red_baron

Oil's fine... really clean actually. The only steam from the exhaust is on start up until the engine gets up to temperature. I noticed today (0.5 litres in 20 miles!) that the cap doesn't seem to fit properly... there's a bit of staining around the top of the sphere too but could it lose this much just as steam through the cap? Its only on the final quarter-turn that it seems to seat level. Gettin a new one tomorrow from VW so I'll see what a difference that makes. I'll hopefully get time to take a look under the car this weekend with the engine running too. Fingers crossed!

Mine seems to be running ok... in fact its running the best it ever has. I may try a new cap from the stealers tomorrow in case the GSF one is a bit rubbish

I'm having a bit of an issue at the moment with my 93 VR6 losing water from the expansion tank at a bit of an alarming rate... about 0.5 litres every 40 miles or so. The expansion tank is brand new (fitted about 3 weeks ago) - it was fitted because it seemed to be split around the central line and was losing water!. There's no evidence of any water leaking from anywhere inside the engine bay (pipes / flanges / radiator etc.) and there's no water on the floor when its been parked up overnight. I thought it might be the heater matrix however there's no evidence of any damp in either footwell and it even loses water with the heater controls set to cold. The oil's really clean and there's no mayonnaise at all. The cap on the tank is a blue one but from GSF car parts - about 6 months old. Any thoughts anyone?

The good news is that I've found our what's been causing the lambda sensor issues... and its not the lambda sensor side of things luckily. The bad news is that the plug going into the connector on the other side of the steel plate from where the senser cable plugs in is absolutely bu99ered! I've had to use my best surgical skills to do a temporary fix - which involved cutting the plug off, using 4 chocolate-box connectors, some spare wire and 4 small spade connectors on to the terminals on the connector. Not sure how long this will last but I don't really know what else to do. The picture below shows the plug now I've removed it. The red & brown wires were bare in places and so badly frayed that they were touching each other (hence the open-circuit or short fault on VAG-COM then!). The yellow wire had completely broken off (not sure what this does but I'm sure it being broken is not good) and the white wire looked as though it had been fixed once before. I've taken it for a drive and there were no error codes logged at all. Phew. Still have an issue with smoke however... just after I set off there was quite a lot coming from the air box side of the engine. I think this might be one or two drops of oil dripping onto the exhaust manifold - the inside of my air intake ducting is a bit oily... should I be worried (I've put a jubilee clip on the end of the offending pipe to try and stop the drips)?

Took the car for a spin today and after a short journey (to buy petrol as she was thirsty) I got the old smell of burning and some smoke from under the bonnet (I didn't see any but my Dad reckons he did). When I got back I wired it up to VAG-COM again and had the fault code "00525 - Oxygen Sensor (G39) 03-10 - No Signal - Intermittent" Is this the lambda sensor? Is the one on sale at vwspares (http://www.vwspares.co.uk/product_info. ... ts_id=2107) the correct one to go for?

There's a connector that's visible on top of the LH front injector (just visible behind inlet manifold) - sorry I'm a bit ignorant as to the injector number. He removed that and found that the wires were a bit loose so tightened everything up. Seems to have cleared that fault

To be honest I'm not sure which wires he crimped... He did point at something but I shall ask the question and let you know!

Well... after huge amounts of head-scratching and cross-referencing with the electronic parts guide yesterday evening I found an anomaly. The three ports on the RH front of the engine are colour-coded – from right to left they are yellow (temp gauge sender unit), blue (temperature sensor) and black (thermo-switch for switching off fan). The plugs are colour-coded in the same way, however some numpty hadn’t plugged them in correctly – the yellow one was fine but the black and the blue ones were the wrong way around, hence the open circuit or short that the VAG-COM was picking up! Now they’re plugged in correctly there’s no fault. I’m still concerned that the lambda probe was being flagged up as an intermittent fault, but it’s not any more. It only appeared however after a 1-2 mile drive (after clearing the fault first) so tomorrow’s exercise is to see what happens after I’ve taken it for a spin. If it is faulty, is it easy enough to replace? The other thing I did tonight was look at the engine water temp using VAG-COM. As far as I can see, my temperature gauge is giving me a reading around 5 degrees below the actual water temperature. The cooling fan cuts in at 84 degress (according to VAG-COM not the gauge), this sounds a bit low to me but is it correct? I think she's almost back to full health! :lol: Oh, and the injector error seems to have cleared itself after my Dad re-crimped the wires as they were looking a bit loose.

