I can't stand my car anymore....

[perdaniel]

Try driving a Toyota for a while...

[Mr. Knappy]

That motor sounds kinda rough imo... what have you done to the block / cylinder head? (Well I mean in terms of maintenance)

Waterpump is about 4 years old. Alternator was swung down late last year. Oil was changed and has maybe 400 miles on it. Seafoamed as the same time. All the sensors are new.

god my rabbit truck with a 16v is/has been doing this too me too. i know how it feels man. my problem is probably nothing like yours but i found with the other problems im having, with the isv disconnected it doesnt fluctuate the idle like yours is doing.

When I disconnect the ISV, it doesn't change anything. I just swapped the ISV out for another one since I have 12 volts going to it, I thought maybe it wasn't working correctly. Didn't change anything but this one at least vibrates like it should.

hmmm, yeah I figured you'd have a non-cali car, but what line did you plug then?
Anyways, I don't think that'll fix your problem.

If your fuel pressure is good, then seems like the timing may be off. Have you tried advancing/retarding it by moving the distributor?

again, just throwing out my amateur 2 cents....

I did try advancing and retarding the timing. Doesn't change a thing with the idle.

SEND HER OFF!
The second vid sounds like someone getting b4nged on a squeeky bed.

Maybe the car has 262 cams you don't know about?

But it all seriousness, don't quit on her. You'll find it. Try retarding the timing a hair.

The only thing it has as far as cams go is a Euro intake cam.

My son's car does the exact same thing from time to time....it was pretty bad for a while....changed lots of crap including the isv. The only way to trigger the symptoms on his car is to disconnect the isv when it is running, then re-connecting it does nothing. If you turn the car off and re-start it is fine....

I hate to say that it is probably some crappy ground connection somewhere along the harness...

Well, all the grounds for the engine harness are on the back of the valve cover. They are all there and all look good. I guess it wouldn't hurt to clean them again. Doing anything with the ISV doesn't change anything.

open the bible (bentley), find the wiring diagrams for your car and start testing for continuity. i spent over 2 weeks messing with the wiring when i was trying to get the car to run, now same crap except with msd

So you feel like yours is ignition related? I just really don't have the patience to do a pinout on the ECU right now. I have a "new" harness coming tomorrow.

have you tried another ECU yet?

Yes. No change. I thought maybe it was the chip in the ECU but the other one I have isn't chipped and didn't change anything.

check your fuses, seriously, sounds like when my 16v that i drove for a year didn't have a good fuse for the isv and all the fine tweaking modules

They are all good except for the one 30 amp fuse at the top. That is for the radiator fan after-run and well, it blows every time I put a fuse in it. Rad fan doesn't even work.

Knappy that sounds like a vacuum leak, I know you checked it but maybe an intake gasket or so, they can be annoying but do not give up, just walk away and if you need help with the beer consumption , well I like beer , seriously though, good luck, that is not a "yard" material just yet

I agree it does sound like a vac leak but I honestly cannot find one anywhere. I have sprayed carb cleaner, brake cleaner and starting fluid on everything and nothing changes. Maybe I shall order some new intake gaskets. Doesn't hurt to try.

Let me just buy that

Make me an offer.

Have you checked and/or replaced all your ground wires? I know it seems minor, but I had an idling issue that drove me nuts for a month, and I fixed/ replaced a lot of what you did, then asked for help on the 'tex-- in the end it was a bad ground wire to the head.

See above. I will clean them again in a few.

Try adjusting the air/fuel mixture with a 13 mm Allen wrench?
Don't give up on it man

3mm and yes, I have previously but the way the idle is right now makes it a pain to do since the reading bounces like crazy.

i got pissed at mine now it has holes in the hood

HAHA!

^ Shotgun much?

OP, second on the grounds and ecu. Having done everything else that you listed, the management was the next thing I thought of. I tend to not suspect the ecu and lean more toward brittle/broken wiring, but give it all the diagnostics to isolate the cause. Don't send that to a yard if you decide to let it go, sell it to someone else or part it. Hate to see a good one waste away in the boneyard.

