# Cold Weather Starting and Stalling Problems



## dr. sandwiches (Apr 9, 2009)

Hi,

I drive a 2007 Jetta 2.5 35K miles.

This morning (cold weather, frosty) the car wouldn't start. The engine would turn but not start, so I don't think it's an electrical issue. air or fuel problem. The fuel tank had between 1/8 and 1/4 tank

Came home after work, opened the door and heard the fuel pump kick in and the car started right up.

Filled the car up, drove to a restaurant, ate dinner. when I started the car to drive home, the car started and then stalled after a few seconds. I restarted the car and drove home without incident.

Car started and drove fine for a couple days, then on a frosty cold night, I started the car and it stalled. Happened a couple of times and then didn't stall anymore.

Has anyone had similar problems? what can be causing this problem? Can dirty fuel (e.g. condensed water in the fuel system) and freezing the line in cold weather?

I talked to my dealship and they said my car isn't affected by the coil recall.
Not too sure about the TSB about the cam follower i the fuel pump.


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## Unilateral Phase Detractor (Aug 23, 2005)

Probably a fuel problem; are you buying gas from "Rusty Joe's service station"?


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## jettafan[atic] (Dec 2, 2008)

Sounds like a fuel problem, (to the best of my knowledge) the less gas you have in the tank = more air which will carry some water with it. When it gets below freezing cold the water will freeze and can clog your lines/filter/pump. enough fuel may be supplied at first to start the engine but if some ice has formed in the tank it will get sucked up fairly quickly and the engine will sputter and die.


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## dr. sandwiches (Apr 9, 2009)

I thought it might be a fuel problem too. I filled up the tank with gas tank and put in a bottle of fuel system cleaner this past weekend which was supposed to get rid of the water/deposits. I don't use gas from no name gas companies. The car has been running fine last week but this morning it was 29 degrees and the car wouldn't start. I missed a day of work. 

How do I solve this fuel problem?


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## dr. sandwiches (Apr 9, 2009)

If it is bad coils or bad , would the car throw the CEL? 

If it is EXCESSIVE WEAR OF INTAKE CAMSHAFT LOBE THAT DRIVES THE HIGH PRESSURE FUEL PUMP, would the car throw the CEL?


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## dr. sandwiches (Apr 9, 2009)

anyone bump?


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## Unilateral Phase Detractor (Aug 23, 2005)

dr. sandwiches said:


> If it is bad coils or bad , would the car throw the CEL?
> 
> If it is EXCESSIVE WEAR OF INTAKE CAMSHAFT LOBE THAT DRIVES THE HIGH PRESSURE FUEL PUMP, would the car throw the CEL?


 This car is port injected, there is no HPFP


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## jettafan[atic] (Dec 2, 2008)

Well, if there were a leak that was allowing moist air to enter the system it would definitely throw a CEL so we can rule out a few things there. The car is stalling just a few seconds after you start it right? Never after it's been running for a while? Keep in mind you need 3 basic things for the car to start/run: fuel, air, and spark. It's not going to be an issue with spark because a) it would run noticeably rough all the time, not just at start and b) there would definitely be a CEL. I doubt it would be an issue with air metering because the starting issue shouldn't be intermittent like this. I did have a similar issue with the car starting once because one of the air lines that connects to the intake popped off. The car would start for a couple of seconds and then stall but it was 100% every time I tried to start it, as soon as I popped the hood and snugged the hose back up it was fine. 

So the only thing left is fuel, it more than likely won't be an issue with the fuel pump because the car doesn't stall after it's been running for a bit and like you said in an earlier post you can hear it prime. So I've gotta guess it's going to be the fuel filter, could be that some dirt got sucked up into it and it's just clogging intermittently. At least that's the best place I can think of to start


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## reidlee (Jan 12, 2011)

*Bad Gasoline Smell in 2009 Jetta 2.5*

I have an issue that is sort of along the same lines. A few days ago when it was about 24 degrees (F) outside, I was driving along and started smelling a bad gasoline smell in the cabin of the car. I was on the way to the airport and had to make it for a flight, so I kept going but shut off the heater / fan and dealt with it. When I returned today from my trip, I got in the car and could only smell the gasoline very faint. I took it to my mechanic and he opened the hood and could smell gasoline, but did not see any leaks. He took it for a drive and could not smell anything in the cabin. It was about 32 degrees today, so that is the only change from the other day. He said to drive it and bring it back in if it happens again. He said it wasn't throwing out any codes or check engine light is not on. The car was filled up about 3 days prior to this issue happening the first time.

