i am seeing and arc where the plug boot plugs into the coil pack. i check
the plug and the wire and all is well. is my pack dead? and if so, any idea
on what it costs to replace?

-dave

it turned out to be one of the wires.  it is a beautiful day here in SE NY,
lots of rain and clouds and more rain. so i got a chance to really check
things out and the problem is the wire. i can fix that quite cheaply.

-dave

My local VW shop has finally diagnosed a really bizarre problem with my 95
GTI as a bad Coil Pack.  Apparently the connectors to the spark plugs have
cracked (or melted) which causes very tiny arcs which produces some really
pronounced surging in all gears and all speeds.

Has anyone else experienced this problem before?

The part from a VW dealer lists for a whopping $375.00!!  Does anyone know
of any sources for a replacement part?

Any help would be greatly appreciated!!

Regards,

Bob Biess
rbiesspeoplesoft


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In a message dated 98-07-20 15:09:39 EDT, Robert_Biesspeoplesoft writes:

<< 
 Has anyone else experienced this problem before?
 
 The part from a VW dealer lists for a whopping $375.00!!  Does anyone know
 of any sources for a replacement part?
 
 Any help would be greatly appreciated!!
 
 Regards,
  >>
That's cheap...I had my coil pack replaced at 3000 miles and the cost was
$430.00 for my 97 DE!...(under warranty, Thank god)
Source!.....I can only think of 2 things...Up-grade the coil system(I have no
clue if someone makes one for our cars). Second, Pick your ass up and head for
the Junk/salvage yards...The yellow pages help a lot.

DGTIVR6 
6/97 Gti-vr6 DE
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> Subject: Re: [gti-vr6] Coil Pack!! 
> From: DGTIVR6aol 
> Date: Mon, 20 Jul 1998 16:03:39 EDT 
> 
> In a message dated 98-07-20 15:09:39 EDT, 
> Robert_Biesspeoplesoft writes:
> 
>>  Has anyone else experienced this problem before?

Yes, a number of people have had bad coil packs.
  
>>  The part from a VW dealer lists for a whopping $375.00!!
>>  Does anyone know of any sources for a replacement part?

> That's cheap...I had my coil pack replaced at 3000
> miles and the cost was $430.00 for my 97 DE!...
> (under warranty, Thank god)

If it's a Bosch part, it can probably be had for 50-60% of what the
dealer charges.  

Or, one could try to retorfit a less expensive 6-cyl coil pack from
another vehicle.  The Chrysler 3.3L V6's have a very similar ignition
set-up; I wonder what their coil-packs cost...

-Uwe-

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Robert_Biesspeoplesoft wrote:
> 
> My local VW shop has finally diagnosed a really bizarre problem with my 95
> GTI as a bad Coil Pack.

Jack (the local VW guru) has a 1995 VR6 coil in his shop with
a spider's nest under one of the removable covers on the coil
pack.  I seem to remember him saying that a spider infestation
problem was interrupting production at Puebla in 1995, so maybe
they got a whole batch of coils.  Just a stab in the dark.

Also, you may be able to squeak this in under the federal
emissions warranty if you're over 24K and under the Feds ceiling.....

-Arthur

1995 Black GTI VR6 #16 GS PSCC/NYR-SCCA/HVCSCC


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On Sunday, January 31, 1999 11:59:01 PM, THOMAS R SMITH wrote:
>Anyway the car runs great in all rpm ranges except for idle.  It idles
>somewhat uneven and
>stumbles once in a while like it is missing.  Perhaps that is from the
>higher lift and duration
>of the 264 cams, but I still would swear it is missing.

A slightly "uneven" idle is typical of cars with non-stock cams. Generally,
though, it will be sort of rhythmic. Kind of hard to describe, but if it
sounds like it's missing, it might actually be.

>I did the spray bottle mist test, where I took a spraybottle with water and
>sprayed the
>wires in the dark in my garage (While the car was running).  Anyway I did
>only see
>one or two little spark from where the spark plug wires attach to the coils
>or coil packs.
>So I don't think that is the problem, (SNIP)

Sparks from wet plug wires=bad plug wires! You shouldn't see any sparking
from your plug wires, either at the end or along the length of them.
Personally, I don't think there's much to be gained by buying the various
aftermarket plug wires, but you don't want to buy the generic Pep Boys brand
either. I'd stick with the OEM equivalent myself. You may want to replace
the plugs too, if they're near the replacement interval. Replacing mine
solved an irregular idle my (totally stock) engine had. Until you replace
the wires, you'll never be able to eliminate that as a suspect in your
problem, so definitely start there. Since your car's a '98, you may be able
to get the dealer to replace them under warranty (if you're still under the
b-to-b). Your engine work may complicate this, however.

>PS:  Also my gas mileage hasn't been very good even at highway speeds. About
>15-16 miles per gallon City and  22.5 Highway .   Before I was getting
>around 25-26 Miles a gallon.

I tend to average around 23mpg for a tank of gas. I'd expect some loss of
mileage as a result of the cams, but I'm just making a common sense guess.
If you're replacing cams, fuel economy should not be your primary concern!
Chris
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<<Date: Sun, 31 Jan 1999 23:59:01 -0500
From: "THOMAS R SMITH" <TOM122prodigy>
Subject: [gti-vr6] Idleing rough,  do I have bad wires?

Hey Gang:

I recently had some Kent Cams installed in my VR6 along with an AMS chip
[...] 40 lines deleted
around 25-26 Miles a gallon.>>

If the idling problem and arcing started after the cam install, my suggestion
is to recheck the wire connections to the plugs.  Make sure they are nice and
tight.  The new red wires are much better insulated than the black ones.
Idle should be smooth with these cams and the proper chip (they are with the
268s and Garrett's chip).  Same with the fuel mileage issue.  I'm sure you are
driving the car harder with the cams, which will result in a mileage drop.
But if you are seeing less with steady state cruising, it's a chip deal again.
Steady state and part throttle driving is done in closed loop (oxygen sensor
voltage signal used to calculate fuel delivery) which should result in decent
fuel mileage.  Closed loop programming can be maximized for fuel mileage
without hurting performance.  Typically, people see a 2% increase in MPG with
Garrett's chip...
Garrett's chip programming will work with these cams, too, BTW.  If you want
to try it, we have a money back guarantee.

Hope this helps,
Todd
Air & Water
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