VW Passat - help with mechanical prob.

jrar

Just coming home 30 mins. ago and suddenly the steering wheel started to judder badly from side to side in short sudden movements - as I was on the motorway and about 1 mile from home I pushed on whilst carefully monitoring what was happening - came to a roundabout at the motorway junction and heard a grating sound as I steered into the junction.

Thought then that I must have a puncture and was on a rim but stopped, checked all 4 tyres, all fine - took off again, juddering eased and I was fine for 500 ms. until I had to take a sharp left junction followed by another, with grating/knocking sound on both occasions so I assumed that was a steering issue (wishbone, bushing ??) whereas a subsequent right turn resulted in much less noise.

Pulled up outside my house, engine still running, to move my wife's car out of the driveway and put my car inside it, got back into my car and couldn't engage any gears (incl. reverse) so had to push the car into the drive (not easy whilst slipping and sliding on the ice !

So, based on that description, anyone care to hazard a guess as to what may have gone - important to add there were absolutely NO noises of any kind in the weeks/days/hours prior to this happening. I'm rightly goosed for now seeing as I can't even get my car to a garage for them to check it out so will have to incur bloody towing charges on top of everything else...............nice pre-budget day motoring grief !!

LookBehindYou

Wheel nuts,CV joint,inner or outer, Ball joints top or bottom,Steering tie rods left or right side. Check them all.

shane 6.5x55

check your power steering fluid it sounds it run dry

shane 6.5x55

sorry i ment to tell ya check your gearbox oil level to

nophd08

jrar wrote: »

Just coming home 30 mins. ago and suddenly the steering wheel started to judder badly from side to side in short sudden movements - as I was on the motorway and about 1 mile from home I pushed on whilst carefully monitoring what was happening - came to a roundabout at the motorway junction and heard a grating sound as I steered into the junction.

Thought then that I must have a puncture and was on a rim but stopped, checked all 4 tyres, all fine - took off again, juddering eased and I was fine for 500 ms. until I had to take a sharp left junction followed by another, with grating/knocking sound on both occasions so I assumed that was a steering issue (wishbone, bushing ??) whereas a subsequent right turn resulted in much less noise.

Pulled up outside my house, engine still running, to move my wife's car out of the driveway and put my car inside it, got back into my car and couldn't engage any gears (incl. reverse) so had to push the car into the drive (not easy whilst slipping and sliding on the ice !

So, based on that description, anyone care to hazard a guess as to what may have gone - important to add there were absolutely NO noises of any kind in the weeks/days/hours prior to this happening. I'm rightly goosed for now seeing as I can't even get my car to a garage for them to check it out so will have to incur bloody towing charges on top of everything else...............nice pre-budget day motoring grief !!

When you say you cant engage gears, is there restricted movement in lever or when you release clutch there is no drive. Is clutch pedal normal? Sounds like clutch has broke apart or gearbox fault. Has passat high mileage?

jrar

nophd08 wrote: »

When you say you cant engage gears, is there restricted movement in lever or when you release clutch there is no drive. Is clutch pedal normal? Sounds like clutch has broke apart or gearbox fault. Has passat high mileage?

Clutch feels totally normal and engages but no movement when clutch is released

There is 135K miles on the car (have had it since new - 2003) but it's serviced every 10K and has never given me a day's problem prior to this (doing about 20K a year)

-Corkie-

Sounds like a fly wheel.

nophd08

jrar wrote: »

Clutch feels totally normal and engages but no movement when clutch is released

There is 135K miles on the car (have had it since new - 2003) but it's serviced every 10K and has never given me a day's problem prior to this (doing about 20K a year)

I'm guessing it could be driveshaft/CV problem which is'nt a major problem apart from fact you will need to get it towed to garage. Are you in AA or your insurance sometimes covers "breakdown" which technically you are.
Keep us posted.

jrar

Based on my description, and listening to the grinding noise on the phone (!), my regular mechanic is pretty sure the diff. is gone in the gearbox, so new gearbox required most likely !

Anyone any ideas of specialist gearbox fitting (Mr. Clutch type places) in Kildare area ?

jimmyw

jrar wrote: »

Based on my description, and listening to the grinding noise on the phone (!), my regular mechanic is pretty sure the diff. is gone in the gearbox, so new gearbox required most likely !

Anyone any ideas of specialist gearbox fitting (Mr. Clutch type places) in Kildare area ?

:rolleyes:How the hell can someone know for sure by just listening over the phone that the box is gone just like that, even a mechanic.I would guess its a driveshaft.Have a look underneath and shake both shafts to see if they are loose.

jrar

nophd08 wrote: »

I'm guessing it could be driveshaft/CV problem which is'nt a major problem apart from fact you will need to get it towed to garage. Are you in AA or your insurance sometimes covers "breakdown" which technically you are.
Keep us posted.

Go to the top of the class - got it towed down to Naas Gearbox Centre this morning and they had it sorted by lunchtime and the great news from my perspective is that it was the passenger side CV joint gone ! So a couple of hundred to sort out as distinct from approx. 800 for a reconditioned gearbox. Interestingly, when I described the problem to them y'day, one of the guys surmised the fly wheel was gone, so it was even less than that also !

The strange thing is that both of the front CV joints have been replaced over the last 3/4 years at diff. times so a) I wouldn't have expected either to go again that "soon", and b) you usually get some inkling of a CV joint going with rattling etc/ on full lock, but I got absolutely no warning signs this time !

Anyway, I'm a happy bunny being back on the road and for a LOT LOT less than I'd envisaged ! Happy days !

-Corkie-

Good to hear. I thought it was the flywheel too!!!:o

Those Passats (01-05) are a fantastic car. I had one tears ago. When I sold it she had 180k miles on it and gave no bother worth talking about.:)

jrar

Yes Corkie, they're the business AND very frugal on juice ! Had a 00 version prior to this one with no problems either - they're a great all-round workhorse with some known issues (had a rear footwell flooded a few years back) but mechanically, I've never had any problems with this car which now has 135K miles on the clock.

-Corkie-

jrar wrote: »

Yes Corkie, they're the business AND very frugal on juice ! Had a 00 version prior to this one with no problems either - they're a great all-round workhorse with some known issues (had a rear footwell flooded a few years back) but mechanically, I've never had any problems with this car which now has 135K miles on the clock.

Any trouble they gave was easily sorted.:)

I have two B6 passats now. I have been lucky enough so far with no problems but they have a lot of reliability issues.

Happy motoring for another 135k miles!!;)

nophd08

jrar wrote: »

Go to the top of the class - got it towed down to Naas Gearbox Centre this morning and they had it sorted by lunchtime and the great news from my perspective is that it was the passenger side CV joint gone ! So a couple of hundred to sort out as distinct from approx. 800 for a reconditioned gearbox. Interestingly, when I described the problem to them y'day, one of the guys surmised the fly wheel was gone, so it was even less than that also !

The strange thing is that both of the front CV joints have been replaced over the last 3/4 years at diff. times so a) I wouldn't have expected either to go again that "soon", and b) you usually get some inkling of a CV joint going with rattling etc/ on full lock, but I got absolutely no warning signs this time !

Anyway, I'm a happy bunny being back on the road and for a LOT LOT less than I'd envisaged ! Happy days !

Glad you got sorted jrar. Non genuine CV joints only last couple of years normally. Keep an eye on the CV boot, when new one is fitted, as there should be now on yours, .some types have a s**t retaining clip and can pop off after few miles, so no harm to have a look now and then.
Happy motoring.