ENGINE TROUBLE, CAR PROBLEMS

VOLKSWAGEN, POLO CLASSIC CAR PROBLEMS

This blog is about my 2007 VW Polo Classic 2.0L Highline and other VAG cars in general. I have always been fond of good, solid, precision German engineering and I stand firm in my conviction that my VW Polo facelift  fits the bill. It therefore makes me wonder what happened in the manufacturing process? I often ask myself, - Was my VW Polo manufactured on a Monday that I'm having so much car problems and have to visit auto repair so often?

With the amount of issues I've had with my VW Polo, it rather looks like it was manufactured on a public holiday. It makes no sense why I am having so much car problems with it. I have had a Mercedez Benz which was German engineered, I loved it. I also had an Opel Kadett GSI 1.8 with digital dashboard that was German engineered, I simply adored it.  I had three company cars all of which were German engineered VW Passats.  I've also owned two VW Golfs, both of which were German engineered. The first VW Golf was a 1100 Golf-1, the second was a 1600 VW Golf -2 CLI with large bumpers. All of which hardly needed  automotive repair. My VW Polo 2.0L Highline 2007 model is however is very different from all the VAG cars I have owned before.  For example, the electromechanical system of the VW Polo ascribes to the OBD-II standard as well as CAN-Bus and its certainly not the easiest VAG car to repair.

This Volkswagen  Polo has an on-board computer which interfaces with an ABS module, the Interior Electronics Module, the Engine Control Module, the  Immobilizer Control Module among so many, many other electronic modules. Ostensibly it could be said that each of these modules, is a computer in its own right and they are all daisy-chained on the same OBD2 / OBD II or CAN Bus network.

Auto repair :-

The above 16 Pin DIN J1962 socket is provided  for a diagnostic tester to interface with these Electronic Modules, and is the only way to communicate with the car. This socket is situated in various places on different models and makes of cars. For instance BMW's normally have them under bonnet in the engine compartment. Most Volkswagen's have this socket under the dashboard on the driver's side. Some cars have it in the glove compartment, some have it in and around the ashtray.

My VW Polo had an idling problem, it was idling around 1200 rpm which progressively increased and hovered about 2000 rpm. There is no adjustment because there is no accelerator cable / throttle cable - it has Drive-by-wire (DMW) also known as Electronic Throttle Control (ETC). It  is the latest automobile technology that replaces the conventional cable linkage system between the vehicle's accelerator pedal and the engine throttle body.

Anyway, the high rev drove me crazy, especially when changing gears, the revs just wouldn't come down or took forever to do so. After two days, the EPC light came on and I took my car  off to the agents who reset the throttle-body valve. It was fine for just two days until the the rev counter started hunting between 800 rpm and 1200 rpm and the EPC light came on again. I took the car back to the agents, only to be told that the throttle body was effectively faulty. The cost was equivalent to one monthly car installment and that excluded their labour charge. So I decided to get a second opinion  before I forked out so much money, since I don't have a motor plan.

My new auto mechanic plugged in his Auto Boss Automotive Scanner and a few minutes later he said its the accelerator pedal that was faulty or rather the sensors that control acceleration which is part of the accelerator pedal. I asked about the possibility of the accelerator throttle-body being faulty and he says "no ways,  who even thought that? Your car revs higher than 1200 RPM". He the asked "does your EPC light come on?" and I said "yes". He then leaned into the car, grabbed hold the accelerator pedal with his hand and pulled the accelerator pedal upward. Immediately the idling seemed right, or at least to me it sounded right because it was idling at 950 RPM. By demonstrating this, even the data that was missing from one of the cells on the diagnostic tester's display came back and flashed the word NORMAL. He then released the pedal, the revs once again increased and the data cell  on the diagnostic tester's display went blank once again. After replacing the accelerator pedal with the Drive-by-Wire potentiometer (G79 & G185 sensors) attached, the idling was perfect and the EPC light stayed off.

Crayfish Curry Recipe

accelerator cable, accelerator throttle, auto repair, automotive repair, CAN Bus, car problems, car repair, car trouble, Drive-by-wire, EPC, EPC light, motor plan, OBD2, throttle body, throttle cable, VAG, Volkswagen, Volkswagen Polo, VW Golf, VW Polo, Polo facelift, Diagnostic tester, drive by wire, (Drive-by-Wire also know as DbW - Steer-by-Wire - "x-by-wire" or simply "by-wire"), EPC warning light, wont rev above 150 rpm, electronic throttle control,