95'jetta stalls in gear when starting up

Please help! My 95' jetta III GL stalls every time in gear with brake. it starts fine, it runs fine in P. it runs fine when I turn the AC on. But it just stalls if in any gear with brake. it seems to run fine if I release the brake fast enough after I move the tansmission in gear (only test in a short distance). But it struggles and finally stalls when I push the brake and make it a full stop. The engine check, engine oil check and battery lights turn on every time when it stalls. Is the TCC bad? Any other possibility? How much will it cost to fix the problem? Thanks.

Check to see if you idle is dropping down. It probably is. When the A/C is on it increases your idle and prevents the stall. You need to get some carb cleaner and clean your idle stabilizer valve. This is the most common problem I've encountered with Jettas.

Check to see if you idle is dropping down. It probably is. When the A/C is on it increases your idle and prevents the stall. You need to get some carb cleaner and clean your idle stabilizer valve. This is the most common problem I've encountered with Jettas.

Hi, Doug. I did a clean job on the idle stabilizer valve, throttle body and the mass air flow sensor. it does not work for me. its idle is fine and stable when it is not in gear. and it is fine if i push brake at P or N position. however, it just turn to stall when I put in gear and push brake. today I give some gas while I hold brake and put it in gear. it dies with a struggle. what else could it be?

It could be that your clutch isn't fully disengaging when you are at a stop in gear. This would be highly unusual and the only way I can see it happening would be if the wrong transmission fluid was put into your car. If so, there should be other problems as well. Have you changed your transmission fluid and filter regularly? Does the car jump when it shifts?
I still think it's an idle problem. Put the car in neutral with the brake on and turn the A/C on and off and watch the RPM's to see what they do. They should decrease slightly and return to normal or slightly higher. It could be that the switch that ups the idle when the A/C is on isn't working.

It could be that your clutch isn't fully disengaging when you are at a stop in gear. This would be highly unusual and the only way I can see it happening would be if the wrong transmission fluid was put into your car. If so, there should be other problems as well. Have you changed your transmission fluid and filter regularly? Does the car jump when it shifts?
I still think it's an idle problem. Put the car in neutral with the brake on and turn the A/C on and off and watch the RPM's to see what they do. They should decrease slightly and return to normal or slightly higher. It could be that the switch that ups the idle when the A/C is on isn't working.

Then it could be the transmission porblem. it is an automatic transmission. I found it jumped when it started from stop (only from a full stop) and the transmission was in cold condition (every morning when I drove it at the first time, for example). the problem disappeared after it ran in road for a while. So I thought its transmission fluid might had got old. Then I had a garage change the transmission fluid in May of this year. The problem did disappeared for a month or so. But it came back and got worse. every time when it changed gear position from lower to higher there was a small jump (smaller than it did before fluid change. Shall I go to the VW dealer to have a transmission fluid change again?

Also, could it caused by a vacuum leak? I heard that a vacuum leak would cause such a problem while pushing the brake. but I don't know if it is only in case that it is in gear. as I discribed before, it is ok in P and N positions when I pushed the brake. Also, I need to immediately push the accelerator to prevent it from stalling when I put it in gear and let it go.

Thanks a lot, Doug.

What you said about the transmission is concerning, but I don't think it's the problem. When they change the fluid, they don't necessarily change the filter. I change my filter every 60k miles and the fluid every 20k miles.
The vacuum leak is a definite possibility. You may want to pick up a gage from the auto parts store and check it out. The brake booster uses vacuum and the idle control uses vacuum. If you have a leak, the brakes may be using too much vacuum for the idle to be able to maintained.
Try putting the car in neutral before you come to a stop and see if that takes care of the problem. Be careful not to put it into reverse. Do this for diagnosis, not for a cure.

Hi Doug, I put it in N and turn on the AC, the RPM increase a little. it decrease a little bit when I turn AC off. I think it is normal, right? I will check the car in moving and put it in neutral then apply the brake to see what happens tommorrow in the day time. Thank you very much.

Hi Doug, I tested it today. there was no problem if I put the car in neutral and applied the brake to have it stop fully. there was no porblem for the car if I applied the brake during its going. however, if I wanted to get a full stop, the car stalled.

I'm beginning to think it's your torque converter. It may be that the wrong transmission fluid was used, or it could be that the transmission is going out, or that the torque converter isn't functioning right. Having a VW place change your transmission filter and fluid will ensure you get the right stuff in it. I think you should have the dealer check it out. Some minor transmission problems such as a bad solenoid can lead to a completely trashed transmission. I don't know enough about automatic transmissions to tell you more.

just give the result-- it was the torque convertor problem so I had the transmission rebuilt. a lot of dollar.:( it runs good now. i even got a 30 mpg on high way. can't believe it! but i need a new master cylinder now. the bleeder on left rear brake is missing (just remain a hole there! can you believe it? and no leak at all!) so I have to send this car to a garage.:(

thank Doug for helping..