The story goes like this:

Coming back from work on Friday, came off the motorway fine but when stopped at the lights noticed a really weird 'Wooooooooo' coming from the car. Pulling away there was a lot less power, like the turbo wasn't there. Got it home and thought 'Ah, boost pipe has popped off - I'll fix that when I can be bothered' then took my new (£900 ) toy out on the weekend then yesterday and today to work:

Came home today, removed the undertray and checked the pipes to the intercooler. The top one was connected (could just see it throught the slits at the front and feel it if I squeezed my arm up) and the bottom one was still there. I've traced the pipes from top of the engine, into the intercooler and back up - all seem to be connected securely. :confused:

Listening to the sound it's definetely air-driven, narrowing it down to the air intake or exhaust. Seems to be coming from the back of the engine when looking in from the front, perhaps behind or under the turbo?

I'm hoping I've not knackered the turbo as there's no nasty noises. The only symptom is a 'Wooooo' on idle - like there's someone vaccuming in the next room. This increases in volume up till about 1800-2000rpm where it gets significantly louder. By 2500rpm it sounds like a very loud, annoying toddler with a wooden whistle!

Going to give it a blast with Vag-com after I've had my dinner, but does anyone have any clue as to what might be the issue? My betting would still be on a boost pipe, but I can't for the life of me see it.

Thanks in advance, and sorry about the extra-long post!

split/cracked intercooler maybe, had this on my renault 5 gt but was more of a whistling sound.

OK, here's some more info:

The Engine Coolant Temp Sensor has been on the way out for a month or so - it's on my list of things to do!

The MAF fault was probably caused when I disconnected the sensor whilst the engine was running before dinner.

As for the "Charge Pressure Control: Negative Deviation" that appears to point towards a problem with the boost pressure being too low - probably a pipe or the intercooler itself? (Ross-Tech Wiki)

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Address 01: Engine

Controller: 038 906 019 LA

Component: 1,9l R4 EDC 0400SG 5405

Coding: 00102

Shop #: WSC 13765

TMBWU46Y0???????? SKZ7Z0D???????

3 Faults Found:

17664 - Engine Coolant Temp Sensor (G62): Open or Short to Plus

P1256 - 35-10 - - - Intermittent

17964 - Charge Pressure Control: Negative Deviation

P1556 - 35-00 - -

17552 - Mass Air Flow Sensor (G70): Open or Short to Ground

P1144 - 35-10 - - - Intermittent

Readiness: N/A

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Looks like I'll be out in the drive with a torch trying to find the bloody thing!

Edited 14 October, 200817 yr by SwimmerBoy

its your turbo mate i had the exact same symptons if you run it for any length of time you will find the oil seal on the turbo will pop mate

sorry to be the bearer of bad news

i can however recomened btn turbo or aet turbo as very well priced suppliers mate

Buggar! Was kinda hoping it'd be something simple! :( Looks like I'll be on the hunt for a turbo then.

Forget turbo, i wanna know more about your little runabout. £900. Looks sweet. BRG too. Come back summer.

So I take it that the turbo needs to be replaced completely and can't be repaired then? Not really got a lot of knowledge of turbocharged engines, but have a technical mind (replaced 2 cambelts, and even a whole cylinder head in the past ) so I'll most likely be carrying out the work myself.

While I'm at it, could another turbo just bolt straight on, or would it require a remap to get the car to use it efficiently/reliably?

Forget turbo, i wanna know more about your little runabout. £900. Looks sweet. BRG too. Come back summer.

Yea, used to have one last year but I kinda had a minor bump with a tree on the motorway and bought the Fabia instead. (Read whole story here!)

Found the one above on eBay, but it was in the wrong section (Classic Cars), had average pictures and the description didn't really tell you much.

Much to my delight I found that the head gasket had gone 5 months ago, and the whole new cylinder head had been replaced - so half the engine was brand new! Total cost for that service: over £2,000

Also, the MOT is due up, but it passed last year (11k ago) with a clean sheet - no advisories.

Just to make things even better, it came with a black hard top - these normally go between £350-£550 on eBay depending on season and condition

All this for £870! Think I got myself a bargain!

Fixing what's wrong with the turbo means splitting the wheels to replace the oil seals, and then rebalancing a shaft that spins at up to 100_000rpm or so.

See if you can find someplace that'll do an exchange unit maybe?

Mine went like this too, I had the complete turbo changed, turbos can be expensive though, anywhere between £350 to £700 depending upon the type.

The nut on the end of the compressor wheel came off on mine and it just went wwwweeeeeeeeee....then nothing...

edit: When you change the turbo, make sure you also change the oil feed pipes as these can become furred up with baked oil over time and starve it of oil.