Mk3 vw golf - Can anyone help me with my mk3 vw golf automatic??

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Sat 31 Jan 2015 23:03
Mk3 vw golf - Can anyone help me with my mk3 vw golf automatic?? - babybutterfly
Hi guys
Can anyone help me with my car? About a month ago I went to start my car and it was dead. All the electrics came on when I turned the key but the engine wouldn't start up. Basically it was like when you try to start an automatic without having it in park first. I called the AA and after much head scratching I got my husband on the phone to him who said just bypass the ignition so it will start and I'll sort it out once she's home (he's an army mechanic).
The reverse lights stay on permanently once the car is started by bypassing the ignition so we figured it was the ignition relay switch which also controls reverse apparently. £50 later and a new switch and it made no difference, next we tried replacing the whole gear selector as we thought maybe it was the selector wasn't working properly to tell the car it's in park. We replaced that and it made no difference. We finally bit the bullet and took it to a vw dealer for a diagnostic. £70 later and more head scratching they told us the car was too old to plug into their computers for a proper reading but from the info they could get they thought it might be the multi-selector switch that sits on the top of the gearbox and tells the gear box what gear it's in. £50 later and a new switch still not working. The only thing we can think of now is the ECU needs replacing. Is there anything we are missing before we fork out for one of those too? We can't find any wiring diagrams for a mk3 auto and the Haynes manual is useless! Can anyone help please? I've only got 3 months left to figure out what's wrong before her mot which she will fail 100% with the reverse lights staying on :(
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Sat 31 Jan 2015 23:22
Mk3 vw golf - Can anyone help me with my mk3 vw golf automatic?? - Avant

You have cleaned the battery terminals haven't you?

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Sun 1 Feb 2015 09:54
Mk3 vw golf - Can anyone help me with my mk3 vw golf automatic?? - elekie&a/c doctor

On the instrument pod there should be a digital readout of the auto gear selector position.Does this work and display correctly?

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Sun 1 Feb 2015 10:45
Mk3 vw golf - Can anyone help me with my mk3 vw golf automatic?? - babybutterfly

On the instrument pod there should be a digital readout of the auto gear selector position.Does this work and display correctly?

My car doesn't have a digital display for the gears on my dashboard. All I have is temp. gage Speedo, miles counter , revs and a clock. It's not that high tech I'm afraid :(
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Sun 1 Feb 2015 15:13
Mk3 vw golf - Can anyone help me with my mk3 vw golf automatic?? - elekie&a/c doctor

This model Golf has a secondary inhibitor switch at the base of the shift lever which also incorporates the reverse switch.Has this been replaced?

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Sun 1 Feb 2015 19:11
Mk3 vw golf - Can anyone help me with my mk3 vw golf automatic?? - babybutterfly

This model Golf has a secondary inhibitor switch at the base of the shift lever which also incorporates the reverse switch.Has this been replaced?

We replaced the whole gear selector from the shift stick all the way to the cables that connect it to the gear box. If it's somewhere on those bits it's been changed.
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Sun 1 Feb 2015 20:59
Mk3 vw golf - Can anyone help me with my mk3 vw golf automatic?? - elekie&a/c doctor

You seem to covered the basics,perhaps it is a wiring or ecu fault.Possibly uneconomic to repair on this age of vehicle.If it is driveable,and the only fault is the reverse lights,then remove the bulbs,they are not part of the mot test.

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