alan_131

I think the Mk2 is the same as the Mk1 on locking - though I might be wrong. I think you may have a problem with the door looms (very common, both my cars, thanks to the forum I found mine) as your key should lock/unlock the whole car from all the doors. The system can be programmed to do this in two stages (driver only, then the rest) but should work from all three locks. Could you get the dealer to check/sort this out? Incidentally, my mk1 Ghia with the battery out only lets me unlock the driver's door - not tailgate or passenger (I might have had the central locking engaged when I took the battery out, or could just be dud locks. Point is, IF yours is the same, a very flat battery might leave you locked out completely.... I'd just posted this and did a check on new content. This might be interesting - great deal, and if they do the same discounts for remotes http://www.fordgalaxy.org.uk/ford/index.php?/topic/24265-timpson-special-deals-on-keys/page__pid__172405#entry172405 As regards restoring the remote function, you have some choices - genuine whole key from dealer (loads of money), genuine remote from ebay, get new blade cut, and add its immobilser (again dealer usually) to the car's system, ditto - but just add the remote part and use a key the same as you already have in the ignition (possibly cheapest) non-ford remote from ebay, either just using the remote part, or get one that can house a "standard" immobiliser chip and has a blade you get cut. (This works as long as your locksmith can clone the key you already have. Might be worth checking that out before you start if your aim is a full working key). The ebay system I bought came with two remotes, flip out blades ready to cut, and room for quite a big immobiliser chip for around

My Sony came with an adaptor which had the wires setup incorrectly - for me the permanent power was swapped with the switched feed. Might be worth checking ...

Sorry you didn't get anything more definite. That's the downside to this ecu business, if only it told you why it was limiting things - or even if! You never know though, one of the other readers may come back with an "ah ha!" reply. Do you think the idle fault is real? As a diesel owner I don't know exactly what you can get, but it might be worth trying some of the blocks - you'd think if something was widely out it would throw a fault code, but I don't know if it does. I've found some stuff where the requested ecu figure differs from the actual by quite a lot, and that can be a bit of a clue. Good luck! Let us know how you get on...

Thanks for the advice and warning. I'll be very careful about the battery bolts. I might try getting some longer bolts or studs and replacing a couple of these if they hold the box up, so I can lower it rather than jack it up from underneath (working in the road, and the local council use camera cars). I'm wondering though if it's better or even neccessary to jack and take the battery tray out for better access/view. When I read your comment about selector cables it prompted me to look again through the FAQ (don't know how I missed it - thought I'd read them all). Off to try to see if the cables "try" to move the selector, and might pull the selector anyway to check the tightness of the bolt. Do you/anybody know if the siezed due to crud feel of the selector is easy to tell from the bolt broken one? If the bolt's missing does the shaft still move but not select, or does something foul it? (went from completely normal to stuffed in a few miles).... Thanks again for the help Alan

Just a thought but could you try the existing setup on another car? I'd guess most VW's the same fuel/age should work...

Hi All Mk1 99 110 tdi manual 160K About 4 miles from home, I noticed that I was having to put a little extra effort getting out of 2nd to neutral, and the lever wasn't self-centering when in neutral. As I pulled up at home it got harder to move, and after a little fiddling refused to do anything other than 1st/2nd with some effort. In the faint hope it might be something do with the lever I pulled the covers, but releasing the righthand selector cable left the lever free to move right/left and in a graunchy way into 1st/2nd. Too dark to look under the bonnet properly now. Having been through the forum I'm thinking selector bolt - does this sound right and has anybody any other suggestions? Without the forum and the people who've taken the time to write posts I'd be working blind and certainly have no idea if I could get to it without taking the gearbox out completely. I'd like to thank everybody who took the time to write posts for this and all the other posts for other topics that have helped me in the past. If only Haynes were as helpful...

Hi. I'm a newbie too but as you could see from my posts suddenly a big fan of vagcom (usb cable under £10 on ebay, free software download for the basic version). This would let you read any codes which can be a pointer. I wonder if the immobiliser is cutting in ? On some cars - sorry don't know if yours is one affected - the ring that reads the code from your key can move a bit and upset things. I've also seen people say they've had issues with more than one key on a ring though I have three different ones (2 tdi galaxy, 1 fiat) and not had a problem. Or of course you might have a "proper" problem.. Could you describe the failed starts in a bit more detail - on my mk1s if it's the immobiliser, it starts and dies immediately and led confirms issue... I'm sure the experts here will be able to help you properly. Good luck!

