1.9 Gti Difficult To Start And Keep Running When Its Damp

[Guest flowernp]

Hi there, I'm new to this scene having only owned my first 1.9 gti (1987) for two months. I'll try and be as clear as possible here.

So far i'm loving the car and the way it drives except for when i try and start it on cold damp mornings. This has only happened twice so far, yesterday being the last time. I got in the car and went to start as normal expecting it to burst in to life like it usually does but it didn't. i turned the engine over for 30 secs until it showed signs of wanting to fire up and eventually it did. i held the revs at 3 for a sec and let it settle in to idle then waited a couple of mins to get a bit of heat in the engine before going to work. the following happened exactly the same the first time this happened. I go to pull off and the car splutters, give it more revs and i pull away. when i get to a straight i gas it a little and it boggs down, lift of a bit and it comes back to life but as soon as i slow down for a junction and let the revs drop coming off the throttle the engine splutters and dies. it is then very very difficult to start and very very embarrassing as it usually stalls at busy junctions. so needless to say i didn't manage to start the car back up and pushed it back through some traffic and parked it up, left it and walked to work. i came back to the car at 4:30pm after it had been out in the sun all day, it started first time and drove spot on. 4 days ago i replaced the plugs and leads which has transformed the acceleration but didn't fix the problem when its damp outside or the second problem listed bellow. i think some of the electrics may be getting damp and causing a weak spark but i don't know where to start looking!

 

Another problem i have is that when the engine is up to a good running temp and i gas it the car pull like a train but is hesitant/jerky at about 4 - 5 rpm. It does this in all weather conditions. I have no idea what could be causing this problem but my initial thoughts are it must be an ignition problem.

 

Hopefully someone out there has some experience with these or similar problems and can give a novice some greatly appreciated good advice or if not suggest a specialist mechanic in the Worcester area as i need to sort this out.

 

Nick

[jord294 87]

dizzy cap is cracked

[Guest flowernp]

dizzy cap is cracked

 

Just been out to buy new cap and rotor. fingers crossed the fix is this simple! cheers

[Guest flowernp]

Just been out to buy new cap and rotor. fingers crossed the fix is this simple! cheers

 

Fitted the new cap and rotor. still did the hesitant jerky thing but i think it may have been more serious because when i was testing it the engine went tits up. its lost loads of power and is making a loud slap/banging noise. i fear the big end may have gone. Anyone know a reputable dealer in reconditioned engines?