Hello all, thanks for being here.  We have a MkII 1litre Polo breadvan that has worked fine until this problem:  It starts fine, idles fine cold and warm but when you put your foot down on the accelerator the engine has a real issue in increasing the revs as demanded.  It can drive, if you sort of put your foot down a bit, then relax and do it again you can get the revs up - and when you're driving at a constant speed, it's all fine - it's just when you demand a load that things go awry.  It's like double-de-clutching really.

 

We had a mechanic working on this - he changed the plugs and cables to no avail.  He then started talking about changing the carburettor and how a replacement was no longer available.  We'd sort of reached a dead end and the car stayed in his yard during lockdown.  Unfortunately, since then he has died - and he was such a lovely chap - and we are a bit stuck.  Covid has killed my income and I can no longer afford to use a proper mechanic so I might need to fall back on my two stroke motorbike muscle memory - and your collective wisdom!  If we do need a replacement carb, where would we source it from?

 

Another clue, which I suspect is related, but the mechanic dismissed it, is the temperature sensor we replaced a year or so ago - is there a test we could do to make sure that it is doing the right thing and sending all the right information to the right places?

 

I started searching the FAQs, but I became kind of overwhelmed...

if its the round headlight car then temp sender doesnt control the running 

 

possibly start by cleaning the carb inside and checking the pump is working , plenty of help on here avail just ask 

fuel pump might be dying or fuel lines clogged

 

how clean is the inline fuel filter?

Thanks for those replies - we will check the fuel pump and filter. It is a MkII F - so it does have the square headlights - could this mean that the temperature sender might have an influence?

 

All the best,

 

Jim

yes mk2f has the blue temp sender , this does effect alot of things , basicly tells the ecu if its hot or cold and controls the mixture for starting and running

 

 

Whilst I will check the fuel filter, I think I will redo the temp sender.  We followed the Haynes Manual but may easily have done something wrong - any tips?  Also, any idea of where we could get a new one from?

followed the haynes to do what?

 

new senders are 30£ odd and avail at the dealers on ebay...dont be tempted to get a no name brand 

If it's problems under load, I'm pretty much always going to be looking at the ignition system first.

 

If I'm going to stab a guess, and it is a guess - 2f's have a square ignition coil with a transistor / TCI unit stuck to the bottom of it. These do break down over time. I don't know a definitive way of testing them other than swapping a good one in. 

 

This is an example of the part, but I haven't checked if it's the right one for your car

 

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Switch-unit-for-TCI-for-AUDI-SEAT-VW-SAAB-191905351B/362914035088?epid=21012615791&hash=item547f5cb590:g:hh8AAOSw7eleRajK

 

Thank you all for your tips.  I went over to the lock up and didn't feel brave enough to get the car all the way out to check the fuel filter, but I did unplug the temp sender (blue one, that goes to the ECU) and the problem remained the same.  I know that this isn't a smoking gun, but it doesn't declare the sender totally innocent either.  So I ordered a replacement sender and we will see what happens.  The control unit mentioned by Yeti differed in price by £200 between items, which seemed a bit strange - in any case, they didn't have any in stock.  I'll be replacing the sender next weekend, so watch this space!

I've just checked compatibility with the ebay item exactly mentioned by Yeti and it should be fine, so that's what I'll be going for if the sender changeover doesn't do the trick. Thanks!

Does the 2f have electronic ignition? I had a similar issue with an old breadvan which turned out to be condensor. 

Jimcamera, did you get this problem sorted? My coupe is doing the same, have already changed ht leads, plugs, dizzy cap, ignition coil, fuel filter and inline pump too