Volkswagen Golf IV (1998 - 2004) - 03 1.9 130 tdi poor MPG

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Sat 3 Oct 2009 19:24
03 1.9 130 tdi poor MPG - badger123
hi, ive had my car into garage and no fault codes, so i started playing and found a air leak on the intercooler pipe which i fixed but it still seems poor on mpg its a estate model 53 plate with 83k on the clock if i drive it steady im getting early 40s to the gallon please any help will be much appreciated ps someone did say it could be the fuel temp senser but i dont know where to find it or if it has one

Edited by Pugugly on 03/10/2009 at 23:08

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Sat 3 Oct 2009 21:37
03 1.9 poor mpg on golf 130 tdi - craig-pd130

An IC pipe leak won't help, did you replace the pipe? It does have a fuel temp sensor, it's near the fuel filter on one of the fuel pipes.

If you haven't checked already, it is worth looking in the airbox and maybe changing the air filter, these motors suck a LOT of air.

I checked the airbox on my Passat with the same motor after 18,000 miles (air filter service interval is 40K) and I was horrified at how much debris and crud there was inside ... bits of plastic bag, feathers, grit, sand, leaves, paper ... literally handfuls of stuff. I hoovered it out and hoovered off the filter too.

Also try disconnecting and reconnecting the loom plug to the MAF sensor a few times to wipe the connector clean. VAG cars seem to be sensitive to dirty MAF connectors.

Good luck.
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Sat 3 Oct 2009 23:53
03 1.9 poor mpg on golf 130 tdi - badger123
hi mate, no i didnt replace the pipe it was the seal between the intercooler and the pipe it had new air and fuel filters 7.5k ago i will try your ideas tomoz. do you think its worth disconnecting the battery and letting it re learn its values
many thanks chris
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Sun 4 Oct 2009 10:18
03 1.9 poor mpg on golf 130 tdi - craig-pd130
Is it the type of IC pipe that pushes into the IC outlet, and is secured by a horseshoe- shaped clip? They always weep a bit of oil, the idea is that once the engine is running, the boost pressure pushes the O-ring seal hard against where it sits and seals the joins.

Might be worth putting a new spring clip on the join, they only cost pennies.

You could try disconnecting the battery for an hour, although make sure you have your radio code handy.

The only other thing I can think of is checking all of the little vacuum hoses that run round the engine, and control the variable vanes on the turbo and the EGR valve etc. Make sure they are all pushed firmly onto their mounting spigots, and that they are not rubbing / chafing anywhere, and not kinked ... all it takes is a small leak in one of those hoses and you'll get less power and less mpg.
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Sun 4 Oct 2009 11:11
03 1.9 poor mpg on golf 130 tdi - badger123
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