Hi
Im having emission problems with a 99 golf.
Brought it to fuel injection/emissions specialist.
Was charged £1250 to replace ecu, map sensor, O2 sensor and CAT.
Worked ok for a few days but has failed MOT again on emissions.
CO of 0.78 (allowable is 0.3).
Any ideas on the cause? The garage are claiming that the problem is that there is some oil getting into the system ('car is running a bit smokey'). and that the stuff the replaced is 100%.
Pulling hair out trying to get this resolved. Any advice?
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IF exhaust is smoky that means engine is burning oil either due to worn rings or valve gear,if it was smoking prior to having all the electrical side done why were you not advised that the oil will kill the cat and the lambda?
Basically the smoking wants sorting NOW oh and emmissions are 0.2 ....sorry.
Make sure no breather pipes are blocked by the way as you dont give a mileage and if high could well be.
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is there a temporary/cheap fix that will sort out the oil problem long enough to get it through the MOT?
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sorry, should have added that the milage is 75k.
Thanks
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Anyone know how much it would cost to get the worn rings fixed if that is the problem?
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Darn it -- I just lost a long post. I'll try and do it again . . .
Horrible bill. Much sympathy. Those "emissions specialists" should have tested the system thoroughly to confirm beyond doubt that the problem had been fixed, especially with a job that size.
What engine? Does it do lots of short trips? Have you checked HJ's Car-by-Car Breakdown for any clues as to what might be happening (recalls, known weaknesses, etc.)?
Have you given it an Italian tune-up? And, although no cure for major problems, the VAG fuel additive (part number G 001 700 03)could help if it's a petrol engine. It has helped my VR6 come through three successive MOTs reading zero on the CO line and very low on the HC line too.
That is, try the cheap things first, unless you are absolutely sure that the problem is more fundamental.
These may be of interest:
www.bobmckay.co.uk/p_emissions.html
which is part of
www.bobmckay.co.uk/Frame2.html
www.motuk.co.uk/
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Hi
Not familiar with the Italian tune up?????How does it go?
Regarding the fuel additive, do you have to drive a number of miles after before it works or does it work straight away?
How long befor re test should you add it to the tank?
Thanks again
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>>Assuming as oldman mentioned,you have a problem with oil control rings/valve guides or seals.this should have been looked at before replacing any electrical components,plus they said oil was getting into bores.
Says they have done what they did not need to,Italian tune up will only apply on an engine thats coked up(carboned up)no escape from oil burning,unlikely fuel additives will help either
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Steve
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To be honest it is pointless speculating what might be wrong.
Sounds like the 'specialist' tried a 'credit card fix' - i.e. bunged loads of new parts on in the hope that it would cure the problem.
You need to identify the problem properly first. I would take it to an establiished VW specialist and get them to do some basic test (compression, cylinder leak-down, etc) and take it from there. Poke and hope is not a good way to repair a modern car.
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Is the car running a bit smokey. Not good for a 1999 75K golf. If it is smokey it will not pass. Does it smoke at start up or on the over-run or smoke on the cruise. Regards Peter
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Are you sure all those things where changed for new units. Peter
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This actually makes me quite angry. These so called specialists simply stick new and very expensive parts on the car in the vain hope the problem will go away and present you with a gigantic bill. I could do that.
The whole point of a specialist is to investigate a problem and using their knowledge and a process of deduction locate the fault to a specific part/system.
If the problem is still the same after changing the ECU and other parts, i would demand my money back and ask them to replace the old parts.Then go elsewhere.
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steve.o is quite right, but when you do get it properly diagnosed and fixed you may like to enjoy the benefits of the additive anyway, because I'm pretty sure it's helping to keep my engines as clean as a whistle and, for what it's worth, my German-car-specialist mechanic also rates it (as does HJ). When I put it into my Audi, without exaggeration, it worked overnight: next day the problem had disappeared. I never stopped using it, and I do so at every fill-up. I gave a bottle to the purchaser of the Audi and advised him to keep on using it.
I share the sense of anger over your bill and the role of the "specialist" in all this. If I were you I'd get formal with them -- not angry but even. I am surprised by such a problem in a 75k VW that's obviously done sensible miles (i.e. not too few).
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Without the benefit of knowing the values of the other gases and the lambda calculation its difficult to know where the problem lies. Ordinarily a CO value of .7 with a high HC would indicate the cat has not fired up. A blocked breather or dirty oil can push CO up. You should have been given a full readout with the failure rather than just a written comment on the fail sheet. If not get the specialist to give you a printout of the car in its current state including CO%, HC ppm, CO2,O2 and the lambda calc and if possible a 'Corrected' CO% if their analyser has this facility.
Andrew
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Simplicate and add lightness!!
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Hi
Brought the car bact to the test centre and asked the superviser to retest it. It failed again but he did inform me that the cat that was fitted was a spurious cat and not suitable for the car (too small aparently).
Went back to the garage and kicked up murder. They fitted the correct type (and expected to get paid again for it!!) Waited till it was on and got results - 0.01 CO and 0.00 HC). Refused to pay for the changes and left the garage.
Seems thatthe only person i dealt with that actually knew what they were about was the test centre superviser.
Back for a retest tomorrow. Hopefully the gremlins wont get back in between now and then.
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ive never had a car with 0.00hc as thats better than air so best of luck tomorrow.
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Thank goodness for that. Well done.
A not-dissimilar story:
tinyurl.com/7soze
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