vw golf p reg - breaking down in wet weather

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Thu 7 Oct 2010 17:10
vw golf p reg - breaking down in wet weather - su

my golf breaks down in wet weather. engine just dies buts after 10-20 minutes it starts again. it has been in to a garage several times but over £300 later they still cannot find the problem. It is perfectly fine in dry weather. Anybody had similar problem?

Edited by su on 07/10/2010 at 17:11

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Tue 12 Oct 2010 09:58
vw golf p reg - breaking down in wet weather - ggh1

Check your ignition coil for hairline cracks and the wiring insulation at the head of the crankshalf sensor.

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Thu 14 Oct 2010 17:25
vw golf p reg - breaking down in wet weather - Stropley

Hi - coil is a good shout. You can test it by putting water in one of those spray bottles and spraying the coil with the engine running - if you can see it tracking or the engine misfires that's your problem.

You didn't say what the garage spent the £300 on. Coil is normally the first thing they'd change on Golfs. I know RAC men that always carry one.

Crank position sensors do go on these but aren't normally affected by moisture as the voltage is tiny.

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Fri 15 Oct 2010 01:38
vw golf p reg - breaking down in wet weather - happy polo

I had a similar problem with a very old Nova, which I seem to recall was helped dramatically by a liberal dose of WD40 before heading out!

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Fri 15 Oct 2010 02:42
vw golf p reg - breaking down in wet weather - 1litregolfeater

I was going to say WD40 but you beat me to it.

Sometimes, if you turn all the lights off and watch at night with the engine running, you can see where the voltage is tracking.

You may need to remove some plastic bits to observe it.

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Sat 6 Nov 2010 23:51
vw golf p reg - breaking down in wet weather - su

1litregolfeater & happy polo-thank you for taking time to help. I will let you know how i get on. Su

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Sat 6 Nov 2010 23:46
vw golf p reg - breaking down in wet weather - su

Stropley-thank you for taking time to help. I will let you know how i get on. Su

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Sat 6 Nov 2010 23:43
vw golf p reg - breaking down in wet weather - su

ggh1 - thank you for taking time to help. I have been poorly so haven't been able to test yr suggestion but will try it after I've bought a golf manual (not sure where coil is but will find it). will let you know how get on. Su

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Sun 7 Nov 2010 15:37
vw golf p reg - breaking down in wet weather - ggh1

My Golf 3, P reg, 2L, AGG engine has suffered from both a cracked coil and crankshalf sensor wiring insulation faults, both faults on this age of engine are very common. The coil is mounted at the top of the engine bay baulkhead/firewall abouve the ABS unit where it is very easy to check by mist spraying with water. The crankshalf sensor is almost impossible to see being fixed on the forward face of the cylinder block behind the oil filter. The sensor wiring starts at the connector block mounted on top of the front engine mounting and should then run downwards next to the oil dipstick tube.

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