Passat cutting out

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Fri 10 Oct 2003 23:32
Passat cutting out - lucky
My friend has a VW Passat 1.8 turbo (2001) that he has had for four months. In the last six weeks he has noticed an intermittent problem. The car cuts out when the speed is reduced to around 10-20 mph i.e. when needing to brake from a higher speed. This has been happening about once or twice a week for the last six weeks. The car starts again immediately with no problems. The other problem over this period has been, in his words, "the exhaust splutters when you start and rev the engine". He also mentioned "a strange smell coming from the exhaust emissions" but it doesn't smoke. Also he has noticed "a flapping noise coming from the engine at a speed of 60 mph or more".

Any ideas as to the cause of these symptoms?

Thanks
Lucky
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Sun 12 Oct 2003 09:24
Passat cutting out - lucky
Just to add - the car is still under warranty.
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Tue 14 Oct 2003 16:05
Passat cutting out - Chris1983
Although on a Polo of 1994 vintage, I have a similar problem which has been very difficult to trace. In searching internet forums, I have come across accounts of coil failures on more modern VW's, and if you look at the following question and follow the link to Parkers, hopefully you may get a few ideas

www.honestjohn.co.uk/forum/post/index.htm?t=16328&...e

Chris
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Wed 15 Oct 2003 19:53
Passat cutting out - lucky
Thanks for the reply Chris. I have heard a lot about these coil failures on VWs.

My friend did in fact take the Passat to the main dealer the other day. Guess what - they could not find any faults. And of course, on the test run, the car did not stall at any time. However when my friend drove the car from the dealer the car cut out during the journey home!

The problem is intermittent but he is worried about the car stalling at a crucial moment. Question is why can the dealer not find a fault? I assume they have all the diagnostic equipment to detect faults. Also what should we do next - approach the main dealer and insist this is a coil failure? Would it be covered under warranty?

Lucky
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