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The car has a fully charged battery, new alternator and starter motor. The car will start and run but if I stop (for example to fill up with petrol) all I get when turning ingnition is a click( but not every time sometimes it starts fine). This sometimes resolves itself after 10 minutes but has been known to take hours. It has got so bad I darent go anywhere for fear of it not starting again. Help!!

Is it standard engine or modify in any way…

Check fuel filters…x2?
Check electric fuel pumps 1 intank 1 external check for wire connections and need full volts 12v
Fuel pump relays can fail try by passing
Does it have fuel accumulator? If blockage or not working causes issues.
Ignition keys and switch issue?
Distributor and timing issues?

Rust in fuel tank getting picked up on gauze starving fuel, then slowly falling off to allow pumps to pick up fuel again?

Automatic? whole lot of things there.

Suspects bad ignition switch….

manual transmission?

Ignition switch in and in the run position
If you place the car in Neutral parking brake full on.
If you jumper the starter solenoid wire straight to the battery does the starter spin and the engine start?

A duff ignition switch gives symptoms you describe.

Quite easy bolt on/off to change, ignore the haynes manual about drilling out screws, simply remove the steering lock housing

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/VW-GOLF-MK1-MK2-1-8-GTI-IGNITION-STARTER-SWITCH-FEBI-26652-OE-no-111-905-865-L/392375571511?hash=item5b5b681437:g:6cIAAOSwgR5dTZQy