How Do I get the fault codes out of my Jetta

[paulmckim]

On some of my older cars I was able to get the fault codes off of the dash. Is there some way to do that on my Jetta?

[ctuagent117]

just take it to autozone they should do it for free

[mars-red]

If your Jetta is OBD-I (1993-1995), then you can get the codes through the dash. Underneath your back seat should be a small plastic dongle that plugs into the OBD port in your dashboard (to the right of the ashtray, covered by a plate that slides off once the ashtray is removed). Don't panic if you can't find the dongle (most of them get lost), all it does is short together a couple of pins in the dashboard connector. Look in your Bentley manual and it will tell you which pins to short, but *BE CAREFUL*! Shorting the wrong pins can blow fuses, or even damage your ECU.

With the car running, plug in the dongle (the check engine light will instantly come on, if it wasn't already). Wait for a second, then remove the dongle. The check engine light will start flashing at you. You will get a series of short flashes one right after another, and then a pause. After the pause, the sequence will repeat itself. You want to count the number of short flashes, and that is the first digit in the fault code. Plug in the dongle again and the light will stay on solid - keep it plugged in for 2 or 3 seconds, then remove it. You will get more flashes, just like before, which will make up the second digit. Do that two more times to get all 4 digits of the first fault code. Now insert the dongle again, wait a few seconds, and remove it. You will either get more short flashes (the first digit of the next fault code), or you will get 4 *long* flashes, which indicates that there are no more fault codes.

If you start out with 4 long flashes, then that simply means there are currently no faults stored.

Again, that's only for ODB-I - if yours is OBD-II, then do *not* attempt the procedure above.

Good luck!