96 Jetta Stalling

[suzys]

Have had a pre-owned 96 Jetta for two years. Ran great. Couple of months ago it began stalling out, sometimes not starting. When it's stalled & I try ignition it goes rrr-rrr-rrr but doesn't turn over. After letting it set for 10 minutes or so, it will turn over. Seems to stall mostly when going up or down hills, but heat of engine doesn't make a difference. Doesn't affect lights, so it's not the battery. Had the fuel pump replaced, fuel injectors cleaned, filters replaced, complete 100,000 mile tune-up, cracked radiator replaced. Made no difference. Mechanics are scratching their heads--can't find problem. Gassing up can make the problem worse. Sometimes gas-line antifreeze helps for awhile, as well as higher-test gas. Could it be that there's crud in the fuel tank? The car was gross when I bought it--gunky engine, gunky interior. I'm out of money from trying to fix this. Is there some way I can try cleaning fuel tank without paying mechanics another huge pile of money? Any thoughts??? Trapped in Manhattan.

[YSF Regina]

Hey suzys!

Any luck with this issue? I also have a 96 Jetta that has been stalling for the past couple of months...sometimes when the car is first started, sometimes after it's been running a few minutes and also when I arrive at home and pull into the garage. It doesn't seem to matter. It seems to run rough moments before it stalls and the lights will dim slightly, but a couple of times it has happened without warning. The weather has been dry and roughly -5º Celsius to +10º Celsius.

I have it in to the service department at the dealership for the second time. I had hoped they would recognize the problem right away but the problem doesn't seem to happen for them and they are totally stumped.

I know I can't contine to drive it for fear it will stall and I won't be able to start it again.

Thanks.