that he sold me and replaced the bad computer with, I saved alot of money this way. Now, I requested to keep the old computer and saw no noticable problems, so I am not surer if it needed to be replaced. My car also has been running fine with no problems since, it's been about a month since the trouble, so I will not question the validity that the computer was bad.

So, in summary, take your car to a local mechanic and ask them to inspect the crank sensor, hopefully your computer will not need to be replaced like mine did.

The dealerships I worked with were terrible and didn't even come close to figuring out the problem in 2 weeks, it took this mechanic 2 hours to figure out the problem.

[ImportFool]

omg...im having similar problems with my 95 jetta....my check engine light will come on occasions, and i will lose large amounts of power, also i have trouble starting...it usuallys starts up the second try...but this is just gettin annoying and embarrasing in parking lots ....

[julienf]

I have had a similar problem. The engine on my 1998 Jetta K2 will crank over strongly, but will simply not light up. Especially when damp or wet. By chance I mentioned this to a colleague with a 1998 Golf, who said he had the same problem. It turned out to be the ignition coil, which his mechanic replaced with a used one. When the problem continued, he put in a new one, which fixed the issue. I have since learned that many 2001/2002 VW coils have been recalled...

[termitesgraffix]

Anyone know if 94 Jettas have any recalls.. we are having the same problem... So are many other people I have talked to... Ha that meens we don't have to pay for the new one right? haha rock! Free is good.

[heatherh]

my 97 jetta is having the exact same problem - can't get it to start in wet weather...what a pain. mechanic recommends replacing spark plugs, wires, etc. to the tune of $300.

[termitesgraffix]

What the hell is he charging you for? $300??????????
Wires, Plugs, Cap and rotor don't even cost that much and that is a full tune-up. That should cost around $60 or more depending. What is he including in that. Do it yourself for that... a tune-up is so incredibly easy. But that isn't my girl's car's problem. It is way more involved than just a tune-up.
Where do you live? Damn give me $300 and I'll do your tune-up and throw in an oil change and tire rotation... Damn haha

[idriveavw]

same here, 97 2.0 jetta... having that same problem, as well as after i start it it "lags" a bit when i get on it... it putters and appears as if i do not know how to drive a standard car... like i need a lesson on when to use a clutch.. its definately embarrassing... anyway, i put in new neuspeed spark plug wires ($100 and change... put in myself...) and it helped alot in the beginning but it seems as if its getting back to the way it was... i was thinking maybe the o2 sensor?

[BigA]

Occasional failure to start when it is wet or damp out is a very common problem with Jettas. I keep a can of "Wire Dryer" handy and when this happens I simply spray the distributer cap and plug wires with it, and the problem generally goes away.

Sometimes, if it doesn't fail to start completely, only two or three cylinders will fire initially. This causes a misfire condition which results in a severe loss of power (especially if you give it more gas) and the check engine light will start flashing. Again, waiting for the wires to dry off - or spraying them with wire dryer - will probably make this go away, but your check engine light will probably stay on for about 400 miles or so.

If it happens more than occasionally, then it is probably time for a new wire set, and distributer cap.

[idriveavw]

BigA, that is actually an exact explanation of what is happening ot me... im gonna try the distributor cap within the next couple days, since i already have the wires taken care of.... ill reply reply with what happens. thanks

[novo33]

This is my experience with 90's Jetta 1.8 digifant having problems with cold start and hesitation
Problem Description: When you turn the ignition the engine starts for a few seconds , after that the engine stall and die
The engine start but you can only keep it running at hight RPM, after warm up it runs fine
The engine starts, run fine for a while then die
Iddle problems

Does this problem sound familiar to you? Jetta are not a good cars, 1992 its the worst was assembly in Mexico, can you imagine those little mexicans eating and drinking jalapeños with tequila. Well, this its only for people who knows a little about mechanic, if you have the money or dont have a clue, dont try.

1. Check tank fuel pump, you can do it in or out, remove the incoming fuel hose right next to the fuel presure regulator, drink a 20oz beer and put the end of the hose in there, crank the car couple times and you should have 50psi or 1/4 can full, if not, fuel pump located inside fuel tank in the trunk its busted.Outside, get the pump out and give 12 volts from the battery, watch sparks and fuel tank or you may not need your Jetta
2.Fuel presure regulator, dont know how to check it and its very unusual to be bad
3. Clean the iddle screw (co) on the front of the intake manifold pull it out and carburator cleaner with it, as well to the PCV valve and O2 sensor
4. If the problem still, then disconect the two water sensors on the upper radiator hose housing, one blue and the other black, if the problems goes away then you know what to do, drink another 20 oz can of beer and go to the yunk yard, that sensor shorts and draw the voltage from the computer, The one mos important its the blue. At 85 F suppose to have 1500-2100 ohms.

Other problems like ignition switch, fuel filter, Computer $$$ , broken grounds, catalytic converter,air flow sensor and vacuum leaks, EGR

Now good luck and let me know if it works out for you

[RFY]

I have a 1997 Jetta with the exact same problems in wet weather. Tried replacing the distributor cap and rotor, but that didn't help. Next on the list may be the plug wires.

Any advice as to which may be the culprit??? Seems that the crank sensor or the ignition coil may be a leading candidate, but I'll have to wait until it dries out to start it again!

Any help is appreciated..............

[BigA]

I would check the Coil. On those cars, it is screwed into the firewall, right up near the top. Especially if you park either uphill, or downhill, sometimes water can flow right onto it. It's a relatively inexpensive part and simple to replace, so you might try replacing it, or simply getting a can of wire dryer and spraying it off. On my 96, I actually had somebody watch the coil while I tried starting it, and they could see it ARCing.

[Carcarius]

I started this very post a year or so ago, and here I am in June 2004 and my car has been SOLID since. The crank sensor and computer replacements have fixed my problem!!! I hope the rest of you who had problems were able to get them resolved. Take care all!!!