Friday, March 26, 2010

what is likely the cause of a draining battery in 03 VW Jetta?

Question 1
what is likely the cause of a draining battery in 03 VW Jetta?...  My daughters battery keeps draining in her 03 Jetta, but the battery is brand new. We have had the alternator checked and been told it is good. I have also found in looking online that this seems to be common problem among jettas. Have been told it could be anything from her alarm system to seat warmers staying on, but we just dont know what to try ! Help! This is getting ridiculous and the dealer costs way too much to even think about taking it there! We do know that it needs a new fan motor as it is overcooling....would that have anything to do with draining the battery? The dealer wants $800 to fix that. Please give us any suggestions to try so we are not continually having to jump this car off. Sometimes it goes for weeks with no problem and then it will start again with the battery draining.

Answers
1)   The only way I know to find the shorted circuit is to have use a meter that is able to measure the current draw from the battery and start pulling fuses one at a time. When the meter drops to 0 then you have found the circuit that is draining the battery. I have a friend that has a Jetta and had the same problem and it ended up being the power seat switch on the drivers side. When my friend drove the vehicle there was no problem but when his wife drove it the battery would be dead the next morning every time. The reason for it was he moved the seat the whole way back and somehow stopped the shorted wire from draining the battery. Then when his wife moved the seat forward it would drain the battery again. Hope I have been helpful. - king_davis13

2)   hi my son just had this problem with his jetta they checked his seat belts ,thought that was it turned out to be a couple of things it had a bad ground and a wire going to the fuzz panel that was causeing it to drain went bad,also check your idle air control sensor he had a problem with that it wouldnt shut off he didnt go to a dealer cost to much lucked out found a vw mech. that had a small little garage and only works on vw"s next town over best of friends now but once again check your grounds first good luck - Chet

3)   I am not sure how to perform a self-test on a VW. You can try this: get in and close the doors. Hold the trip reset button in and turn the key to the on position. Do not tun the vehicle on. Release the button and look at the dash. It should begin a self check. Wait for a trouble code to appear. It should be something that starts with either a P or C. That's a Power train code or a Chassis code. Since your battery is draining for no apparent reason, you have a direct short somewhere and a DTC (diagnostic trouble code) should appear. If this method does not work, a lot of the guys at most Auto Zones and Checkers will read it for you with their tool for free. If one won't, go to Pep Boys and fill out there rewards application. It's free! Then, take your car around back and have them read the code for you. If you have a rewards card they do a free code check, if you don't have the rewards card I think they charge like 50 bucks or something. Still cheaper than the dealer reading it. After you get the code go to this website: http://pics.tdiclub.com/data/517/135237938dtc.pdf and look up your code. You should now know where your problem is. Post on here again with the code and problem to get advice on fixing yourself or go to the auto parts store and ask someone there. Do your best to avoid a dealership, they usually want your first born. - steven s

4)   Good Grief, ppl sure dislike dealerships, dont they? Any dealer, be it Chevy, Honda, etc.
Had a similar problem with my VW.
But I took it to my local dealership. They diagnosed it for abt. $30 . They traced it to an Aftermarket Radio that an audio shop had installed for me. I had to take it back to the audio shop to have it re-wired. So it was not the car's fault after all.
BTW, I go to my dealer because they do the job right the 1st time and guarantee it. Plus, they have all the special tools and experience . Sure they charge a little more. But you get what you pay for.
But I understand everyone has their own way of doing things that work out best for them.
Also, be sure to check the trunk interior light. My brother's Mazda had a light that remained in the 'on' position and it caused his battery to die overnight too. So check all interior lights. - fenton

5)   Fix the fan thing absolutely and screw the dealer any shop can work on that.

Daughter driving pretty sedate, I have seen where the RPM's are so low cruising around town with the Monsoon Stereo blasting and the fan on high and the headlights on (DRL's) that the battery goes down. Did it myself to my 2003 GLI just this winter. Keep the reves about 2500 when cruising and back the fan off full blast and well we gotta have tunes. Seems to have cured mine up. Road trip on the freeway helps too.

SCI, 2003 GLI - sci


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Question 2
how much should i expect to pay for parts and labor for new alternator in VW Jetta.?...  Car is 02 Jetta and needs new alternator per my mechanic. He has quoted $410 to put on new one. Does this sound right? I thought this was high as we bought one for my sons car and my husband put it on himself for about $80 last year. But maybe more difficult on this VW which has been nothing but trouble since we got it.

