Also today the car kind of struggled to start and shook a bit but started nevertheless...is this a problem to do with the air mass fuel sensor, spark plugs or the fuel pressure regulator?

And it's due a service so this weekend I will put fuel injector cleaner in then change fuel, air and oil filters and I think maybe the spark plugs will need to be changed also.

It's spent a lot of money on it in the last year..new flywheel and clutch last summer and this week i had the master cylinder clutch replaced and the mecahnic who fixed the master cylinder (different one from the usual) said that theres something wrong with the flywheel!! and since the flywheel change car has always shook when I start it since then if I don't have the clutch engaged. Should I bring it to my mechanic and demand he fixes that too or what can I do?

I'm a college student with not a lot of money so I'm struggling to get by with all of this

Any help or advice at all would be very much appreciated thank you.

1. If it is a TDI it is a diesel, so won't have spark plugs. Is it diesel or petrol?
2. Shaking on start up since the flywheel and clutch replacement suggests it had a DMF and a solid flywheel was installed. How much did the parts cost?

Fuel filter change makes some sense re the symptoms and on most cars should be cheap and fairly easy to do, but it would be more likely to cause a problem at high revs. Have a look for it and consider doing it yourself.

See if you can get a see-through filter (ideally one with replacable element. Havn't been able to find the latter myself but I'm in Taiwan where things are hard to find) which will allow you to assess its condition visually in future.

You can get an idea of an opaque fuel-filters condition by back flushing it and seeing what comes out. Quite a lot of rust in my case.

Air filter is unlikely to be related to these symptoms and should only be done when the service schedule indicates, or when a restriction gauge indicates the filter is clogged. In general, air filters are changed too often..

Oil filter (and oil) change is unlikely to be related to these symptoms and should only be done when the service schedule indicates.

If you're a college student with not a lot of money running a car then you need to educate yourself.

Basic understanding and (optionally) DIY can save you A LOT of money, especially if you are in the UK.

IIRC this site is pretty good

www.howacarworks.com

I'd say its maybe the modern version of

The AA Book of The Car

which has been mentioned on here before, though if you can score a copy of that you should.

For detail and/or more ambitious jobs, get a Haynes Manual

Edited by edlithgow on 15/03/2019 at 01:46

Fuel filter change makes some sense re the symptoms and on most cars should be cheap and fairly easy to do, but it would be more likely to cause a problem at high revs. Have a look for it and consider doing it yourself.

See if you can get a see-through filter (ideally one with replacable element. Havn't been able to find the latter myself but I'm in Taiwan where things are hard to find) which will allow you to assess its condition visually in future.

You can get an idea of an opaque fuel-filters condition by back flushing it and seeing what comes out. Quite a lot of rust in my case.

Air filter is unlikely to be related to these symptoms and should only be done when the service schedule indicates, or when a restriction gauge indicates the filter is clogged. In general, air filters are changed too often..

Oil filter (and oil) change is unlikely to be related to these symptoms and should only be done when the service schedule indicates.

If you're a college student with not a lot of money running a car then you need to educate yourself.

Basic understanding and (optionally) DIY can save you A LOT of money, especially if you are in the UK.

IIRC this site is pretty good

www.howacarworks.com

I'd say its maybe the modern version of

The AA Book of The Car

which has been mentioned on here before, though if you can score a copy of that you should.

For detail and/or more ambitious jobs, get a Haynes Manual

I think the car struggling and shaking when I started it the other day (which was a different type of start from the usual flywheel problem) was because the starter motor may need to be changed

Well you were there, I wasn't, but it doesn't sound much like starter motor to me.

Chucking parts semi-randomly at this sort of thing without a diagnosis gets pricy fast.

Wouldn't cost anything to test the resistance of your glow plugs (not spark plugs) with a multimeter.

Maybe have a poke around/post here

vwdiesel.net/forum/

From a quick scan, flywheel should have new bolts / be loctited / or both (opinions seem to vary) and a stethescope / rod is suggested for trying to locate/diagnose noises

With the greatest respect, if you think a diesel car has spark plugs you would be better getting someone who knows what they are doing to solve your problems.

Well yeh. Good trick if you can do it.

Sad irony is that you have to know a bit about what you're doing to recognize when someone else does, so the people most in need of "a decent garage" are likely to be the people least able to find one.

Everyone has to start somewhere. A VAG diesel might not be the best place to start, but that's where the OP is.