vwgolfman

Apparently you have rather a nice car with a shiny exhaust They confirmed my suspicions that I was being misquoted. I have booked my vehicle into them for the job. Very impressed actually. Thanks for your referral

Hi Mook, I am popping in to see them tomorrow and yes they know who you are :D

Hi, Apparently my MK4 (2001) Golf's lower arm bushes are perished (front, both sides). Is it a big job to replace these and how long might I expect a mechanic to take in doing so? Indeed can the bushes be replaced? - it has been suggested that it is easiest (most cost-effective) to replace the whole lower arm. Also (apparently) the Anti-roll bar end stops are rusty and cracked. Is this common in a car of 7 years and is it a pain of a job? The reason for my asking is that a garage is quoting me £500-£600 for the lot which appears a little on the high side. Many thanks for any pointers/advice.

With regards to the intermittent wiper, it sounds as though something is up with the switch which determines the delay time between each wipe.

I have a Mk4 Golf 1.6SE AZD Engine. 2001, 60000 miles. In the transition phase (when I remove my foot from the accelerator or place my foot on it) there is a fair amount of hesitation from the engine. It jumps slightly when I put my foot down (as though the engine suddenly kicks in) and jumps to and fro slightly when I lift my foot. I know it's normal for the car to jolt slightly if you suddenly jump on the accelerator after cruising but I am talking about very slight acceleration here. I am talking about going around a bend for example, when one is neither braking nor accelerating. It's whilst cruising that the problem is most noticeable. Going from drive to overrun and vice-versa. In fact it's quite difficult to drop the car into another gear without it jumping when drive is taken up. I have to try to slip the clutch both changing up and down and if the engine revs aren't perfect when I drop it in, the car jumps. It's most noticeable when changing down - if I don't bring the revs up before dropping it in, the car jumps as though the engine is trying to resist increasing its revs but is then forced to as the clutch grips. The EGR valve has been replaced as has the Throttle Body. Nothing shows up on VW's diagnostics and they have been trying to convince me nothing is wrong. They are telling me that it's perfectly normal to have these symptoms with the AZD engine. This has been going on for several months now and the car is still under warranty. They are trying to wash their hands of it. Any ideas please anybody?

Thanks for your reply Hudster. Ironically there ARE ongoing issues I need the warranty for. See HERE for details. I think on this occasion I shall have VW service it but I might have the timing belt replaced by another reputable garage after the warranty has run its course and after VW have sorted out the issues. Will the car's value depreciate quicker if it's not stamped by VW in the service booklet?

Golf Mk4 1.6SE 16V 105bhp. Service Now is flashing on the instrument panel. Bought it last December from a VW maindealer so it is still under its year's warranty. I presume to maintain that warranty I have to have VW service it? VW are asking £240 odd to do the following: 1) Replace oil and oil filter. 2) Replace pollen filter. 3) Carry out lots of checks (don't know what on). Does this sound about right and are they likely to come back to me claiming it needs this that and the other doing (even if it doesn't really)? Secondly, they are telling me that the timing belt needs replacing at 60,000. This will cost me something in the range of an additional £340. Is this something I should get done by them also or should I wait until its year warranty is up and get it done cheaper somewhere else? Thanks for any advice, Graham

Well, I waited until my fuel was rather low and then pumped a full tank of Shell V-Power into it. I have since driven some 200 miles on that tank and have noticed no improvement on the engine surge problem. I shall be phoning VW tomorrow and having some words.

Thanks for your replies guys...... It's a 1.6SE 16V 105bhp. I'll have a look inside the filler cap in the morning and report back but I'm pretty sure it says 95 RON or 98 RON. It doesn't recommend the 98 over the 95. Neither does the handbook. That says that the car will run on either and it also states that a higher RON fuel will not give me any better fuel economy. So all in all they are expecting me to pay more for my fuel even though the car shouldn't need it

I have been out in my car today with the senior technician at the dealership. I wanted him to experience what I am. However, he backs up what the service manager has told me; that I should be using Shell Optimax as it will cure all of my problems! I believe they are just trying to wash their hands of the whole episode because they have had the car in several times, each time replacing something different but have yet to fix it. They have replaced the following (probably other things which I haven't been told about also): Engine mount (because of the engine surge problem they thought a worn mount might be allowing the engine to rock). Throttle body (they say they took it off to ensure it was clean but replaced it anyway). Reset engine management back to factory defaults. Fuel something or other valve (some name with the letter E in). The note they gave me was taken from the VW central database to which only they have access. Here is its contents: Problem Description: The engine pinks (knocks) when accelerating from low engine speeds up to about 2300rpm. Cause: The engine is adjusted to the fuel Super Plus with 98 octane ROZ. Four-star fuel 95 octane ROZ or incorrectly two-star fuel 91 octane ROZ has been used. A knocking (pinking) causes the ignition to be taken back towards retarded. This is deliberate and allows an optimal use of the various fuel qualities. Production solution: No change. Service solution: By using Super Plus 98 octane ROZ the complaint is rectified. Accounting instructions: This is not complaint in the sense of warranty. _______ I shall be filling my car with several tanks of Shell Optimax or other quality fuel for the next few refills in order to see if this cures the problems. But should I really need to do this and are they trying to pull the wool over my eyes with such literature as the above? The car never surged or pinked for the first couple of months I had it and I have always used standard 95 RON Unleaded. I appreciate all of your opinions guys (and gals) as I am not very experienced in these things. Many thanks again, Graham

Hi I wonder if anybody can give me advice please?..... Golf Mk 4 1.6SE 16V. Recently my car has developed some slight running problems. 3 obvious symptoms (and quite possibly linked). 1) Engine surging; When I take up drive after letting the engine slow me the car surges at the point of take up. This is more obvious when I am just taking up drive and not jamming my foot down quickly to accelerate hard. The car seems to jolt backwards and forwards slightly on take up. The reverse seems to happen (only slight) when remove my foot from the accelerator. The engine 'drag' does not come on smoothly. 2) Car does not accelerate smoothly (pull is not consistent). If I am accelerting hard (foot down) then this is not so noticeable. It's more obvious if I am accelerating with the pedal say, halfway down. 3) Engine pinks/rattles when put foot down to accelerate when engine revs are fairly low. This occurs for about 1 second and then seems to ease. With regards to the pinking VW are now telling me it's supposed to and that I should be using 98RON Super Unleaded fuel instead of normal 95 RON Unleaded. My engine is a 1.6 16V (not a performance engine) so should this be the case? Inside the fuel cap it says 95 RON/98 RON so shouldn't my car run perfectly well on either? Sorry for such a long post but over the last 6 months VW have attempted to fix and then I believe fob me off with excuses as my car is still under its 1 year warranty. Today they have sent me a note explaining why I should be using 98RON. Many thanks,