Car Hasn't Been Started In Almost A Year?

Question 1
Car Hasn't Been Started In Almost A Year?...  My 2000 VW Beetle has been sitting in my driveway since last August. I'm wondering if there could be any problems with the engine and brakes, since it hasn't been started/driven in so long. There were no problems with it before except a dead battery.

Thanks!

Answers
1)   it will need a service especially the brakes - J R

2)   No, you should be ok. Just to be sure, check the coolant level and bump the motor a couple times without letting it start up. Just to get some oil flowing. Let it run for 5 min before driving it so its fully heated up. - fuzzylogic_y2k

3)   The battery will be scrap as they cannot stand being out of use. Hopefully the clutch will disengage as they can rust on to the flywheel permanently. I would fit a new battery. Remove the spark plugs and inject clean engine oil into the plug holes. Put it in gear and push it about to turn the engine over and distribute the oil. Leave it overnight. The oil will free up the pistons and rings and good compression should result. Good luck. - Bazza

4)   You should be fine, replace the battery, if it sat discharged this long it will be dead and not capable of holding a charge. I have stored cars before many times up to a year with nothing more than a disconnected battery (that I charged once in a while), change the oil, make sure the tires are ok, pump them up, warm up the car, make sure nothing is leaking. Also make sure nothing took up residence in your engine compartment, its happened to me before. - Kafka

5)   dead battery - obviously re charge and should fire up although prob wont hold much charge anymore

brakes may have seiezed get them checked - main problem


handbrake cable might have seiezed and maybe streached or snaped or ready to snap due to being up for so long

change coolent - hitmanjay99uk

6)   Change all the fluids. remove each spark plug and put a squirt of oil in each cylinder before installing new plugs and plug wires. Test the battery, and replace if necessary. Start moving slowly and check the tires. The rubber might be dry and brittle, depending on where you are. - παπούτσια

7)   That is basically all that ever dies in it. Batteries in the store do not have the acid put in them "until they are actually purchased" as the chemical reaction starts immediately of changing lead to lead sulfate. A sulfated battery is garbage. A way to keep the battery from sulfating up is to have the battery charged occasionally. Such as what happens when you drive the car - the alternator charges the battery. Even then you only have 5 or 6 years of life out of a battery. Not touching the battery for a year, well - you can bet the battery is hooped. Otherwise, it will start and run fine. - Minimal patience

8)   The battery will be useless and when you do get it running you'll need to take it to a garage to get the brakes checked out and a good service but it should be OK. - EvelynThe ModifiedDog.

9)   Fuzzylog is the closest.
Sitting a year is nothing.
It is true the battery will likely be shot, but that is no what I consider part of the car anyway.
It is like oil or gasoline.

It is possible that if the parking brake has been on, that they could bond.
But that is trivial to fix.
You just have to tap on the backing plate with a hammer, and let the vibration shatter the rust bond.

It basically will not require any repair at all.
I have done it dozens of times.
I always have a couple of classic projects hanging around for years at a time. - Motorhead

10)   check the oil and water, and see if it starts, you might need fresh petrol in it if it will not start,
there might be a chance that the rear pads have stuck to the discs if handbrake has been on, try it ! - Pete


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Question 2
Should the timing belt be changed when the water pump is replaced on a 99 VW Beetle?...  I had the head redone with all misc part replaced, on 5/4/2011, cost around $2200, (thank god I had a warranty!) no more than a month on 05/12/2011 my temp light came on. Had the water pump replaced ....The the car just quit & wouldn't start. So I had a mechanic look at it & He stated that there was NO way the water pump was ever replaced. And then he went on to tell me that 3 valves came unseeded. God I am SOOOO sick of this car!! WTF!!!! Some body help me!
I took it to "another mechanic due to the fact that the second time it broke down I was 200 miles away from where I first got it fixed...

Answers
1)   Seems like it might be a good idea to put a new timing belt on there while you're at it. If that thing goes then you will pretty much need a new engine. - Austin

2)   If the water pump is driven by the timing belt it always gets replaced when a water pump that is leaking gets replaced. The antifreeze from the leaking water pump ruins a timing belt and any professional mechanic would never reuse the soaked old timing belt, it will only jump time and bend valves. - thebax2006

3)   Yes. - παπούτσια

4)   Unfortunatly, it is better that you know what work needs to be done and how to do it. For the record the timing belt needs to be replaced at 100,000 miles and every 60,000 miles there after. Everything that touches the timing belt needs to be replaced when the timing belt is replaced. Normally just the water pump. You should always ask the mechanic for the old parts so that you know they have been replaced. But, it is even better if you can do the work yourself. WTF. - sunset

5)   Nothing wrong with the car. Who you got to do the work...there is a problem there if they do not do the work and scam you out of money.

Yet, you are trusting a different mechanic?

Why did you go to a different mechanic? Why would you ever suspect the last mechanic to screw you ?

Bad water pump would not stop the car from running. Waterpump would not be replaced if that was not the reason for the temperature light coming on. Maybe they changed a temperature sensor. Check your receipt.

Water pumps do not usually fail - they only leak behind the pulley when they start to go..