p.s. I think 01249 relates to a problem with injector number 1 (although this hasn't reappeared after the first time I did the diagnostics, worryingly). 00525 is a problem with the lambda sensor - "00525 029 – Lambda Probe G39 Short Circuit To Earth" (taken from another bit of the forum).

Well, the inlet manifold is now securely held in place. There's still a smell of burning knocking around but I'm putting that down to the large amount of instant-gasket that appears to have been used during the "repairs" (my Dad reckons he saw smoke coming from the o/s front of the bonnet when he took it for a drive yesterday - bad enough to pull-over). Everything seemed to be fine today until I drive home from work when I was getting an intermittent misfire - at times it was really noticable, but most of the time it was fine and pulling as good as ever. I've managed to read the fault codes this evening, however the (borrowed) software isn't properly registered so not all the codes came up. After leaving the car standing for about 3 hours after coming back from work, there were 3 codes logged: 00522 - Engine Coolant Temperature Sensor (G62) 30-00 - Open or Short to B+ 01249 - Shareware Version. To Decode all DTCs 31-10 - Please Register/Activate - Intermittent 00525 - Shareware Version. To Decode all DTCs 03-10 - Please Register/Activate - Intermittent After clearing the codes, I end up with just the first one - the 00522 one. I drove it for about 1.5 miles and re-read the faults - this time I got 2 codes: 00522 - Engine Coolant Temperature Sensor (G62) 30-00 - Open or Short to B+ 00525 - Shareware Version. To Decode all DTCs 03-10 - Please Register/Activate - Intermittent After clearing the codes again, I still keep getting the same one code - 00522. Is the engine coolant temperature sensor the same as the in-radiator temperature sensor? If it is, this was replaced during the "repairs" (I supplied the part). Anyone know what "B+" refers to regarding the short or open circuit? Could I have been supplied with the wrong sensor? As ever, any help gratefully received!

Just had an update from red_baron HQ (my Dad)... the earthing plate seems ok - everything is securely attached to it. He's noticed something else though that's a little more serious... the inlet manifold is held on with only 2 out of 5 bolts. I suppose this could cause the starting issues... especially the wheezing?

Well, today's a bit of a write-off (Christmas do last night - feeling slightly delicate! :pukeright: ) so my Dad's going to take a look tomorrow. Failing that I'll (nervously) drive it to work on Tuesday and Reggit's kindly offered to do a VAG-COM on it. Supercharged - what sensor is it that they might have damaged?

Not sure... Barry is the guy on the desk (he seems to know what he's on about but is really arrogant - particulatly when my tax disc had gone missing) and I think the boss is a bloke called Mark. Mark rang me last Monday after I'd sent the fax over to complain about the standard of the work and the broken (and misplaced) bits.

I understand taking it back to them (DubSport in Wigan) would make the most sense, however I've got absolutely no confidence sending it back to them to sort it out. At the moment, once it starts, it seems to run ok. Its just getting the thing to start in the first place that's the issue... I've had a more detailed look today to see if I can find out what the problems are. I've sussed out that the oil temperature gauge sender unit has broken (it looks like a sod to replace as there's no room!), but as for the starting issues... I haven't got a clue. One of the Forum members has said he'll run Vag-Com on it on Tuesday to see if any errors come up - cheers Reggit. Sometimes it starts as though the battery is going flat (it isn't however) and makes a deep "wheezing" sound until it fires. Other times it just wheezes and once it just clicked as though something was shorting out. On that occasion, the alarm/immobiliser wouldn't turn off and it kept beeping at me! I took it to DubSport as they have been recommended by loads of people and they do a lot of cars that get featured in magazines. The work wasn't cheap, but there are simple things wrong like some bolts are missing from the ignition lead holder (the black moulding on the top of the engine), a wiring loom has appeared between the back of the cooling fans and the block (in fact one of the connectors on the loom is almost touching the fan blades) - haven't a clue where it should go, but there are 2 clips attached to some of the wires that look like they should clip to a 40mm hose... I suppose all I can do is wait for the outcome of the diagnostics and then take it further.