If it helps at all my r plate 90 used to make the shhh noise you describe or something very like it. 100k when i got it. From inside cabin sounds like it's coming from left of dash possibly because thats where the pollen filter is? My first turbo and I always assumed it was waste gate dumping. Don't recall noticing it being temp related but took forever to warm up. Went away when the performance dropped off... up to 162k and still working ok apart from some odd noises from power steering pump area. Fractured bracket vibing at low revs so if its the same shushing noise and thats the cause of your noise you might havey got a bit of breathing space. Btw i found isolators on engine cover shot and cover chewing thru pipes occ audible.....good luck

Hi All. Can I ask for a bit of advice please? My late '99 TDI Ghia 110 has reference to oil temp readout in the handbook, and it shows on the display but always as --.- There is a spare connector coming from the loom by the filter housing which I think is for the sensor - but the sensor point on the housing has a blanking plug fitted. I found a reference in another post (Early Mk1 Clocks Into Late Mk1 Do They Work) which says early Galaxy's had this readout & remaining range which I also have - but later ones didn't - so now I'm wondering about the clocks... Does anybody know if any came out of the factory like this please? Just trying to track down things that might have changed to try to get a handle on some other issues... Thanks a lot in advance Alan

I'm not sure if this would work but rather than alloy welding has anybody tried durafix easyweld (or anything like it) for this? Sounds fairly diy friendly - not really welding, more brazing but they say it's very strong...). My a/c is u/s at the moment and I'm going to give it a go if it turns out to be ally pipe/heat exch leaking... (I have a low pressure switch flagged in vagcom, not done a manual pressure check yet - on the list....) Good luck!

Hi Joel I'm a newbie and not familiar with your problem but I'm sure one of the experts here will be able to point you in the right direction. With a bit of luck, somebody will say this connector/relay or loom where it goes here... I know that on some VW TDI's oil warning light oddities can be associated with rev counter/alternator (don't know if galaxy variants are included) connections, in a small way part of what you're experiencing. My uneducated guess would be loom/connectors somewhere nearish to where the sensors you've mentioned come together or upstream of that heading towards the ecu - just because it went away when those areas were fiddled with. That kind of brings me to the point of this post - those who can help may find it useful if you can give more detail on which engine you have, and what version/mark/year. It might also help if you can post any new codes that have popped up. And, (it's been a bad night and I'm not feeling very bright) when you're talking about this happening with the car jacked up and in neutral, do you mean it happens when you manually rotate a road wheel, or turn the steering wheel? Did it happen at all while it was just idling jacked up, and did it miss always as soon as you turned a wheel? If so, how far/fast did you need to turn it? Misfiring - drops a few beats, then picks up again, or goes into a continuous stutter? Beyond this point (some would say the whole post) is just my uninformed ramblings but maybe you might have one of those "it's not that but..." moments I'm wondering (in a very uninformed way) if this could be connected to the ecu's clever management of the engine when it thinks the car is slowing down but driven by the road wheels - on some cars it cuts the fuel till the revs drop below a certain level. Pressing the clutch should let the engine idle - but if it thinks the clutch isn't depressed, and it's getting bad data from the other sensors, maybe you have your problem. ECU getting bad engine rpm data (bad display, flashing oil light), thinks engine still driven by road wheels at above idle speed, doesn't know clutch is in = fuel shutoff... Good grief, this is a rambling post. I'd check connectors, clear the codes, see if vcds/vagcom can see your clutch/brake/throttle/speed etc sensors and log the data when you test. And if the radio or wipers go off when you slow down (just in case its main relay associated though if it idles ok probably not) Sorry it's such a list - as I say, not feeling very bright....

Sorry - ecu is behind the instrument cluster - take out surround (2 screws) then unscrew cluster (2 screws and tilt forward then pull, slide between wheel and dash after dropping column as low as poss. You may have to take out bulb failure unit from on top according to haynes but my ghia has bulb failure but no unit there IIRC.

I can't tell you if the ecu's are all the same, but are you sure it's the ecu? I believe that airbag warning is commonly caused (at least on the mk 1) by a failed "clock spring" (it links the driver's air bag to the column). I think there's some sort of rule about used airbag parts but what the legal status is.... they do occasionally come up on ebay. Seem to remember VCDS-lite (cable under

Good luck. For under

Hi Karl Lots of "how to"s on the forums but from the Ford Owner's Guide which came with my 2000 Ghia (wireless remote) Button 1 = unlock on remote (nearest key blade) Button 2 = lock on remote Insert the key in the driver's door lock and turn it three times in the unlocking direction. Every time hold the key for approximately 0.5 seconds in that position. Remove the key from the lock. The control light on the driver's door illuminates. Point the key at the rear view mirror and depress button 2 (lock button). Whilst holding button 2 down depress button 1 (unlock button) three times. Release button (2) The key is now coded. The control light in the driver's door will flash for confirmation. A local locksmiths was able to cut a key (not with remote unlocking, but with immobilizer chip) for my 97 galaxy for

Hopefully you'll get some clues from VAGCOM - I'm a newbie and found it easy to use. Almost makes diagnosing faults on cars with an ecu as easy as on say um a triumph herald cars. If only there was a simple way to find out what the ecu thinks its supposed to do under various circumstances instead of just getting fault codes, but I suppose manufacturers would say it's cost a fortune so it's secret or something... There's been some reports of duff new MAF's on some forums,(joy) but I wonder if it might be worth doing some sort of test on the induction system to see if it leaks given your odd induction noise? Also come across reports of cat getting clogged - but I'm one of those oil burners so it might not have been relevant to your dad's car. Good luck! Incidentally be interested to know what you thought of car generally - LPG 2.8 quite attractive thought....

