At wits end..

[Oh Randi]

Was going to post in the 1.8 forum, but it seems like a lot of other people are having electrical problems and are posting them here..

OK, so, my car has been in the shop TWICE now for a problem and they can't figure out what's causing it. Here's what happens:

Last fall, probably around October, my car started dying almost overnight. As in, I'd have to jump the car, drive it around for a while, and it would be fine. But when I'd leave it overnight, it wouldn't start in the morning. Now, I know what you're thinking. Battery and/or alternator. Nope. Both have been replaced, and it still happens. The battery and alternator both passed load tests just fine. The shop looked for a drain but couldn't find one. Here's where it gets weird. The weather got colder, and it stopped happening. it didn't happen again for MONTHS. But then, of course, March comes around with it's warm weather, and it starts dying again! WTF! Exact same problem as before. Back to the shop. Still can't find a drain.

I'm SO frustrated. I'm tired of having to jump my car every time I want to go somewhere. I was just wondering if anyone on here had a similar problem. Because I'm running out of options. Right now, we're looking at replacing the ENTIRE wiring harness. not sure how much time is involved with that.. I have a job and can't be without a car for long.

Here's a couple random things that might help determine what's wrong with it.

1.) My car doesn't realize when the passenger door is open. It thinks it's closed all the time, so I don't think that would cause a drain since none of the lights come on when it's open.

2.) My car FRIES headlights. but only the one on the passenger side (luckily, since that one's easier to change) I go through 2 or more headlights a month. They're not even the silverstar ones that burn out easily. They're supposed to last a long time. Sometimes it'll go out, and I'll kick or hit it and it'll turn back on but eventually burns out. The wiring in the headlights is SHOT. As in, the coating is just falling off. I'm worried that's happening with the rest of the wiring.. I don't want my car to burst into flames! I think it's the wiring because my passenger side tail light doesn't work sometimes. Just the indicator, because the light still works, but doesn't light up when I hit the brakes.

God, my car is a mess of problems. I hate electrical stuff. So much.

I'll add more later if I think of anything.. Any help or suggestions would be appreciated.

[DZLBUG]

Hmmm...coolant migration?

Pull the connector off the coolant reservoir and take a look at it. If its wet with coolant or has pink crusties...you've got big problems.

If not, then you might have two separate issues going on...whatever is causing the lighting oddities (the pass. door issue is probably just the microswitch) and possibly a bad ground that is causing the starting issues. When it won't start, is everything completely dead? Or do you still have electrical power for lights etc until you try cranking? If so, take a careful look at the ground points under the battery tray and the cables/connections to the starter.

[FarrisK]

Here's a test to find out where the draw on the system is:

You'll need a multimeter (with current (Amps)) and a helper.

Hook the multimeter in series with the positive battery lead. (Black wire from multimeter goes to positive battery terminal, red wire from multimeter goes to positive wire from car) The helper will need to stand at the multimeter (set to current mode) and watch what the current does as you start pulling fuses ONE BY ONE with the key out of the ignition and the interior dome light off (because the driver door will have to be open to pull the fuses).

One or more of the fuses should cause a dramatic reduction in current. Those should give you an idea of where the draw is.

Other than that, I'm not sure what else to do.

[D2Beetle]

Just curious, if your statement is accurate... "The wiring in the headlights is SHOT. As in, the coating is just falling off..."

... if it were me, I would fix these issues before I started looking for unexplained electrical problems; on the other hand, I have read about problems with the secondary (electric) water pump running when it should not.

[Oh Randi]

Originally Posted by DZLBUG

Hmmm...coolant migration?

Pull the connector off the coolant reservoir and take a look at it. If its wet with coolant or has pink crusties...you've got big problems.

If not, then you might have two separate issues going on...whatever is causing the lighting oddities (the pass. door issue is probably just the microswitch) and possibly a bad ground that is causing the starting issues. When it won't start, is everything completely dead? Or do you still have electrical power for lights etc until you try cranking? If so, take a careful look at the ground points under the battery tray and the cables/connections to the starter.

I'll check the coolant reservoir in the morning..

It's not completely dead, unless I haven't driven it in days. Usually, it tries to start but doesn't have enough power to do so. One time, it even started, then died and didn't have enough to start again. That sucked. haha. How would I look at the ground points under the battery? Get it up on a lift? What should I look for? My boyfriend works at a dealership so I have access to a lift if that would make it easier..

Originally Posted by FarrisK

Here's a test to find out where the draw on the system is:

You'll need a multimeter (with current (Amps)) and a helper.

