Tag Archive for: electrical problems

Battery voodoo
Battery voodoo

Click here if you need jumper wires

Modern cars are basically rolling computer storage. As with all computers, vehicle computers get fussy from time to time. A computer acting fussy can lead to strange electrical problems in our cars. One easy way to reset the entire car system is to perform battery voodoo. In the VW repair world this is also called a Cap Discharge, or Capacitive Discharge. That is a fine thing to call it, but it’s not exactly what we are doing.

This hard reset on the car has fixed a lot of strange issues for me. Everything from radio and lighting issues, to gauges reading funny, and electrical components not working. This is a relatively safe process, but you will always want to take extra precautions to keep yourself safe and not damage your car.

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Trouble viewing? Watch “How To Reboot Your Car ~ Battery VooDoo” on YouTube.

As always I love to hear your thoughts. Please post them in the comments section below.  If you have an idea for a show email me, or use the contact me form! Don’t forget to follow me at:

Ignition Coil Failure

Ignition Coil Failure

Today I am back to talk about more failing VW parts. We are looking at one of the most broken connectors I see, ignition coil connectors. More spesifically 2.0t ignition coil connectors. It may seem like a very simple failure, but connectors have a lot more going on than you may think. This was a really fun “How VW Parts Fail” video for me. I have repinned a ton of connectors in my career, and it is something I enjoy doing.

Sponsor Of The Day
Today’s show is sponsored by Deutsche Auto Parts. They are the VW and Audi parts experts. They have great prices and awesome service. Plus they work really hard on a ton of VW DIY videos. Paul and the fellas at DAP are awesome. Also check out their new site at SHOPDAP.com

Join me as we break down(hopefully not):

  • Commonly broken VW electrical connectors
  • What a VW ignition coil connector does
  • What makes up a VW ignition coil connector
  • What makes up most Audi and VW electrical connectors
  • How ignition coil connectors fail
  • Is replacing an ignition coil connector a DIY
  • Tools required to repin connectors
  • Tips for releasing VW connectors.
  • and more

Trouble viewing? Watch “How VW Parts Fail ~ 2.0t Ignition Coil Connectors ” on YouTube.

As always, your questions and comments are welcome.
Please post them below. If you would like to suggest a part of a show like this, email me Charles(at)HumbleMechanic(dot)com. Thanks again to Deutsche Auto Parts for being such a great sponsor.Ignition Coil Failure

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Happy Thursday everyone. Normally we do view questions on Monday. But on Monday, I wanted to post a video about Women in the Automotive Industry, with some comments sent to me buy Audra from Women Auto Know. It is a really great episode of the Podcast, I highly recommend it. So I am taking your questions today on the Automotive Podcast.

Join me today as I take your questions on:

  • Rant about “Automakers making it illegal to work on your own car”
  • Issues to look for when buying a Jetta SportWagen
  • VW Passat electrical issues
  • Issues with MK5 R32 DSG transmission
  • Steps in modifying cars.
  • Struggles as a new technician.
  • and more

Trouble viewing? Watch “Viewer Questions ~ Podcast Episode 61” on YouTube.

As always I love to hear your thoughts. Please post them in the comments section below. Again, if you have a question for a show like this, email me Charles(at)humblemechanic(dot)com with Question for Charles in the subject. Also if you have an idea for a show you can email me, or use the contact me form!

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How The VW CC Trunk Harness Fails ~ Video

How The VW CC Trunk Harness Fails ~ Video Today we are looking at how the harness for all the rear lighting in a VW CC fails. If you have rear lighting not working, it may be due to the harness being split in the trunk. I have seen this issue give some techs a run for their money. Even though a light out is generally the bulb, you can’t discount the wiring too.

Sponsor Of The Day
Today’s show is sponsored by Deutsche Auto Parts. They are the VW and Audi parts experts. They have great prices and awesome service. Plus they work really hard on a ton of VW DIY videos. Paul and the fellas at DAP are awesome. Also check out their new site at SHOPDAP.com

Join me today as we break into the CC trunk harness:

  • What is the CC Trunk harness
  • What wiring issues happen with the CC trunk harness
  • How the CC trunk harness fails
  • Symptoms of CC trunk harness failure
  • Diagnosing CC trunk harness failure
  • Time to failure
  • Fix the wiring or replace the wiring
  • DIY or not to DIY
  • MKV door harness failure video
  • and more

Trouble viewing? Watch “How The VW CC Trunk Harness Fails ~ Video ” on YouTube

As always, your questions and comments are welcome.
Please post them below. If you would like to suggest a part of a show like this, email me Charles(at)HumbleMechanic(dot)com. Thanks again to Deutsche Auto Parts for being such a great sponsor.

Don’t forget to follow me at:

VW transmission problem

Happy Wednesday everyone. Sadly this time it is actually Wednesday. But hey, it is still Shop Shots day. We are as busy as can be at the shop. That means I am busy busy busy fixed and maintaining VWs. But enough about that, let’s talk Shop Shots!

Bad Volkswagen MechanicThe first picture come to us by way of a complete hack mechanic. You are looking at the the cowl panel of a VW Beetle. That is the trim right at the bottom of the windshield. You will notice that someone has drilled a hole in the trim. Talk about a hack move.

I can only assume why some tool would drill this hole. My guess is to replace the bushings at the top of the strut. The right way to do this job is to remove the wiper arms, and remove the trim. If you do it right, it takes about 10 minutes max. But if you are a hack mechanic, you aint got time fo dat!

VW transmission problemThis type of picture makes me feel a bit like a curios kid. When ever I see an engine or a transmission taken apart, I get excited. Especially when I am not the one taking it apart. 😉 Not that I mind doing this type of work, it just doesn’t pay that well.