I think for the servo to work, you need two things - vacuum before you apply the brakes - and access to air at atmospheric pressure when you apply them. On old-fashioned servos - and it might still be the same for some - there was a small felt filter mounted on the servo which, if it became obstructed, limited the air in when you braked - and hence the servo effect was very limited. Just wondering if, if your vacuum supply is ok, check valves working, etc etc, if the point where the air gets into the servo when you brake was getting wet, it might block air in - a bit like breathing through a wet cloth... It's a real stretch, but it's the only thing I can think of that being wet might affect. Good luck with finding the problem - this intermittent stuff is a real pig...

Hi. I'm a newbie and haven't experienced this personally but it sounds rather like the problem HARPSTER has just posted a solution for - ie mis-adjusted actuator rod on a new turbo (think they're supposed to be factory set but...). You mentioned checking fault codes - if you've got vagcom/vcds then it might be helpful to log the 2000-4000 rpm figures for rpm,boost,maf,egr (requested and actual) - even I found it really helpful just getting started- , and the experts here can interpret them - well - expertly. If it is the actuator you might be familiar with the basic diagnostic from when your original turbo failed, but if not there's lots of info on the forums about checking (from the simple suck on the hose and see what happens) and setting it up correctly. From the sounds of it, you've done the vacuum hose routing/failure checks which I'd guess are the simplest cause of turbo performance issues after a new install. Last thought, and I don't know if it even applies to your engine/my, but I found the ecu hose off after I'd been pulling things under the bonnet trying to sort out why it was in limp mode when I bought it. Supposedly intermittent limp... Of course, I might be completely off-base with all of this as practically all my tdi knowledge is theory atm - that's why I'm haunting these forums... Good luck!

Mods please delete/move if I've posted this in the wrong place, but a selfish suggestion - be interested to hear what others think - would it be useful if we tried to build up a bit of a library of VCDS logs/graphs for known good/bad engines? Any feedback gratefully received.... Alan

Hi Harpster Could you tell me what year/engine you have please? I'm having problems with my '99 110, and it would be really handy to know if some of your numbers would apply to mine? Thanks a lot and good luck! Alan

Thank you! Mine SEEMS to be ok with the wires fixed but that might be temporary. I've got a complete Galaxy for spares (unless I decide to keep that one on the road - it's generally nicer but GB is shot and trim level (ASPEN) means no a/c - hot in summer - and no aux heat - cold in winter. Still has MOT and starts instantly, does 50mpg, but GB means I could only see me scrapping it so I've rented a container to store it for now). Good parts suppliers are really good to know about - there's bound to be parts I'll need new/good s/h.. Thanks again Alan

Hi. People will probably ask for a little more detail on symptoms / car. Is it just a bit down, reluctant to rev. beyond a certain point, lacking power from low down on? Intermittent - goes away when you switch off, then comes back perhaps after you've used more throttle? Is it an automatic? Driving style - I'd guess towing a caravan you might, but do you often floor the throttle (Some sites say full throttle/load on a fairly regular basis helps keep the turbo from caking up. Caked turbo can = movable vanes stuck in high boost position when ecu not looking for it = overboost fault = ecu cutting back to protect engine) Since I got my newer (still very old) TDI Galaxy I've become a huge fan of VCDS-lite. This is free software from ROSS-TECH which you can use to read and clear fault codes from VW's and also log live information. You need a cable (less than

Hi All. I've a late '99 TDI Ghia which is sick in several ways. I've tried the 2000-4000 test and I'm getting REQ. Boost values under 2000mB across the range. I think the 110 spec shows boost about 2200mB at max power. My actuals are typically 200mB below req. Getting to the point - can anybody tell me please if the ECU should be asking for 2200mB+ somewhere during the test or is this lower value normal under some circumstances - eg protecting engine for other reasons. No fault codes at the moment. The car's been tinkered with by somebody who was not neccessarily too concerned about detail in the past(eg fuel lines not clipped in properly, odd bolts missing, MAF working but mismatched connector) so could be a number of other things happening at once. Any suggestions gratefully received...

Yep - 3 wires had been "repaired" by twisting together and covering with furry tape. Thick red one had parted company again. All happy now - thank you!

Thank you - so much easier when you've got a bit of a steer. I know the wires are a common failure point but it seemed a bit odd to me so that's really helpful. Didn't fancy having to pull the door card and the plastic membrane unless I really had to... I'll post back when I've got it fixed just to round things off.