Anyone who's seen my other thread in the suppliers bit (http://www.the-corrado.net/.archive/forum/viewtopic.php?t=50283) will know I've been having one or two problems with my VR6 post timing chain / clutch replacement. The car cut out on me this evening on the way home from work. When I tried to restart it, it wouldn't fire and sounded awful as it was turning. I tried about 8 or nine times to get it going, but in the end plumped for the AA man. When he arrived (after about an hour) hey-presto, it started first time. (Since the chains were changed, I'm having issues with the switch between cold and hot running. At start up the revs are around 950rpm and when warm they are about 600 - nothing unusual there, apart from the change between the two. Instead of a gradual drop in revs, the drop comes all at once.) Once I got going again, I had no speedo - the spoiler was also stuck half-way up. I pulled over again - luckily Mr. AA was just behind me so he messed around with some of the wiring looms (the looms are a mess since it came back from having the chains done) and this time everything seemes ok. During the drive home the speedo was a bit erratic - mainly showing the correct speed, but occasionally dropping and then rising again. I'm going to try and get the ECU read to see if any faults have been logged - I'm also going to try and find out the correct positions for most of the wiring looms this weekend. Anyone know what could have happened? Cheers, Ian

At last I've driven it!! Had a slight problem as the dust guard on the passenger side front wheel had mysteriously bent itself so that it was touching the inside of the disc. A quick adjustment (not - it was p!ssing it down and really dark :lol: ) and everything seems to be fine. As for the repairs - the black ignition lead holder is now seated where it should be - the engine cover looks ok, but its a bit yellow. I've just been and rubbed it with white spirit to see if it cleans up (it smells a bit oily), but as its dark, I'll have to wait until tomorrow to see what colour it now is (my money's still on yellow!) There's a wiring loom that appears to be floating where it shouldn't be between the block and the fans - I might post some piccies to see if anyone can tell me where it should go - failing that I'll just ignore it for the time being! I seem to have an issue with the oil temperature readout though :( . All the other info appears ok (mpg, average mph, outside temp etc.) but there's no oil temperature reading, I just get ---. I'm thinking that the obvious problem is that the sensor has either broken or hasn't been refitted properly. Can anyone tell me where it is? Other than that, to prevent any future issues with the tax disc and holder falling behind the dashboard I have indeed invested in a brand-new top of the range holder. I've even positioned it at the top of the screen so that when it falls off again it'll simply fall onto the floor! At least the rattly chains have disappeared - it sounds sweet :D (and it doesn't crunch into 3rd gear any more).

Well... had a phone call off the manager this afternoon. Apparently, my tax disc, in its holder, had fallen off the windscreen and ended up behind the dashboard. In his words "it looked like it had been there for a long time" (well, stone me I must have been driving around illegally for ages in that case). Alternatively, it must just have been sheer coincidence that the tax disc and holder chose this week to fall off the windscreen and down the tiniest of gaps to end up behind the dashboard. One of his lads apparently spent 2 whole hours fishing it out with a piece of wire - they even managed to find one of the old tax discs down there too (maybe that's because the last 5 discs were in the holder too!) As for the engine cover, he's put a replacement one on. I'm imagining that this has come from another C in the garage, as he's got three in at the moment and won't have had time to get one from VW. Either that or its still broken but seated properly so that the crack doesn't show (won't get to see the car until tomorrow evening - my Dad's collecting it tomorrow day under strict insructions to leave the car with them again if anything's still wrong). As for the windscreen wipers it remains a mystery... I'll be scrutinising it tomorrow night when (or if) it comes back. Fingers crossed.

