VW engine dies when closing door

1987 VW Jetta 4cyl 1.8 5 spd

Engine died when closing the door.

Engine dies whenever the button inside the door frame is pushed, even
when revving the engine.

Please advise.

On 02/20/2013 06:39 PM, themattfella wrote:
> 1987 VW Jetta 4cyl 1.8 5 spd
>
> Engine died when closing the door.
>
> Engine dies whenever the button inside the door frame is pushed, even
> when revving the engine.
>
> Please advise.


As soon as the door switch is pressed the Tachometer bottoms out even
before the engine finishes dying.

Now it won't start at all. It just cranks and cranks and cranks.

It is fuel injected.

Gas can be smelled at the tailpipe when cranking.

themattfella > wrote in news:CpeVs.453$BV7.136
@newsfe24.iad:

> On 02/20/2013 06:39 PM, themattfella wrote:
>> 1987 VW Jetta 4cyl 1.8 5 spd
>>
>> Engine died when closing the door.
>>
>> Engine dies whenever the button inside the door frame is pushed, even
>> when revving the engine.
>>
>> Please advise.
>
>
> As soon as the door switch is pressed the Tachometer bottoms out even
> before the engine finishes dying.
>
> Now it won't start at all. It just cranks and cranks and cranks.
>
> It is fuel injected.
>
> Gas can be smelled at the tailpipe when cranking.
>


You've got no spark.

Sounds like a ground problem. That the tach goes to zero indicates that the
low-tension current that's supposed to go to the ignition module or the
coil or distributor is being routed to ground instead. Or the
igniter/coil/dist is losing its ground through the ECU or wherever it's
supposed to ground. I'll bet the door switch and the igniter/coil/dist
share a ground.

Got any visible corrosion anywhere?


--
Tegger

On Wed, 20 Feb 2013 19:05:27 -0600, themattfella
> wrote:

>On 02/20/2013 06:39 PM, themattfella wrote:
>> 1987 VW Jetta 4cyl 1.8 5 spd
>>
>> Engine died when closing the door.
>>
>> Engine dies whenever the button inside the door frame is pushed, even
>> when revving the engine.
>>
>> Please advise.
>
>
>As soon as the door switch is pressed the Tachometer bottoms out even
>before the engine finishes dying.
>
>Now it won't start at all. It just cranks and cranks and cranks.
>
>It is fuel injected.
>
>Gas can be smelled at the tailpipe when cranking.

Well why do you keep closing the door?...

Do the interior lights come one when opening the door, and go off when
closing it? Do they look normal? Does anything else look funny?

I would start by checking all of the fuses to try to get it running
again. I'd also pull that door jamb switch out and look at the wiring,
etc. See if there is any wiring behind the switch inside the A pillar
that might be shorting. I guess there is some chance it is a ground
problem, but it might be combined with something else, too. Just go
around the car and tighten all of them, or if they are corroded,
unbolt and clean them. There should be at least a few under the hood -
and check anything on the engine block. There should be more around
the kick panels on both sides, but you'll probable have to remove the
trim. Same with under the dash, probably near the column and support,
or the pedal brackets.

On Feb 20, 8:47*pm, Tegger > wrote:
> You've got no spark.

Yours is a tad weak.
----

- gpsman

On 02/20/2013 08:37 PM, Bill Vanek wrote:
> On Wed, 20 Feb 2013 19:05:27 -0600, themattfella
> > wrote:
>
>> On 02/20/2013 06:39 PM, themattfella wrote:
>>> 1987 VW Jetta 4cyl 1.8 5 spd
>>>
>>> Engine died when closing the door.
>>>
>>> Engine dies whenever the button inside the door frame is pushed, even
>>> when revving the engine.
>>>
>>> Please advise.
>>
>>
>> As soon as the door switch is pressed the Tachometer bottoms out even
>> before the engine finishes dying.
>>
>> Now it won't start at all. It just cranks and cranks and cranks.
>>
>> It is fuel injected.
>>
>> Gas can be smelled at the tailpipe when cranking.
>
> Well why do you keep closing the door?...
>
> Do the interior lights come one when opening the door, and go off when
> closing it? Do they look normal? Does anything else look funny?
>
> I would start by checking all of the fuses to try to get it running
> again. I'd also pull that door jamb switch out and look at the wiring,
> etc. See if there is any wiring behind the switch inside the A pillar
> that might be shorting. I guess there is some chance it is a ground
> problem, but it might be combined with something else, too. Just go
> around the car and tighten all of them, or if they are corroded,
> unbolt and clean them. There should be at least a few under the hood -

I'm sorry for not understanding. A few what?