I have another harness coming. I have this feeling that the wires to the CTS are ****ed up. Nothing changes when I disconnect it.

this is exactly what i'm not a fan of cis-motronic (though my audi 5k runs perfectly *knock on wood*)

here are a few of my ideas (some may be far fetched)

• vacuum leak (like everyone else said)
• dead spot in your air box's potentiometer
• tweaked hall sender window in dizzy
• bad signal to ecu, bad signal to coil stage

since you mentioned bumping the harness and a few seconds of decent idle... i'd not only trace the harness for continuity, but also measure resistance. most likely there's an issue with the wires between the fuel distributor and the ecu.

it's a huge pain in the ass, because it's tedious work, but the one thing i've learned is to never trust a harness (even if you've built it yourself).

years and years ago i had an 88 digi car (split year) that didn't match ANY wiring diagrams anywhere, and had some mysterious gremlin that i just couldn't track down for months. i replaced this and that and nothing made any difference.

finally, while at my wit's end, i took a day and rebuilt the entire engine harness, reusing connectors, but rerunning and repining everything, and the gremlins were gone.

EDIT: you can also bring it up to me in brooklyn for a few days and i'll get it sorted for you.

I'm hoping that the harness I get will narrow things down a bit. Then I will tear that one apart and check it out.

[Project_2501]

I would suggest pulling the entire harness from your bay and go wire by wire. Replace and re-pin as needed.

~25 year old copper wiring loses a lot of conductivity due to oxidation. It MAY have started out as oxygen-free copper (kind of doubt it..) but I highly doubt it is now.

[Mr. Knappy]

It will be replaced. Then once I get the new one in there I can hunt through that one. My back can't really handle leaning over the hood for a long time anymore.

[Project_2501]

It will be replaced. Then once I get the new one in there I can hunt through that one. My back can't really handle leaning over the hood for a long time anymore.

Lyme disease has done the same to me unfortunately.

...Partially why my entire harness is sitting in the ottoman chair in my study room..

[Mr. Knappy]

My doctor just wants to feed me pain pills. I tell him every time that I'd rather deal with the pain than get addicted to a pill AND have pain.

[88Jetta350]

VR swap. /thread

Sent from my ST15i using Tapatalk 2

[gtidaddy]

mr Knappy stumped? say it aint so.

not knocking you just can't believe it. as many people's problem that you have solved over the years. tell me it is you back pain talking.
Mr Knappy the man give up? no way.

[Mr. Knappy]

VR swap. /thread

Sent from my ST15i using Tapatalk 2

Not a chance.

mr Knappy stumped? say it aint so.

not knocking you just can't believe it. as many people's problem that you have solved over the years. tell me it is you back pain talking.
Mr Knappy the man give up? no way.

Well I guess that's what happens when you get older, grumpy, and aren't stupid enough to be in the car business anymore.

I took the harness out. Cut most of the covering off around where I tapped it and it ran better. Didn't really see any issues with the wiring. The coil power stage harness was fixed when I installed that harness many years ago. Still all holding together. The DPR wires however are split at the connector. It is still connected and resistance isn't too bad. I have a feeling that this will be the end of it. Unless somebody has a good fuel distributor laying around that they want to sell cheap?

[choochoo]

my son's got this song stuck in my head

[odj]

Take it to a known good shop and let them fix it.

[Seax_Smith]

to the yard.... just sign the title and I'll drive it over for you.

Bad ground wires inside good-looking insulation?

[Spray Junkie]

Scrap it......Then sell me that NOS heckenblend you bought before I had a chance to

[R411YE DUDE]

Have you checked the codes? Like how it tells you in the Bentley?
I built a small black box with a light and button. Had very similar issues with mine and the code was always the hall effect sensor.
Don't give up though.

[steveo27]

If we cant ask Knappy, who can we ask?

[Tucked]

If we cant ask Knappy, who can we ask?

x2 Sad day....

[Junkyard Hero]

If we cant ask Knappy, who can we ask?