Any ideas or suggestions?


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## dr. sandwiches (Apr 9, 2009)

@jettafan

well the thing is not only that it is stalling after its been running for a short time only but that its not starting at all in cold weather in the mornings.

It's been leaving me stranded in the morning and i missed two days of work last week. and the rest of the other days have been relying on a coworker for rides.

It didn't start one morning when it was 38 degrees outside and after I added a bottle of Heet the night before so i doubt it's frozen condensation in the fuel system.

Would a clogged filter act up only in cold weather? the car has less than 35k miles, what are the chances of a clogged filter?


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## jettafan[atic] (Dec 2, 2008)

dr. sandwiches said:


> @jettafan
> 
> well the thing is not only that it is stalling after its been running for a short time only but that its not starting at all in cold weather in the mornings.
> 
> ...


I can say with about 90% certainty that it would be a fuel delivery problem. If it starts sometimes, runs for a few seconds and then stalls it's because the fuel pressure/delivery isn't being maintained after it sucks the lines dry. Not starting at all would be because no fuel is getting sprayed in the first place. It won't be because of a leak because that throws a CEL, could possibly be an injector problem but I really doubt it. The most likely cause would be either the pump or the filter and I've known of a few people who had either their filter or pump fail early in the life of the car.


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## dr. sandwiches (Apr 9, 2009)

Dropped the car at the dealership for a week.

The dealership found the codes that light the CEL when I was trying to start it one day (The CEL cleared when i started the car later that day, when the weather warmed up the car). Those codes according to the dealer, related to the crank sensor, so he changed the crank sensor.

I told him that the CEL turned on when i was attempting to start the car and that the CEL turned itself off when the car started later that day and that the codes might not be due to the underlying problem but are a secondary issue due to the engine cranking but the car not starting.

The first three days that the car was at the dealership, the car started right up so the dealership couldn't really do much.

I got lucky and the fourth day the car starting problem manifest itself at the dealership even after changing the crank sensor, and the dealership said that they were able to diagnose it as a faulty fuel pump relay.

Hopefully the fuel pump relay issue is the real culprit here, only time will tell.


Just wanted to keep you guys in the loop. So if you have a car starting problem when its cold but the car starts up when it warms up AND there is no check engine light, it could be a bad fuel pump relay (hopefully )


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## Willtesla (Jan 5, 2014)

*Cold Weather Causes stalling.*

Ive just recently drove my VW Rabbit with the 2.5l into NH. Where it was -4 F and to my sudden supprise when I tried to drop my friend of at her house. The started sputtering a bit, but then stalled in the middle of the road. I also thought it was the gas(maybe freezing, maybe jelling) But my car evetually restarted with the idle rpms running up and down. I managed to get it to her house. While i investigated the problem(i thought my engine was failing) as it sat still the problem cured its self. I then tried putting my heater into 'recirculate' and this medicated the problem at speeds under 50. As it got colder during my drive home i turned the heat down and blocked flow of air through the grill with towels, and this fixed the problem at a speed of 70 even when the temp got down to -9 F. Through this entire experience the engine coolant temperature indicated it was at operational temperature (190 F) With absolutly no flexing; Possibly an indication the Thermostat was working properly. :screwy:


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## itskohler (Jan 7, 2011)

Willtesla said:


> Ive just recently drove my VW Rabbit with the 2.5l into NH. Where it was -4 F and to my sudden supprise when I tried to drop my friend of at her house. The started sputtering a bit, but then stalled in the middle of the road. I also thought it was the gas(maybe freezing, maybe jelling) But my car evetually restarted with the idle rpms running up and down. I managed to get it to her house. While i investigated the problem(i thought my engine was failing) as it sat still the problem cured its self. I then tried putting my heater into 'recirculate' and this medicated the problem at speeds under 50. As it got colder during my drive home i turned the heat down and blocked flow of air through the grill with towels, and this fixed the problem at a speed of 70 even when the temp got down to -9 F. Through this entire experience the engine coolant temperature indicated it was at operational temperature (190 F) With absolutly no flexing; Possibly an indication the Thermostat was working properly. :screwy:


The coolant temp gauge never moves, ever. Unless your cars engine is about to explode.


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## rabbitransit (Feb 18, 2007)

make sure when you do start these cars you run it for a minimum of 5 minutes before shutting it off. 
A quick start and shut off will leave a pool of fuel in the cylinder and will cause hard starting the next day.


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