> and check anything on the engine block. There should be more around
> the kick panels on both sides, but you'll probable have to remove the
> trim. Same with under the dash, probably near the column and support,
> or the pedal brackets.
>
>

On Thu, 21 Feb 2013 07:28:09 -0600, themattfella
> wrote:

>On 02/20/2013 08:37 PM, Bill Vanek wrote:
>> On Wed, 20 Feb 2013 19:05:27 -0600, themattfella
>> > wrote:
>>
>>> On 02/20/2013 06:39 PM, themattfella wrote:
>>>> 1987 VW Jetta 4cyl 1.8 5 spd
>>>>
>>>> Engine died when closing the door.
>>>>
>>>> Engine dies whenever the button inside the door frame is pushed, even
>>>> when revving the engine.
>>>>
>>>> Please advise.
>>>
>>>
>>> As soon as the door switch is pressed the Tachometer bottoms out even
>>> before the engine finishes dying.
>>>
>>> Now it won't start at all. It just cranks and cranks and cranks.
>>>
>>> It is fuel injected.
>>>
>>> Gas can be smelled at the tailpipe when cranking.
>>
>> Well why do you keep closing the door?...
>>
>> Do the interior lights come one when opening the door, and go off when
>> closing it? Do they look normal? Does anything else look funny?
>>
>> I would start by checking all of the fuses to try to get it running
>> again. I'd also pull that door jamb switch out and look at the wiring,
>> etc. See if there is any wiring behind the switch inside the A pillar
>> that might be shorting. I guess there is some chance it is a ground
>> problem, but it might be combined with something else, too. Just go
>> around the car and tighten all of them, or if they are corroded,
>> unbolt and clean them. There should be at least a few under the hood -
>
>I'm sorry for not understanding. A few what?

Ground connections.

>> and check anything on the engine block. There should be more around
>> the kick panels on both sides, but you'll probable have to remove the
>> trim. Same with under the dash, probably near the column and support,
>> or the pedal brackets.
>>
>>

On 02/20/2013 07:05 PM, themattfella wrote:
> On 02/20/2013 06:39 PM, themattfella wrote:
>> 1987 VW Jetta 4cyl 1.8 5 spd
>>
>> Engine died when closing the door.
>>
>> Engine dies whenever the button inside the door frame is pushed, even
>> when revving the engine.
>>
>> Please advise.
>
>
> As soon as the door switch is pressed the Tachometer bottoms out even
> before the engine finishes dying.
>
> Now it won't start at all. It just cranks and cranks and cranks.
>
> It is fuel injected.
>
> Gas can be smelled at the tailpipe when cranking.

The spark plugs were changed yesterday, before the problem occurred, for
maintenance, not because there was anything specifically wrong with them.

themattfella > wrote:
>1987 VW Jetta 4cyl 1.8 5 spd
>
>Engine died when closing the door.
>
>Engine dies whenever the button inside the door frame is pushed, even
>when revving the engine.
>
>Please advise.

What do the engine and the frame lighting have in common? When you find
that, you have found your problem.

Grounds are the first thing I'd think of... a bad engine ground can cause
all sorts of weird interaction issues.

But it might not be grounds... those cars have multipin connectors and
cable bundles that can degrade and develop shorts between elements.

I'd get the full electrical manual and get out the ohmmeter and start
checking, but first I would check out all the ignition system grounds.
The manual will tell you how everything is supposed to be grounded so
you can compare. You can also work your way from the distributor back
checking against the manual.
--scott
--
"C'est un Nagra. C'est suisse, et tres, tres precis."

themattfella > wrote:
>
>The spark plugs were changed yesterday, before the problem occurred, for
>maintenance, not because there was anything specifically wrong with them.

What was removed in order to get to the plugs? Did it include the engine
ground strap? Did the tech remember to put the strap back where it belongs?
--scott
--
"C'est un Nagra. C'est suisse, et tres, tres precis."