Jetta Dies - Beyond the Obvious

[rs899]

Cranked up my 100% reliable Jetta this morning , got up the hill 50 yards away...car sputters and dies.  Crank/start again go another 50 yards car dies.

Turn it around, go another 50 yards...dies.  Park it  runs OK for a few seconds parked..dies. 

This is at 0-dark-30 this morning, so no chance to investigate.  Took the seedy old pickup to work.

Must be fuel related.  First and most obvious guess has to be filter ( it's old, 3 years/50k miles).

If it's NOT that....what else comes to mind?

[srgtlord]

It could be the fuel shut off solenoid wire is loose or hanging by a thread...

[rs899]

Yes, could be.  I will take a look when I get back to it.

Could be other restrictions in the fuel line, massive amounts of crap in the pickup.  Failed lift pump. Hopefully it is obvious when I see it.

Thing ran superbly last night...then this morning...sputter... sputter..  cough

[theman53]

out of fuel? Gauges on these cars are notably bad.

[rs899]

Agreed...my gauge is already broke ( at least wildly intermittent so as to be unreliable), but I use the odometer method of gauging fuel.  When/if that failed it would be the rhythm method... I know it runs 2 weeks on a tank in my normal commute ( and I filled it last week)

[theman53]

I tend to take the easy way if possible. I would fill it up just in case someone borrowed some.

[ORCoaster]

Borrowed Some?    That would imply they intended to bring it back!  Probably not the case so this becomes a case of thievery not loaning.

Add known amount of fuel, say 5 gallons then check filter. 

[bbob203]

I had the stop solenoid issue with mine a few months ago the little copper tab was corroded and the nut was loose so it would lose contact and stop randomly.

[rs899]

This time is was the obvious.  New filter filled with some ATF and Diesel Kleen and after some cranking (and battery charging) it started and runs fine.  Now I am hearing a pretty noisy alternator bearing so I think I will keep driving the Rabbit until the weekend when I can swap that out.  I rebuilt this alternator a couple of years ago- must have done something wrong.

It's weird that the night before it ran like a champ and the next morning couldn't get out of its own way.  Your driveway is the best place to be reminded of your stupidity.  Shouldn't have let it go so long (50K miles)

[ORCoaster]

How True, How True!  "Your driveway is the best place to be reminded of your stupidity."

We know better, we just don't do better.  Why is that?