sam2.0 10 Posted January 9, 2012 A fried was following me earlier and said that my car smelt like it was running rich. I'm also getting bad mpg. How to I tell if this is the case? Car is standard. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Critical_Mass 10 Posted January 9, 2012 What engine mate? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Wullie 1 Posted January 9, 2012 Quick check would be to pull out the plugs and have a look at them. They should be a light brownish colour at the tip. If the are black and sooty it indicates a rich mixture. Not conclusive by any means but a good quick guide. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sam2.0 10 Posted January 9, 2012 Car is a 2.0 16v Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Critical_Mass 10 Posted January 9, 2012 The valvers have a cold start valve dont they, it could be stuck open? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sam2.0 10 Posted January 9, 2012 Would that cause it to struggle to start sometimes? It tends to die if I don't give it some revs on start up Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
elliott 10 Posted January 9, 2012 The 16v is famous for it, does it start fine when cold and struggle when hot? Or is it hard to start all the time? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sam2.0 10 Posted January 9, 2012 It's hard to start when cold. Fine when warm Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Critical_Mass 10 Posted January 9, 2012 Not the cold start valve then Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sam2.0 10 Posted January 9, 2012 From what I've just read, it well could be. Is it worth checking it? Where is it? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
elliott 10 Posted January 9, 2012 It's on the right hand side next to the isv. It has a blue connecter I think but doesn't sound like your problem. Check the wiring around the throttle body, there is a connector on the underside. A scan with vag com might be needed and would save you time and money. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sam2.0 10 Posted January 9, 2012 Any suggestions what vag com to buy? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
elliott 10 Posted January 9, 2012 The software is free to download and the cable should cost no more than a tenner from ebay. It's a blue usb cable and depending on the age of your car you'll also need the 2+2 adaptor. It's not just as easy to plug and scan the valver but it's possible once you know how. If you get the correct cables I'm more than happy to help. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sam2.0 10 Posted January 10, 2012 Is it worth getting one of these for ease of use? http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/VAG-Diagnostic-Fault-Reader-Car-Code-Scanner-OBD-OBD2-/120774180100?pt=UK_Diagnostic_Tools_Equipment&hash=item1c1eb3bd04 Or just grabbing the standard cable and a 2+2 (they are so cheap...) http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/VAG-USB-DIAGNOSTIC-CABLE-409-1-OBD2-II-LEAD-VAG-COM-/330399696070?pt=UK_Diagnostic_Tools_Equipment&hash=item4ced5b44c6 My car is a late 1995 (N) Will it need the 2+2? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
<neil> 10 Posted January 10, 2012 I'm running rich at the moment too - one of my mates was cycling behind me one day and nearly suffocated I think My plugs are clean though and I seem to get good mpg on long runs, just very poor around town. Useful to know about the cold start valve - I'll check that out. Was disappointed to learn that my KR won't work with VAG-COM - would have made diagnosing a bit easier! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
elliott 10 Posted January 10, 2012 Is it worth getting one of these for ease of use? http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/VAG-Diagnostic-Fault-Reader-Car-Code-Scanner-OBD-OBD2-/120774180100?pt=UK_Diagnostic_Tools_Equipment&hash=item1c1eb3bd04 Or just grabbing the standard cable and a 2+2 (they are so cheap...) http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/VAG-USB-DIAGNOSTIC-CABLE-409-1-OBD2-II-LEAD-VAG-COM-/330399696070?pt=UK_Diagnostic_Tools_Equipment&hash=item4ced5b44c6 My car is a late 1995 (N) Will it need the 2+2? I've never used the reader but have had no bad experiences with the cheap blue cable, You'll need a laptop to hand for the usb cable and i know you can adjust baud rates and latency really easily on the laptop however i'm unsure what the reader is capable of. An N reg corrado wouldn't need the adapter but to double check just unclip the gear stick surround and have a look. http://the-corrado.net/showthread.php?4948-VAG-COM-scanning-amp-help ---------- Post added at 12:42 PM ---------- Previous post was at 12:36 PM ---------- [quote=;766906]I'm running rich at the moment too - one of my mates was cycling behind me one day and nearly suffocated I think My plugs are clean though and I seem to get good mpg on long runs, just very poor around town. Useful to know about the cold start valve - I'll check that out. Was disappointed to learn that my KR won't work with VAG-COM - would have made diagnosing a bit easier! Yeah the kr has no obd so a good tune up is all you'lll need. I had a sirocco with k-jet many years ago and i remember something about a fuel mixture adjustment screw on the air/fuel meter but it was many years ago. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sam2.0 10 Posted January 10, 2012 Cable ordered. Does the limited software version have the ability to read codes? What one am I downloading? http://www.ross-tech.com/vcds/download/ Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
elliott 10 Posted January 10, 2012 Yeah that's the website, you want the free lite version for dumb interfaces. It'll give you the codes but you'll need to look up what some of them mean. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Kevin Bacon 5 Posted January 10, 2012 Back in my 16V days, only 1 of two things caused sluggish cold starting: 1) Jammed ISV 2) Non functioning Cold start valve Hot starting was fine since the cold start valve only runs for a few seconds whilst cranking and is, IIRC, governed by the "thermotime switch" bolted to the cyl head? VW engines, in my experience, do like a massive slug of fuel for the first 10-20 crank turns. Without that initial chunk of motion potion from cold, they struggle. IIRC the earth for the cold start injector goes to a shared location near the battery and that used to corrode up on mine. Well, MK2 at least, dunno if corrados are the same. And the standard fix for the ISV was to whack it with a blunt object kept in the glovebox. Yes officer, that hammer really is for helping to start my engine :D And yep, the 3mm allen key metering head adjustment is key to valvers. They like to be tuned to idle at 2% CO and then the rest of the fuel range is taken care of too. Again, from my MK2 days. Things may be different in corrado land. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sam2.0 10 Posted January 11, 2012 So, I just tried using it and got a error. It found the cable on the com port, but then wouldn't communicate. I went to turn the car off and back on and now my battery is flat! I can't blame the cable (yet) as I knew my battery was temperamental. But, before I spend £50 on a new battery, whats the best way to test if there is a short draining the battery? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
elliott 10 Posted January 11, 2012 Something seriously wrong if the battery goes flat that quickly? You don't need the car running to be able to read the ecu. Don't do a full scan, just select the module you want. Only 2 anyhow, abs or engine and to do the engine you'll need to change the baud rate to 4800 and then do the ignition on while trying to connect or else you'll just get an error. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sam2.0 10 Posted January 11, 2012 Ah thanks, I didnt change any settings. Gave up when the battery went! It's a pre existing problem, it's go flat after a month as it mainly does shorter journeys, but I still think there is a short or a dodgy battery Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
elliott 10 Posted January 11, 2012 Short journeys and not used daily will always give you problems, especially in the winter. Try scanning the abs first, if it works then all you'll need to do is change the baud and do the ignition trick to scan the engine :) Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
odub 0 Posted January 11, 2012 i've had no end of problems with my 2.0 16v most of which was caused by the lamda sensor in the exhaust and then confused by replacing with a cheapish one (£30 odd). Moral of the story is use decent parts either VW or bosch. a fair bit more expensive but cheaper in the long run. I'd also run the car in to a descent garage to get the codes read. my local vw did this for no charge. good luck Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sam2.0 10 Posted February 15, 2012 Progress: My alternator is fooked. So thats why it kept dying. I've got some pics of my sparks [ATTACH=CONFIG]52061[/ATTACH] I've replaced the dizzy and rotor arm recently and its not helped the start up. What else do I check? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