Answers
1)   The alternator shouldn't be over 120, and 3 hours to replace it seems a tad steep to me too.

Shop around for another mechanic.
Or do it yourself and save a wee bit. - Briano

2)   I wouldn't install it myself. I just had something done at my VW dealer and it was $70/hour. That sounds way too expensive.
http://www.volkswagen.pe/html/volkswagen_jetta_peru.html - alexpassini

3)   A new Bosch alternator for your car is going to run between $275-350 depending where you buy it. If you don't think you're going to keep the car much longer, you can purchase a low mileage used alternator for under $100 online. Installation is not that difficult if your husband has replaced alternators on other cars. If he is a "do it your selfer," Advise him to retract the accessory belt tensioner by using a 16mm open ended wrench to pull the pulley half towards the front of the car, and locking it in place using a 20d common nail or a small allen key. With belt tension off, it is simple to un-bolt and replace the alternator. - gti_4cefed4

4)   An 02 Jetta at 410 sounds like a new Bosch Alternator, anything less is thievery.

What the heck kind /yr car does your son have(jeesh!).

I would demand that they remove the alt and have it rebuilt by a local rebuilder and that should slice 150 off that bill.

SCI, 2003 GLI, Former shop owner - sci


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Question 3
What was a good year for gti's?...  I looking to buy a used gti. I've seen a few and they range from 2000-2008. What was a good year in gti quality, and which ones have been known to be less reliable?

Answers
1)   2007's seem to have very little trouble. - Impalaman62

2)   2006 onwards was a good time in terms of performance, handling, gas mileage and reliability. The later the year though the more reliable. By 2009 the reliability is pretty much bullet proof. However 2010 is even more reliable as the changes were mostly cosmetic. - Nichole Marie

3)   If looking for style and don't care much for reliability, practicality, or anything making it useful check out a MkII GTI which goes up to 92 I believe. After that look into the MkV. It is probably the most reliable and practical of all the GTI variations. - GT

4)   1992 GTI 16V on the A2( MK II) chassis. They are classics anymore, but are the most visceral and enjoyable of the lot. The Recaro's are the best seats ever put in a VW. The Close Ratio 5 spd and twin Cam is like blasting off on a crotch rocket! They are some of the best Auto Crossers too.

SCI, 2003 GLI- Had A2 16v's for 21 years of love and racing - sci


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Question 4
Will two adult bikes fit in the back of a VW Golf with the back seats down?...  I can't test is as I'm borrowing the car and don't have it yet. Tring to work out whether to buy a bike rack or not. Bikes are both Adult mountain bikes.

Answers
1)   yeah, if you remove the front wheels of both bikes, done it in my golf, it is aggro but they will go in. - movana

2)   My wife and I have Mt. bikes too.
When we 1st began riding, we had a 2000 Golf GTI. Both bikes fit the Golf w/ seats folded flat.
However, we had to remove the front wheels and juggle the bikes to fit. The frnt. wheels had to be bungee corded to the sides. For safety we bungeed both bikes to the anchoring devices in the hatch.
We did this for 1 season. It quickly became tiresome. And it meant we had limited space for our other camping gear and bike equipment. Plus food, etc. But we accomplished it.
For the next season we decided to go with an aftermarket roof rack. Big mistake. Looked cheap and did not fit well at all.
We finally realized that the Genuine VW roof rack that is custom made for each VW, was the best.
It looks great and is aerodynamically designed. And its much sturdier too.
The bike racks that hang on the back are an option too. But we have kayaks and the VW roof rack can accomodate them too.
We are happy campers/bikers/kayakers now with our roof rack! And it leaves the entire interior free for gear and goodies! - fenton

3)   Probably you might have to remove a wheel or 2. - Lotus

4)   Movana is right. And when you do get the rack, get a Thule. Thule makes the racks for VW. - djaca70


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Question 5
can i install a turbo in a 2.0 jetta?...  

Answers
1)   only after engine modifications it would be expensive - Harley Drive

2)   yeah you can .. but you would have to make a few changes to the engine because then you would mess it up . - juan b

3)   Yes, thousands of people have already. Go to the VWvortex.com forums and learn all about what needs to be done. - gti_4cefed4

4)   Possible but a lot less work and cheaper to change your car and get a 1.8t version and change out the turbo to a higher pressure one. A lot more mods around for it too such as better ECU software. - Nichole Marie


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