KR ign prob...bad power loss/misfire under load

[steveo29 0]

16v golf gti 1989....been running fine , today i went out and after 1 mile i felt a sudden loss of power for a second and then it was back to normal, as i got further it got to be a random bad misfire/80% power loss. the car didnt stall and would idle normaly, the fault was worse the bigger the load you put on the car

 

while it was doing this the rev counter kept falling to 0 and generaly going mad...im not too clued up on ign related problems but does that point to a hall sender/coil prob?

 

fwiw i yanked on the dist connector and checked the ecu pulg...all appeared fine , no corrosion etc

[Mave 0]

Maybe there's some oil got into the dizzy cap?

 

Ignition leads? Distributor? Spark plugs?

 

Just a few.

[Toad 0]

Probably the distributor, wiring, or hall sender inside it, if the rev counter is dying too. Or could be a general electrical fault. Might be worth checking the battery connections and the earths.

[steveo29 0]

so does the rev counter get fed from the dist??

[Toad 0]

yeah, it's off one of the three wires that goes into the distributor.

[Crasher 3]

I think Toad is probably spot on, change the dizzy for a genuine VW exchange unit 051 905 237 X, £93.38 inc. VAT.

[steveo29 0]

i was thinking it probably was the distributer....money is really tight at the moment, is there a way i can be sure that the fault??

 

anyone tried a ebay distributer? ive seen them new @ £50 ish

[Mave 0]

steveo29, I got one off eBay for £50, does the job fine.

[steveo29 0]

steveo29, I got one off eBay for £50, does the job fine.

 

is it bosch branded? any signs of it being cheap looking? how long have you ran it?

 

im up for a bargain, but not if its gona die in 18 months

[Mave 0]

Ran it for months now, I'll go take a look in a bit to see if it's got Bosch on it or any markings.

[steveo29 0]

okay thanks mav3 dont spose you remeber the seller?? cant see any on at the moment

 

anyone know if theres a rebuilt kit for the hall sender?

[Crasher 3]

What you describe is more than likely the hall sender so if the dizzy isn't full of oil and you are reasonably skilled, you can change the hall sender itself. From VW this is more than a complete distributor but from GSF it is quite sensibly priced. The part number is 052 998 065. When you change the hall sender it is quite easy to damage the distributor permanently and before you take you must make a note of the orientation of the chopper wheel and drive gear as the latter is offset. I would advise you to use the genuine VW exchange distributor as it comes compete with a cap, rotor and a two year guarantee but if the hall sender is half the price and you can fit it yourself, it may be worth the saving to you.

 

Steve

[Mave 0]

steveo29, nah no markings from what I can see, don't fancy taking it off though! Can't remember the username on eBay sorry.

 

Recommend buying a new one though, just in case.

[davidwort 0]

What you describe is more than likely the hall sender...

 

I was always under the impression that a bad hall sender would result in a non starter, no signal, so no spark produced. If the problem really was load related would the hall sender be the culprit or involved?

[steveo29 0]

im assuming mine is about to fail completely and or weak....so im getting a weak spark thats enough to let the car idle but not much more

[Bups 0]

I'd borrow one from a friend to make sure it is definately that 1st, once you determine the fault and do a definate repair..

[DanVW 0]

SteveO,

 

I had the exact same problem on my 89 16v GTI, turns out one of the (3) Dizzy cables had lost part of the insulation and was shorting out to earth on the bodywork, the result was that the car would idle just fine but would stall as soon as you put any load on the engine. I see you have been looking in this area but before you go changing bits give those cables a really good eyeball right the way back into the loom!

 

Cheers

 

Dan