Engine starts, then quickly dies

[I_love_orange]

I have a 2001 turbo with a stick shift. Sometimes the engine turns over to start, then instantly dies out, almost as if I had taken my foot off the clutch. This usually happens twice, then the engine will stay started on the third try. It only started happening in December when the weather turned colder. As I live in Sacramento, CA it doesn't get too cold---lowest around 32, but this has happened when the temperatures were in the 50s. Oh, my tank has been at least half full of gas each time.

[jackfrost]

a couple of things i would check

have you had your car in for the coilpack recall?

the other have you replaced the MAF, any check engine light?

your probably going to have to get the car scanned and see if it is having any trouble codes pop up. if you can get them and post them here and im sure we can help much better.

[I_love_orange]

Don't know what a coilpack or Maf are, but I will definitely find out when I take her in for an oil change on Monday.Thanks!

[FarrisK]

Originally Posted by I_love_orange

Don't know what a coilpack or Maf are, but I will definitely find out when I take her in for an oil change on Monday.Thanks!

Coilpacks: What make the spark plug spark in a 1.8T. These have been known to have hairline cracks form, which cause the spark plugs to cease firing.

MAF: Mass air flow sensor, which tells the on board computer how much fuel to push through the fuel injectors. If this is bad, the computer isn't sure how much fuel to push, and could kill it.

I'm not the best at diagnosing the 1.8T stuff, but I don't think it's either of those. My guess is the Immobilizer Chip, which tells the computer that you have a valid key.

[FallinApartBoy]

i would guess the key too. if you have another key i would switch to it.