Help needed on a Rescue Mission for a non-starting FSI

Valpen

Member
My grown son borrowed my 2004 FSI with 75k miles to attend a wedding over the weekend.

On Sunday morning when he went to start it, it would not fire. The engine turned over fine, but would not start/sputter/anything.
Even with jumper cables to give more power to the starter.

The car had been starting/running perfectly.

The yellow EGR light has been on for ages. And the Service light (for oil-change at dealer etc) came on in May. No other warning lights in display.

I expect an ignition or fuel issue is causing the situation. Or something with the anti-theft system in the car (nothing non-standard).


I will be traveling the 200 miles to try and collect the car this coming weekend and would appreciate ALL input/ideas to help diagnose (and rule-out) the cause(s) and get it running again.

What would you do first?, second??, third???

Thx in advance!
 
We had a similar issue with my father's FSI when the coil pack had expired and melted the leads. So I suppose that's something to check first.
 
Thx!
Do you know an easier way to check if it is working besides pulling a spark plug and seeing if you have a spark?
 
check that the fuel pump is actually running when you turn the ignition key. It's underneath the rear seat, you should hear it hum when you turn the key to position 2.

- Bret
 
check that the fuel pump is actually running when you turn the ignition key. It's underneath the rear seat, you should hear it hum when you turn the key to position 2.

- Bret
If no fuel pump, would you next check the fuse box?, or something else?
 
I have the dilemma of renting and driving the 200+200 miles with a car trailer, or gathering enough insights from you all so that I feel that I can troubleshoot and fix a "simple FSI quirk", not carrying any spares with me, and limited to fuses, a multi-meter, proper tools, wrenches/sockets without a trailer.

I will bring the extra ignition key to rule out any key specific issues there with the anti-theft system. Any reason to do that?, not do that?

What about disconnecting the battery and "restarting" everything, is 15 min enough?
 
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if the anti theft device (immobiliser) is causing the issue then the yellow car with key shape symbol will be lit on the instrument cluster, this normally lights and goes out when the instrument cluster and ECU have talked to each other, if it remains illuminated then you have a problem. The spare key is a good idea to test this as the problem could be in the car or in the key, the spare key would rule out at least the key side of things
Having said this it is a system which is very reliable so I would not base a 200 mile trip on this resolving the issue without the trailer as a back up plan

Check fuel is arriving, try a few squirts of light fuel in the air intake, if its fuel related this will at least get a cough from it, if it does not cough then look at the ignition side of things, a spare spark plug is handy as you can remove the coil pack and pop a spark plug in the coil and to earth and crank it looking for a spark

Cheers,
Paul
 
if the anti theft device (immobiliser) is causing the issue then the yellow car with key shape symbol will be lit on the instrument cluster, this normally l
Paul
Paul,
Thx for the fuel test and extra spark plug tips! And the trailer confirmation vote...
John
 
Is the engine earthed? Try a jump lead between the block and say the windscreen wiper motor ( ironically it is normally the other way round, wiper motor earth failed ). Can petrol be smelt when cranking? A can of "fast start" or equivalent as @depronman has already said? There is fuel in the tank?
Just a few basics to check
 
if the starter turns over, there is both power and earth.
If the fuel pump is running, then it pushes the problem towards teh engine bay. It's possible to hit a sudden failure of the high-pressure pump, but unlikely. As Paul's said, if you have some "starter fluid", squirt a little into the air intake and it should cough. If there's no reaction, you have no spark, if there is, you have no fuel.
Sudden fuel blockage is possible but unlikely, esp. if it's just been driven 300kms.
If there's no fuel, I'd consider changing the fuel pump relay (it's in the driver's footwell of an LHD car) but they're quite specialized (large current) so it might not be easy to find one in a hurry.

15min is enough to do a complete system reset with the battery off.

- Bret
 
I suspect it is now at the stage where the possible causes are getting beyond the quick fix stage. Trailer recovery is now looking the better option. At least you can pick it up deliver it where you want and not spend hours beside the vehicle diagnosing only to find it is something either too big or something you do not have a spare or tool for. What about transport companies could they bring the car to you cheaper than you renting and going for it? Again is the car covered by a breakdown recovery service?
 
Thx to all of you for valuable insights!
My breakdown recovery insurance covers transportation to the nearest service facility which is not really where I want the car to go....
I have access to a car trailer, so I can manage the transport myself... (likely on Thursday, so I may have an update for you soon...)
 
But if they recover it there and the garage checks it over, probably at a cost. You will have perhaps a better idea what has gone wrong and from that work out if the garage fixes it, you take spares / tools to fix it or take the trailer to bring it back.
 
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