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Car Forum / Volkswagen / Water Cooled Volkswagen Cars / March 2007Common parts failures on older Golfs?
I have a 1998 Golf which has 110,000 km on it and is generally in pretty good shape. It has not suffered any major failures yet and I'm trying to make sure I have maintained vital parts to prevent expensive failures on long trips, specifically engine related. Oil and filter regularly changed, air filter changed. Starter, distributor, spark plugs are good (originals). Very rare misfires in wet weather due to some corrosion but I plan on coating or replacing spark plug wires. I always carefully watch oil level and temperature and have never seen overheating, from what I can read from the dashboard. Recently I had the coolant system checked and flushed, minor leaks fixed. The timing belt and power steering belt have been changed and the mechanic did not notice any problem with tensioners, or v-belt (originals). Have I missed any vital "consumable" parts or anything else that should be changed preventatively, even if they have not failed yet? I was talking to a guy who has a similar model Golf to my own and he told me a horror story about a blown head gasket when his timing belt failed. My belt is new, but anything else like that which leads to common big failures and really should be changed now?  SignatureJem Berkes www.sysdesign.ca > Have I missed any vital "consumable" parts or anything else that > should be changed preventatively, even if they have not failed yet? The tires are also new, I know that one can be a rather ugly problem (road safety) What was the outcome of your power lock / remote key situation? >> Have I missed any vital "consumable" parts or anything else that >> should be changed preventatively, even if they have not failed yet? > >The tires are also new, I know that one can be a rather ugly problem (road >safety) > What was the outcome of your power lock / remote key situation? I think it's an intermittent electrical problem. The weather is awful and I don't have a garage, so I am waiting for dry weather then I'll open up the vacuum pump in the back near the tail light (is that where it is?) to see if I can clean the contacts. SignatureJem Berkes www.sysdesign.ca >> What was the outcome of your power lock / remote key situation? > >I think it's an intermittent electrical problem. The weather is awful and I >don't have a garage, so I am waiting for dry weather then I'll open up the >vacuum pump in the back near the tail light (is that where it is?) to see >if I can clean the contacts. I have no clue where the pump's located , sorry - but a repair manual for your golf could be a real help with the pump location as well as a great help should a failure happen later on. A good place to store the manual is in the trunk as it provides good entertainment along the park- way whilst waiting for the tow lorry. :-o Usually waterpumps fail slowly , the bushing between the impeller and the pulley wears and the impeller of the pump then starts to rub against the housing . Noise from the pump along with weeping at the housing are good first indicators. When the timing belt is replaced the v-belt running the pump has to be removed so pump relacement at the same time just makes since. ( thermostat too ) Water pumps also can fail because the impeller spins on the shaft and stops pumping coolant then the engine will over heat. Yeah , first full day of spring and I still have a half foot of sno in the yard. > I have a 1998 Golf which has 110,000 km on it and is generally in pretty > good shape. It has not suffered any major failures yet and I'm trying to [quoted text clipped - 19 lines] > new, but anything else like that which leads to common big failures and > really should be changed now? Spark plugs, distributor cap and rotor seem to be really too old... al. > I have a 1998 Golf which has 110,000 km on it and is generally in pretty > good shape. It has not suffered any major failures yet and I'm trying to [quoted text clipped - 21 lines] > -- > Jem Berkeswww.sysdesign.ca Be prepared for a water pump, shocks/struts, ball-joints and axles. Maybe an alternator, but a bit young for that yet. Brake-fluid flush every two years like religion... One of our kids got 224,000 miles from her Golf City with no faults at all until she simply got tired of it. But it was well cared-for and the maintenance intervals respected. She (and I) believe that the lack of AC had something to do with that life, but her next (and present) car still has AC. Peter Wieck Wyncote, PA "pfjw@aol.com" <pfjw@aol.com> wrote in news:1174495181.046342.66460 @l77g2000hsb.googlegroups.com: > Be prepared for a water pump, shocks/struts, ball-joints and axles. > Maybe an alternator, but a bit young for that yet. Brake-fluid flush [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > She (and I) believe that the lack of AC had something to do with that > life, but her next (and present) car still has AC. Thanks for the replies. I guess in hindsight I should have had the water pump replaced while the timing belt replacement was being done. As I understand it the Golf's water pump is hard to reach, timing belt driven? When the water pump fails, what happens? Will I observe the engine oil temp gage increase or will it just go - BOOM - engine explodes? I don't have ABS, does that make a difference for brake fluids? SignatureJem Berkes www.sysdesign.ca > "p...@aol.com" <p...@aol.com> wrote in news:1174495181.046342.66460 > @l77g2000hsb.googlegroups.com: [quoted text clipped - 18 lines] > -- > Jem Berkeswww.sysdesign.ca Water pumps fail any number of ways, seizing is what you don't want. My experience with Golfs of 'older' vintage is that the water pumps will run nearly indefinitely if the antifreeze (with the appropriate lubricants) is managed properly. Most do not. Typically, they begin to leak at the main bearing. The millisecond that happens, change the pump. Or, the next time you are after the timing belt. Changing the brake fluid is simple common sense. With ABS it is possibly deadly and extremely expensive consequence avoidance. Without ABS, it is merely possibly deadly consequence avoidance. You pays you money, you takes you chances. Peter Wieck Wyncote, PA > Most do not. Typically, they begin to > leak at the main bearing. The millisecond that happens, change the > pump. Or, the next time you are after the timing belt. OK so for the water pump, assuming it is not possible to look at directly (I think this is the case for me) would this leak be noticeable as the coolant level in the expansion tank dropping? Wouldn't that look like any other coolant leak? I'm just trying to understand what symptoms to watch out for, since I don't have the expertise to look at these parts directly. SignatureJem Berkes www.sysdesign.ca > OK so for the water pump, assuming it is not possible to look at directly > (I think this is the case for me) would this leak be noticeable as the > coolant level in the expansion tank dropping? Wouldn't that look like any > other coolant leak? This is a tough call, as your vehicle is relatively young, less than 100,000 (160,000km) miles anyway, and that is about when I start to worry over water pumps. Just listen well, and when there are new and strange sounds, pay attention to them. Coolant leaks (slow ones) show a whitish powdery streak at the leak point. The material will smell sweet. If you see such a streak not near anything obvious but in the general vicinity of the pump, then pay attention as above. One additional note, rubber products such as tires, belts, hoses and so forth must be replaced based both on use *AND* age. Generally, I try to draw the line at 6 years on any rubber item (others say 10, others say if it is a non-safety item let it fail), less on an actual wearing item such as a belt or tires. Rubber simply degrades over time. Peter Wieck Wyncote, PA I don't remember anyone mentioning the A3's door wiring harnesses, particularly the rear ones. At least on the versions with power windows, the wires in these break in the hinge area, causing problems with the windows and the alarm system. This can disable the car if they wires fail in such a way that the alarm continuously arms. I almost got stuck once with this condition, but 'fixed' it long enough to get home by repeatedly opening and closing the rear doors until the wires rearranged enough to allow the car to start. The newer harnesses seem to last better, or maybe it's just because the rear doors don't get used on it as much anymore. Mark '95 Jetta GLS |
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