"Then he went on to tell me that 3 valves came unseated"

Meaning "what, exactly?" I am unfamiliar with that terminology(as it is BS) His remedy would be(how many hundreds$)

It sounds like con # 2 See a third independent mechanic for their assessment. OR,

Go back to the dealer and let the dealer mechanic work on the vehicle. (I assume that is where you got the "warranty work" done at.)

Until you learn how to fix it or find a trustworthy mechanic who knows something (by asking other VW owners where they get their car fixed at).

FYI - the timing belt is replaced every 60,000 miles(100,000KM) regardless of whether the water pump gets replaced or not. I have swapped out 4 timing belts out of the same vehicle without touching the water-pump (it is fine so leave it alone).

It they can sell you a water pump, they will - but the belt can be removed without removing the water-pump.

If antifreeze should ever get on a timing belt, wash it off and dry the belt. There is nothing corrosive in antifreeze (otherwise you would not have rubber hoses connecting the engine to the radiator or rubber hoses to the heater core...- common sense dictates this line of thinking)

If you want to buy a new one, I won't stop you.but that is the reality.

They could have replaced the timing belt when they changed the head, but at that time I guess it was not necessary. It would be on your receipt for the head job. - Minimal patience


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Question 3
HOW MUCH COULD I GET?? ?...  My friend is Gunna sell (practically give) me an1998 jetta for $400. It doesn't run. How much could I get for it if i got it to run?
Just ballpark estimates
Thanks!:)

Answers
1)   199x Jettas are junk - the real question is how much are you going to pour into it trying to get it run before you realize you have been played - daSVgrouch

2)   FOR 400 IF U GET IT FIXED AND RUN IT WOULD GET U TO PAY MORE GENIUS AND GEUSS WHAT AFTER U PAY THE FIX.... ITS GONNA BE LIKE 600 OF 500 OR SO AND THEN ITS NOT GONNA BE THAT MUCH OF A FUCKING DIFFERNCE COMPAREDTO A FUCKING NEW ONE. SO GET YOUR ASS TO THE STORE AND GET A NEW ONE OK ?? - justin

3)   well about 3,942 dollars is if u get 2 work and what the miles it has on it you would have to tell me that first and then i can tell u - ilovedachunds

4)   you wouldnt get the money back selling it that it would cost to get it to run... i would just try parting it - David

5)   According to Kelly Blue Book, (and I'm assuming this somewhere between the base model and the top of the line model,) you might be able to get 3,280 for it. That's assuming it's in "good" condition, and has 100,000 miles on the odometer.

However, that being said, this car is 13 years old, and that, combined with the fact that it is a VW means that it probably would be pretty expensive to fix it. (Since it's older, parts are harder to find, and in general parts for foreign cars are kinda expensive).

I don't know exactly what's wrong with the car, but chances are you're going to spend more money to fix it than it's worth. So, I wouldn't fix it with the intent to sell it for a profit. That being said, you can go to the website below and play with the options for this particular car and maybe you can get a better "ballpark estimate". Hope this helps! - smart guy


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Question 4
is oil pan located next to plastic skid plate with allen wrench fitting for plug removal for VW TDI 2002?...  Also, is it plastic? and is that the oil filter under the plastic lid at the top of the engine? weird! doing first oil change and was expecting a little weirdness with vw, not too bad though if that is where the oil pan is. hopefully i don't have to remove and plastic underneath to get to it. Is is made of plastic?? really?

Answers
1)   The plastic skid plate will need to be removed in order to remove the oil pan drain plug. If you remove the skid plate you will see the oil pan at the bottom end of the engine. It looks like every other oil pan. Nothing special from VW in the oil pan dept. - Paul Aldridge

2)   Make sure you're using synthetic, diesel oil. Shell Rotella T6 is one of the most widely available oils acceptable for the 96-04 TDIs.

I usually just buy this when its time for an oil change: http://www.idparts.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=1059

That way I know I'm getting good oil, a high quality filter, and a new drain plug.

And here is a simple step-by-step how to for the oil change, http://forums.tdiclub.com/showthread.php?t=43346 it mentions a New Beetle TDI, but the engine is the exact same as the Golf or Jetta TDIs.

As this is your first change, make sure you're familiar with the rest of the maintenance schedule for the car. ALH TDIs can easily run 400,000+ miles if properly cared for. - Richard R

3)   The allen head drain plug you can see without removing the plastic splash guard is your transmission drain plug. Do not pull that unless you plan on replacing the trans fluid. - gti_4cefed4

4)   I know this doesn't answer your question, but that "skid plate" isn't to protect the engine so much as it reduces noise and improves aerodynamics.That's why it's plastic. Metal is heavy and they are going for efficiency. - Louis G


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Question 5
How much would it cost to put bolts back in the transmission on a volkswagen? ?...  

Answers
1)   too much. - sunset

2)   What kind of bolts? What kind of tranny?

Heck, what kind of Volkswagen? - vrsicks

3)   What bolts? Axle? You got to pay what you got to pay. Maybe a beer; maybe some koochy-koo - Minimal patience

4)   I would assume you mean something like the CV join flange bolts came loose or something like that.
And it should not take more than a half hour. If some bolt stripped out, then it could take an hour to install a heli-coil or something.
And the going rate is something like $80/hour. - Motorhead


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