Thanks for all your support everyone... martyjmcfly, I'll let you tomorrow if that's ok as I want to give them a chance to sort things. Normally I do everything myself and I take pride in doing things properly (my Dad drilled this into me from a young age). With it being something as involved as the timing chains / clutch, I thought I'd let the experts do it... what a mistake to make! I've faxed the garage this afternoon (broke the golden rule and went into work on a Sunday to do it!), so we'll see what happens. If the tax disc doesn't turn up I'm going to get the Police involved anyway - its just a joke.

My car's just been in with a very reputable VW specialist here in the North to have a new clutch and new timing chains fitted... at the same time I've had new oil seals, gaskets & a new auxiliary water pump fitted. Its been in since Tuesday and I finally had the call today to go and pick it up. Made the trip over there, saw the car parked up and very promptly (after asking if everything was ok now) handed over over a grand for the work done. Got in the car... no tax disc, even no tax disc holder. There's a mark on the windscreen where it used to be, but no evidence of either in the car at all. Then there's the windscreen wipers... they have obviously been removed and refitted in a different position (I refitted them myself last weekend and made sure they were in the right place). Opened the bonnet - the black plastic moulding holding the ignition leads in place is not seated properly, and the silver/grey plastic moulding on the top of the engine (the one with the cut out for the oil filler cap) has a massive crack in it. I confronted the guys in the garage and they didn't seem to care in all honesty, first saying that they've not removed the tax disc and therefore I must have left it with them last tuesday with no tax disc or holder (I can assure everyone I didn't) - then they said I'd be ok driving it home as the car's taxed anyway... even without a tax disc! I'm a bit p!ssed off that I paid them without looking over the car first, but when a company has so much publicity as this one does, I just assumed everything would be ok. I left the car with them cos I want everything sorted. The boss isn't in till Monday morning so I have to wait until he calls me to get things sorted out. I'm going to fax them tomorrow outlining all the issues, but I can see it being a battle on Monday to get them to admit to anything... let alone resolving anything... anyone got any suggestions? Cheers, ian

I should have kept my mouth shut... jacked the car up today on the drivers side to fit new brakes - the heavens opened and my passenger side footwell was soaking wet! With the brakes on and the car back on the level, the leak seems to have stopped :scratch: I'll do some more tests tomorrow and see what happens... puzzling!

I think its flat... its a bu99er to put the wheel on though cos everything moves about!

Do you reckon it'll be ok then without the screw? The garage that fitted the previous discs (must be a few years ago) obviously sheared the screw and it seems to have been ok for a few years without the screw holding the disc... until recently when on a RH turn the brakes make a really bad squealing noise...

I've finally got round to changing the front discs & pads as I'm off work for a couple of weeks... I knew that the near side countersunk location screw (the one that secures the disc in place) had sheared and the plan was to remove it and put a new one in. Finally managed to get the disc & caliper off, but removing the remains of the location screw was a nightmare. To cut a long story short, I had to drill the screw out and retap the hole. Unfortunately I retapped the hole in a slightly different position, meaning that it doesn't align properly (the original screw would not come out). Seeing as though the screw wasn't doing anything previously (because the head had sheared off), and although its a pain getting the wheel back on without the disc secured properly, is it ok without the screw? Surely the 5 wheel bolts will hold it in place?

Oh my god... its YOU that's buying up all the parts from VW then! :wink: Sounds like you've got a bit more work on than me at the mo... good luck with everything

I know how you feel. My every day car is in need of several new bits and pieces - at least its French so it'll just keep going until something eventually falls off (my money's on the exhaust, but I'm ignoring it for now)! Keep a look out on eBay or on the for sale bit of the forum... you never know what will crop up