Hook the multimeter in series with the positive battery lead. (Black wire from multimeter goes to positive battery terminal, red wire from multimeter goes to positive wire from car) The helper will need to stand at the multimeter (set to current mode) and watch what the current does as you start pulling fuses ONE BY ONE with the key out of the ignition and the interior dome light off (because the driver door will have to be open to pull the fuses).

One or more of the fuses should cause a dramatic reduction in current. Those should give you an idea of where the draw is.

Other than that, I'm not sure what else to do.

The shop says they checked for drains, but I'm thinking I should go ahead and try myself. Should I also check the ones on the battery fuse box? is it ok to pull those or no?

Originally Posted by D2Beetle

Just curious, if your statement is accurate... "The wiring in the headlights is SHOT. As in, the coating is just falling off..."

... if it were me, I would fix these issues before I started looking for unexplained electrical problems; on the other hand, I have read about problems with the secondary (electric) water pump running when it should not.

I covered the wires as much as I could with electrical tape, and I'm not sure what else to do about that..

I haven't thought of the secondary water pump.. perhaps that's something I should look into.



Thanks for the feedback, guys. I really appreciate it. I'll check into everything you guys have suggested. Keep 'em coming. My car's got major issues

[D2Beetle]

Originally Posted by Oh Randi

...
I covered the wires as much as I could with electrical tape, and I'm not sure what else to do about that...

For a quick temporary fix that works, but at some point you are going to have to cut the bad portion of the wire out and splice it with good wire.

[Oh Randi]

Just an update, still battling this issue. However, I had an epiphany at work the other night.

1.) My car only dies when it's hot out.
2.) I've always heard a faint clicking and a noise like trickling water. Sounded like it was coming from the alternator, but they don't make that noise, so I forgot about it.
Then I realized what was right next to the alternator...

MY AUXILLARY WATER PUMP.

*headsplode*

duh.

This kind of sheds light on what the problem might be. I remember I had one of my fans replaced shortly before this started happening. Don't know if that's relevant or not.. but anyway, I think there's some sort of sensor that's gone bad but not completely shot because my car isn't throwing any codes. I think my secondary water pump doesn't know when to shut off, so it runs all night, draining my battery. Now, I replaced my battery yesterday right after I thought of this, since it wouldn't hold a charge for even 3 minutes. It hasn't died yet, but the drain typically took a while to kill my battery enough to where it wouldn't start.

Bottom line, does anyone know of a sensor that could've gone bad? I also noticed my blue light doesn't come on when I start my car anymore, but randomly comes on after I've been driving for 20 minutes or so. Could that have something to do with it?
or maybe a circuit board for one of the fans needs to be replaced? I feel like I'm on to something, and I'm really excited. lol

[Fl_bug]

Originally Posted by Oh Randi

Just an update, still battling this issue. However, I had an epiphany at work the other night.

1.) My car only dies when it's hot out.
2.) I've always heard a faint clicking and a noise like trickling water. Sounded like it was coming from the alternator, but they don't make that noise, so I forgot about it.
Then I realized what was right next to the alternator...

MY AUXILLARY WATER PUMP.

*headsplode*

duh.

This kind of sheds light on what the problem might be. I remember I had one of my fans replaced shortly before this started happening. Don't know if that's relevant or not.. but anyway, I think there's some sort of sensor that's gone bad but not completely shot because my car isn't throwing any codes. I think my secondary water pump doesn't know when to shut off, so it runs all night, draining my battery. Now, I replaced my battery yesterday right after I thought of this, since it wouldn't hold a charge for even 3 minutes. It hasn't died yet, but the drain typically took a while to kill my battery enough to where it wouldn't start.

Bottom line, does anyone know of a sensor that could've gone bad? I also noticed my blue light doesn't come on when I start my car anymore, but randomly comes on after I've been driving for 20 minutes or so. Could that have something to do with it?
or maybe a circuit board for one of the fans needs to be replaced? I feel like I'm on to something, and I'm really excited. lol

For the blue coolant light coming on at random, sounds like you may be in need of a Coolant Temperature Sensor. $9.99 at local autoparts store or $27 at Vw Stealership.

[Oh Randi]

Originally Posted by Fl_bug

For the blue coolant light coming on at random, sounds like you may be in need of a Coolant Temperature Sensor. $9.99 at local autoparts store or $27 at Vw Stealership.

could that be causing my secondary water pump to run long after it's supposed to?

[Oh Randi]

Just an update. Kind of.

Replaced the coolant temp sensor. All is well with the random blue light. It's coming on when it's supposed to and I'm pretty sure my engine is overall running cooler.


But... my car's dying problem has gotten worse. I bought a volt meter and I'm gonna pull fuses tonight. What's the normal draw supposed to be?