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<title>Volkswagen woes, window regulator problems, cooling fan module coolant
entry, Mark Giammalvo</title>
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<center><big><big><b><i><font color="#3333ff">Giammalvo Files</font></i></b></big></big></center>
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<img src="mark3.jpg" alt="Mark Giammalvo" height="180" width="167">
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<p><i><font color="#000000">Mark Giammalvo specializes in driveability
diagnostics </font><font color="#000000">at his family
business, Sam Giammalvo's Auto Sales & Service,
Inc. in New</font> <font color="#000000">Bedford, MA. </font> </i>
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<p><i><font color="#000000">Mark, who has been with the business for
over 20 years, is an ASE Master
Technician and Parts Specialist. He also holds the ASE L1 certification,
and has an associates degree in business</font>
<font color="#000000">management. <br>
Mark is also a writer for Motor Age Magazine and is the
past secretary of the Alliance of Automotive Service Professionals,
(AASP).<br>
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<p><small><i><font color="#000000">(Printed in the Journal of The Alliance
of Automotive Service Providers, AASP) </font></i></small></p>
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<big><big><b> Volkswagen Woes</b></big></big>
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A service customer decided to bring in his daughters 136,000 mile VW
Jetta. The customer mentioned several problems. The car was not starting
intermittently and the ac was inoperative. Even after numerous starting
attempts, we were never able to duplicate the starting problem. We did
find the ignition switch sticking at times so it was given the WD-40 vaccine.
The ac clutch was cycling rapidly so the Freon was identified and evacuated.
Since we found the Jetta had lost 9 oz. of Freon we recharged and dyed
the system. As so common with today's ac work, no leak was found. With
the system fully recharged, we discovered that the cooling fans did not
seem to be working correctly. Correction, not working correctly as "normal
operation" would indicate. As typical with Volkswagens, our service database
was very sparse on diagnostic information. There was no description of the
Jetta's cooling fan strategy for engine temperature or ac operation. The
customer was warned of the overheat and ac problem possibilities and we
recommend that he see a VW dealer to further diagnose and correct that system.
<br>
<br>
A week later the Jetta returned on the back of a tow truck The Jetta
was still giving the customer "no start" trouble. Fortunately, the car
was now hung up in the "no start" mode. After testing for power in various
areas, the ignition switch was found to be the cause. During the ignition
switch replacement the air bag clock spring fell apart. After a new clock
spring and ignition switch the customer was back on the road. Exactly one
month later the VW was back again riding the wrecker. Now the customer was
upset. The VW had overheated on the highway. The customer found that one
of the fan blades had broken off. For those of you that don't know about
the wonderful Jetta cooling fan design, this car uses one cooling fan motor
to turn two fan blades. The driver's side fan blade is attached to the
motor. The passengers' side blade is turned by the driver's side via a
skinny fan belt. Guess how you get the fan shroud out? Evacuate the ac
system again so you can remove the ac line running above the fans. After
a new fan motor, and belt, the Jetta was running again, although not for
long. The cooling system level kept dropping and there were no visible leaks.
The engine was now difficult to restart hot. A pull of the spark plugs yielded
the rest of the story: coolant in the cylinders. The customer was notified
and came down to take a look. <br>
<br>
The customer authorized the head gasket repairs but was fearful about
going to the dealer for the cooling fan diagnosis. A final look by yours
truly yielded some interesting information. Although our VW service information
was useless for any system strategy, it did show the location of the cooling
fan control module. In addition, the customer mentioned that recently the
cooling fans had been on all the time, even on a cold start. After wiggling
several connectors, I lucked out and found one that turned the fan on and
off when moved. It was the rear connector of the cooling fan module. I
was in for a surprise when I disconnected it. Coolant ran out of the connector
and out the bottom of the fan module. Well, I know one general thing about
cooling fan operation. There definitely should not be any liquids in the
control module. Now how would coolant get into the fan module? I was wondering
if the mounting location of the module had any bearing on this, after all,
its mounted right under the cooling bottle. What a great design, sure guarantees
future sales of cooling fan modules. A call to a service manager I know
at a VW dealer revealed that this to be a common occurrence. When I asked
why European engineering would allow placement of an electronic module under
the overflow bottle, the manager had a comical reply: "European cars don't
overheat" Now that's a funny one! Needless to say, replacing the module
resolved the Jetta's fan troubles. I even added some duct tape to protect
the new module when the car overheats again. Now the fan had both high and
low speed and came on with hot engine temperature and with ac operation.
<br>
<br>
I just don't know what it is about servicing Volkswagens. They sure
can be hair pullers. I know several local service shops that will no longer
service them anymore. Even one of our auto wholesalers refuses to take them
as trade-ins now. I chuckle as I remember what he said about them with his
thick portuguese accent: <i>"Volkwageen...oohhh no, these noo goood, too
mucha troubles, I no wanta." </i><br>
<br>
I've seen my share of VW issues in my 20 or so years of auto service.
The Jetta window regulator design is really extraordinary. We must have
already replaced 50 of those. Now I hear that VW is finally going to send
a mailing to owners for that problem. I'll never forget the first Jetta window
that fell in on me a few years ago. I was driving a 2000 Jetta VR6 home
for the night. When I first got in the car, I put my arm on the center armrest.
Suddenly there was a "ping" as the armrest door button and spring took off
in the car. The next morning when I got in the car and started the engine
I could hear the pounding of the main engine bearings at start up. Then,
when powering down the drivers side window, I heard the window motor run
but the window didn't open. After a brief moment, the window crashed down
into the door. Lastly, was the teenager that purchased a VW Golf from
us. I remember when the kid's father came to pick up the car for him. The
father told me that his son was going to college and was studying to be
an engineer. I thought to myself: <i>"He's going to need to be an engineer
if he ever wants to work on this thing."</i> I will admit though, the
Jettas sure do ride nice and tight and the VR6 really does have a lot of
power. They are fun to drive, just a little tricky to work on.<br>
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<td valign="top"><img src="vw_module1.jpg"
alt="Corrosion on coolant module from antifreeze" width="300"
height="225">
<img src="vw_module2.jpg"
alt="Module in mounted location under bottle" width="300" height="225">
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