My first mk1 Gti and i need help!!

Hello there,

After selling my corrado g60 last year i have been dying to get my hands on another vw and finally yesterday i brought my first mk1 golf gti and i love it.

Unfortunately i have some problems that i hope you guys will be able to help me with.

Firstly the fuel pump (i think) as soon as the car is running you can hear the fuel pump wining away is this normal or do i have a problem? (car has half a tank of fuel)

Secondly the engine temp light flashes constantly as soon as the car is on and goes off occasionally its strange though as sometimes if i let of the throttle it goes off but as i put my foot down again it comes back on but mostly its on constantly. The engine temp needle comes from the left and goes all the way to the right within a couple of minutes! (the previous owner did assure me it was nothing to worry about and a switch or something needed replacing and i believe this as i drove it 150 miles home with no problems at all!)

Next is the fan it does kick in but is very noisy it sounds like the bearings have gone and its wobbling and hitting the plastic case around it, can i just replace the fan and motor rather than the whole radiator as the rad looks quite new!

Next when going a little to fast the steering wheel shakes quite a bit could this be wheel bearings or anything else? It is really quite low and know this puts more pressure on bearings but the previous owner did say he had replaced them for last mot!

also heating is always quite hot even when on cold,

also have a wire hanging down on drivers side underneath the front of the car but i will post pics tomorrow of that to make it easier!

Oh and radio gets no signal for any radio stations but may not be plugged in will check tomorrow.

If anyone can help with any of these problems it would be greatly appreciated.

Will put up some pictures tomorrow so you can all see my new pride and joy!!

Thanks in advance,

Andy

wheels shaking at speed = get the wheels balanced, this will cure it 9 out 10 times

heater could be a number off reasons, check the cable system 1st

replace the temp sender this may cure the dodgy needle work on the clocks,

has it got vdo guages as some people will wire up the one in the guage and wonder why the clocks one has stopped working or does funny things, if so your need a spliter

the fan can be just replaced i'm pretty sure but stand to be corrected on that one 2 cold to look at mine right

fuel pump should not be making much noise after start up m8 i.e once primed should be quiet i would wait and see what else is said on that note as i could be wrong but never known them to be noisey, i'd take it clean it up and make sure theres no crap in the tank

and finaly left to say get the pic's up

In addition to above…..

wannaberacer said

Hello there,

After selling my corrado g60 last year i have been dying to get my hands on another vw and finally yesterday i brought my first mk1 golf gti and i love it.

Unfortunately i have some problems that i hope you guys will be able to help me with.

Firstly the fuel pump (i think) as soon as the car is running you can hear the fuel pump wining away is this normal or do i have a problem? (car has half a tank of fuel)

 They often make a whirring noise for a long time, sometimes years before failing, a warning sign nethertheless

Secondly the engine temp light flashes constantly as soon as the car is on and goes off occasionally its strange though as sometimes if i let of the throttle it goes off but as i put my foot down again it comes back on but mostly its on constantly. The engine temp needle comes from the left and goes all the way to the right within a couple of minutes! (the previous owner did assure me it was nothing to worry about and a switch or something needed replacing and i believe this as i drove it 150 miles home with no problems at all!)

 low cooloant level/incorrect coolant mix/faulty sender/faulty wiring

Next is the fan it does kick in but is very noisy it sounds like the bearings have gone and its wobbling and hitting the plastic case around it, can i just replace the fan and motor rather than the whole radiator as the rad looks quite new!

you can replace fan sperately to radiator,

Next when going a little to fast the steering wheel shakes quite a bit could this be wheel bearings or anything else? It is really quite low and know this puts more pressure on bearings but the previous owner did say he had replaced them for last mot!

 wheel balacing/buckled rim/tyre.

also heating is always quite hot even when on cold,

 heater valve stuck.  check valve operation, located in engine bay where heater pipes go through bulkhead to matrix.

also have a wire hanging down on drivers side underneath the front of the car but i will post pics tomorrow of that to make it easier!

 could be wiring for the outside temp sender if it's near the front drivers side corner.

Oh and radio gets no signal for any radio stations but may not be plugged in will check tomorrow.

If anyone can help with any of these problems it would be greatly appreciated.

Will put up some pictures tomorrow so you can all see my new pride and joy!!

Thanks in advance,

Andy

Welcome to the forum!

Thanks for the quick replies guys!!

Where abouts do i find the temperature sender in the engine bay and where can i get one from and where can i get a replacement fan and motor??

I dont really know what vdo gauges are to be honest but in the gauge pod there is only a volt gauge oh and forgot to ask about that too as it always reads nothing and needle never moves it just sits all the way to the left is this normal? it does light up when the lights are on though so guessing its wired in!

Thanks again

Andy

Hi Andy.Wrt to the temp reading. Check if the braided metal hoses coming from the WUR is not touching the temp sensor.The temp senser should be above the oil filter and should be screwed into a water hose which goes into the head.

VDO guages should be in the centre console.As far as i know there should be an oil pressure, oil temp and battery voltage gauge.You may also check if they are connected anywhere.

Check if the ECU is plugged in correctly(in the engine tray above the coil) and lastly make sure that your earth connections are solid or stable.

My car also ran quite hot and the fan kicked in very late.When it kicked in , it was noisy aswell.Like a grinding noise.I soon discovered that the cable going the the positive terminal of the battery was dangling against the fan.easy fix and the noise was gone.

I then bought a thermostat switch that kicks in at a lower temp.I might be speaking under correction but as far as i understand, the Vw thermostat switch kicks the fan in at 83.5 Deg C.

I bought a Thermostat of a Renault 1.6.This one kicks in at 68 Deg C. I know that a Peugeot switch will work aswell.

Also check for water leaks and use engine coolant.

Enjoy your new ride man

L

Oh yes, check if the fuel filter is not clogged or dirty.Actually replace it with a new own.Its underneath your drivers sides back seat underneath the car.or just follow the noise.lol

This fixed my winning problem.

L

Still trying to get my temp gauge working properly byt still no luck! Right so there are to switches inline on the pipe going into the head one is brown with 2 pins and the other has only one pin! which one is it? also i was told by someone else that if you unplug the switch completely the gauge should not flash or read anything but my needle still moves and the led flashes away! if the guy is right then what else could it be?
help!!!