VW Polo Cutting Out at 30MPH

Curran

Hey guys,

My bro is having a problem with his 98 Polo. Car starts fine but when he sets off down the road it cuts out about half a mile later at about 30mph. And then wont start. When I turn the ignition the car turns over but just wont kick in and start. When we push start it and jump it in 2nd gear, she'll start but cuts out down the road a bit again.
He's only had the car 2 months and a few days after he got the car, it happened to him. Wont start, but when he tried it 10 mins later it started and hadnt any problems til today. I thought it might have been dirty petrol the first time, but i dont think it is this time cos he got petrol in the same garage and same day as i did and i have no problem with mine.
What could it be? Dirt blocking a sensor? Dirt in the tank that gets stirred up when on a bump stretch - or as I'm guessing something a lil more serious????

Thanks for the help!!

milltown

Sounds to me like the fuel pump or injectors are not getting as much petrol as they need to pump. Most likely a filter blocked. Other possibility is a dodgy electrical connection to the pump. Cousin had a big old renault that would run fine most of the time but cut out at random. I found a broken spade connector on the fuel pump that was breaking the circuit intermittently.

crosstownk

It could be a number of things, tbh. The best thing is to get a diagnostic computer hooked up to it to see if any faults are logged and then take it from there.

Curran

Cheers ppl,

Been looking on Polo owner forums, and there seems to be several cutting out problems with Polo's.
Thankfully they all seem to be minor faults but there are too many to go try testing them all, so i think i'll have someone hook it up and see if there are any problems logged, like you said crosstownk.
Hopefully its a cheap and easy fix

unnameduser

i recommend you just buy the 98 polo im selling in adverts.ie!!!

On another note i agree with crosstownk. My bro has a diagnostic kit yolky and it saves him ages figuring out what is wrong with cars

Signpost

saw exact problem last year in a 98 polo. Ended up being cracked leads under the car. When the wet weather start water seeps into em an there is your problem. Even thou this was the problem she was still recommended to change the filters, sensors and clean lines as it would be generally good practice to remove any risks when this was happening.

Seth Brundle

I recall a similar problem on my fathers old omega.
His ECU temperature sensor was blown, causing the car to run very rich. That was fine when the car was cold but when the engine got warm it would cut out and not restart until it got cold again.
However, a diagnostic analysis at a dealer or specialist would solve it quickly for you.