Quirks

[Wombat99VW]

Hello!
I just replace the MAF sensor and had the throttle body cleaned about 6 weeks ago for $900 bucks! Today, the car had a hard time "turning over" when I tried to start it. It did start, but then the EPC light came on (didn't flash or beep - just a constant illumuniation). I was able to make it home, didn't run the air, or radio in 90 degree heat (not sure if that would make a difference or not). I did notice that when I made a complete stop, my RPMs were hovering around 1 x 1000, vs. just above 0. I would like to keep my 2001 Beetle 1.8T (117K miles) until December when I was planning to trade it in. Any ideas as to if I will be able to keep it on the road 'til then? I did have my water pump and timing belt replaced at 90K. I'm willing to put more $$ into it if need be, but don't want to sock another grand towards it if more things are going to begin to fail.
Any advice or similar experience???
Thanks very much!

[fohveh]

Very simple fix. Change the crank speed sensor. It is located just beside the oil cooler (filter)on the drivers side of the block. There is one hex key bolt holding it there. Mine just went similar problems, changed it now back to normal. You should change it asap as the car will begin to stall while coming to a stop during drives, like turning corners slowly or stopping at red lights. If the car does stall is these situations it will restart but will take about five minutes. Eventually the car will not start at all. The computer uses the crank speed for rpm etc... so if the car is seeing a failing crank speed sensor (known as a G28 speed sensor) the symptoms you mentioned appear and progress to no more engine running.

[Wombat99VW]

Thanks so much! I hope they sell them at local auto supply place - sounds like I can replace this myself?

[Fl_bug]

Originally Posted by Wombat99VW

Hello!
I just replace the MAF sensor and had the throttle body cleaned about 6 weeks ago for $900 bucks! Today, the car had a hard time "turning over" when I tried to start it. It did start, but then the EPC light came on (didn't flash or beep - just a constant illumuniation). I was able to make it home, didn't run the air, or radio in 90 degree heat (not sure if that would make a difference or not). I did notice that when I made a complete stop, my RPMs were hovering around 1 x 1000, vs. just above 0. I would like to keep my 2001 Beetle 1.8T (117K miles) until December when I was planning to trade it in. Any ideas as to if I will be able to keep it on the road 'til then? I did have my water pump and timing belt replaced at 90K. I'm willing to put more $$ into it if need be, but don't want to sock another grand towards it if more things are going to begin to fail.
Any advice or similar experience???
Thanks very much!

For some reason i'm thinking this problem is key related... Do have have multiple cut keys for this car?

When you say hard time turning over, do you mean that as in it turned over but as soon as the engine started, it turned immediately off?

If it is, i think you may need to take the car to the dealership to have the keys reprogramed.

The reason i think it is this is because i have a 2nd key for my car and when i use it, i get the same thing. When i switch to my other key, its all fine and dandy.