This is the the top view of a manual transmission. One of the boys had this apart to replace a syncro. After a few times taking the transmission out and putting it back in, he ended up having to replace the entire transmission. There was some noise issues. I don’t have much to add, I just love taking pictures of this type of thing.

Volkswagen Wiring ProblemI feel like this is the things that mechanics have nightmares about. You are looking at a wiring harness in a 2014 Tiguan. The customer had about 400 miles on their car. They brought it in because the 12v outlet wouldn’t work. When I got the car the fuse was blown. Each time a new fuse was installed, it would pop. That could mean the power wire was shorted to ground(which is the brown wire in the picture).

I got a great tip for finding a shorted wire with your multi-meter

  1. Set the meter to continuity check. Most meters have an audible tone when continuity is achieved.
  2. Place one of each lead at each wire If they are shorted, the meter will beep.
  3. Start moving the harness in various places
  4. When the meter stops beeping, you have found the source of the issue.

After messing around with the front console for a while, it was time to move on to the rear console. I set the meter up and was getting nowhere. When I moved to the back, I took one of the screws out of the trim panel. As soon as I started taking the screw out, the meter stopped beeping. With the panel off, this is what I found. When the panel was installed the harness got smashed, and the screw driven through the wires. A quick wiring repair, and the car was good to go.

Well that does it for another round of Shop Shots. I hope you all have a great week. Also, feel free to share this post. I tried to make it really easy to share. You can use either the buttons on the top, or the buttons under the “You may also like” links.

Bad VW gas Cap

Happy Wednesday everyone. It is time for Shot Shots again. There is not many updates beyond the pictures today. Things around the shop are absolutely insane busy. That is a good and bad thing. When it gets this type of busy I feel like we miss things. But as a flat rate technician, it makes for a nice pay check. Okay, lets get to the pics!

Weird things VW drivers Do

Sometimes you see something and just thing “What the heck?”. This is one of those times. One of the boys in the shop called me over to show this to me. This customer has a bungee cord wrapped around their drivers seat. Maybe it is for holding the trim on? Maybe it gives them a little extra butt support? Post up your thoughts in the comments. I am out of ideas LOL.

VW electrical ProblemsWe have heard that all VWs have electrical problems or wiring problems. This one was a good one. This Jetta came from one of the rental car companies. I think the original concern was rear lights not working. The tech went round and round with chasing wires, and he even replaced the main electrics module(Body control module). The car was blowing 1 certain fuse in a strange way.

I think he did almost everything right. Where he got hung up was dismissing a key bit of info he had. The interior lights didn’t work. No matter what he did the lights would not work. When he pulled down the front light he found this. When the light was installed (I am not sure if it was from the factory, or a repair) the screw that holds the light was ran into the harness. The symptoms were tricky, but I am glad he found the issue.

The key here is to always pay attention to all the symptoms of a car. I have a post coming soon about this exact thing.

Bad VW gas CapThis might be one of my all time favorite Shop Shot picture of all time. This customer brought their car in for a minor service. On this service we add a fuel treatment. I was working on something else when I hear the tech next to me laughing. I walked over to see what was up, and this is what he found.

I guess the customer lost his gas cap. So until he got a new one, this was the solution, foil and rubber bands. Looking at it while I write this post, I am cracking up! Don’t worry, he bought a new gas cap. 😉

That does it for another Volume of Shop Shots! Remember if you have any car questions, just use this contact me form, post it to Facebook, or you can even call it in!

Tiguan Fuse Recall

It is Wednesday, so you know what time it is. By the time most of you read this, I will be on a flight to Chicago for the Chicago Auto Show. I am not really a big fan of flying, or airports, or being away from my family, but I am looking forward to the show. I will also be posting plenty of pictures on the Humble Mechanic Facebook page.

Even though I have been out of the shop for the last few days, I still have pictures for you. Alright, let’s do this Shop Shot thing.VW engine Failure

First up we got some real nice VW engine damage. This a a picture of a Volkswagen CC engine. The car came in with strange noise/vibration while accelerating. One of the other techs in the shop was working on this car. I lent him a hand diagnosing the issue. We went around for a while trying to identify the noise. They vibration that the noise caused could be felt on the back side of the transmission. We pulled the trigger and replaced the transmission.

Sadly this was not the issue. After lots of conversation, we decided to remove the oil pan. This turned out to be a great move. We found little sparkley bits inside the oil. That prompted further engine tear down. We got the upper oil pan off and found this bolt had broken. This is one of the main bolts that hold the crank shaft in. If you are not an engine person, don’t worry. I will tell you it is really dang important. This car got a new engine. Luckily the customer had an aftermarket warranty. I think they only paid $100.

Bent VW Wheel damageNext up is something that seems to be a plague these days, bent wheels. It seems to be worse this time of year. My guess is the increase in potholes and bad driving that winter brings. I tried to shoot a video of this wheel spinning on the balancer. It came out terrible. 🙂 It is strange to me that someone could not feel they had a bent wheel. Many times a small bent in a wheel will be fine. This is a major bend. If you find out you have a bent wheel, most of the time they can be repaired. From what I have seen, the cost is around $120 or so. That is not cheap, but it’s better than $350 for a new wheel

Tiguan Fuse RecallA few weeks ago, I let you guys know that VW was issuing a recall for the Tiguan. It was related to a fuse getting too hot and melting the fuse panel. By the time the recall came out, I had seen a bunch of them fail. I wanted to post a picture of the damage to the fuse panel for everyone to see.

It is strange to me to talk about someone electronic OVERHEATING and causing something to melt in such a casual manor. When I hear overheating electronics, I think fire. I have seen a bunch of these fail, and the worst that has happened is exterior lights not working. Don’t get me wrong, having a bunch of your exterior lights not working is a real pain in the butt. But hey, it’s better than a car fire.