I'm pretty sure by now everything has been asked of Knappy. Maybe that is why he can't stand his car anymore. Maybe by car he means vortex?

[Katz123]

My other sisters old golf did that exact thing. The bearings in the air fuel mixture flapper were sticky and there was some goop on top that was also making it sticky. Dad cleaned it all up and the problem was gone. He always told me if it bounced more than once or did not bounce at all when you picked it up and dropped it, then the car would not idle properly.

I am not sure this would help an old pro like you, but just thought I would say it anyway. Maybe someone did already, but used short form and I missed it.

Good luck!

Katz

[iheartbeets]

i got pissed at mine now it has holes in the hood

Awwww geez. Lookout. This is the next rust/patina trend. Seriously, though, hunt down that gremlin! Unrelated because I'm an oil burner but I fought hell and high water to figure out why my new tach wouldn't register. I tracked it down to a factory wire that looked new. Bulletproof electrical systems these cars have.

[Mr. Knappy]

to the yard.... just sign the title and I'll drive it over for you.

Bad ground wires inside good-looking insulation?

There is only 2 ground wires on a Motronic harness. They are both good.

Scrap it......Then sell me that NOS heckenblend you bought before I had a chance to

Calling dibs I guess?

Have you checked the codes? Like how it tells you in the Bentley?
I built a small black box with a light and button. Had very similar issues with mine and the code was always the hall effect sensor.
Don't give up though.

I haven't checked the codes since as of right now, I don't have the power wire for that hooked up.

If we cant ask Knappy, who can we ask?

Ask you.

I'm pretty sure by now everything has been asked of Knappy. Maybe that is why he can't stand his car anymore. Maybe by car he means vortex?

Both.

My other sisters old golf did that exact thing. The bearings in the air fuel mixture flapper were sticky and there was some goop on top that was also making it sticky. Dad cleaned it all up and the problem was gone. He always told me if it bounced more than once or did not bounce at all when you picked it up and dropped it, then the car would not idle properly.

I am not sure this would help an old pro like you, but just thought I would say it anyway. Maybe someone did already, but used short form and I missed it.

Good luck!

Katz

I must admit that my fuel distributor was kind of sticky. I cleaned it up real good and adjusted the height of the plate the other day. Nothing changed. I just bought a new fuel distributor yesterday since whoever drilled the plug out of the adjustment hole ****ed it all up and it is next to impossible to adjust the mixture.

[Mr. Knappy]

This just arrived though.



BIG thanks to Richard (cyclops594) for going out of his way when at the yard to pull the harness, send me photos of ALL the connectors while he was there, boxing it up and getting it here in 2 days from California! All for a GREAT price.

[gtidaddy]

x2 Sad day....

x3

[Deezy]

Judging the pic of the snow in the bay... the car has mutual feelings.

[choochoo]

BIG thanks to Richard (cyclops594) for going out of his way when at the yard to pull the harness, send me photos of ALL the connectors while he was there, boxing it up and getting it here in 2 days from California! All for a GREAT price.

may the force be with you

[cyclops594]

Right on Mike, like I mentioned via text, I really hope that harness helps man. Grumpy valvers are a PITA!

[Mr. Knappy]

Wooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!!

We have a good idle! YES!

[choochoo]

[spoon!]

Congrats. So what was it?

[Mr. Knappy]

Congrats. So what was it?

Something with the old wiring harness. My guess would be something with the CTS wires. Not really sure actually.

[spoon!]

Post some victory pics.

[odj]

[e36m3blue]

Wooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!!

We have a good idle! YES!

[Mr. Knappy]

Post some victory pics.

It's all dirty. It rained the other day and supposed to again today.

[Spray Junkie]

Wooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!!

We have a good idle! YES!
]

Damn damn damn, I wanted that Heckblende, erm...I mean....awesome!

[steveo27]

Rich ALWAYS comes through

If you wanna be super knit-picky to figure out what it was, go through each wire and test the continuity. I'm (along with everyone else, im sure) curious to see what was the actual issue

Ask you.

I dont know shit