Hi all I'm new to the forum. Was at my local VAG specialist today and he recommended me to this site.

Sorry if this is the wrong section, there are so many!

My car is a 2000 MK4 Golf GT TDI with a PD115 AJM engine. I have a shudder at idle and quite a nasty vibration through the dash, interior etc when accelerating in 1st and through the gears that gradually goes away when at speed. No great power loss when up to speed.

So far I have tried the following:

Cleaned out EGR and inlet as best I can

Replaced transmission mount

Replaced fuel filter

Run the engine on diesel purge

Inspected the cam for wear

Swapped out all 4 unit injectors

Replaced injector wiring loom inside head

I've still to check the compression but dont have a tool for this. The specialist said it could be the dual mass flywheel. However he's only seen one of these fail in the past, on a Sharan.

Has anyone got any other ideas as to what this might be?

DMF failure can cause symptoms like a misfire on the PD engines

i know it is a big job to check and an expensive job also , but i would go for that , had experience of the same fault in Ford Galaxys with the same engine

I'd take a guess at DMF too. Does it rattle?

I'd take a guess at DMF too. Does it rattle?

they can but don't always rattle , they can just twist and jam , hence making it feel out of balance and/or like a misfire

Thanks for the info, I was afraid the DMF would be the answer! There's no rattle and I removed the plug over the flywheel and there is no sign of grease which I'm told is another sign its on the way out. However there was no sign of grease on the one my local specialit saw fail either.

Will I cause damage to anything by continuing to drive it until it fails? Got to be talking about £350 for a new clutch kit and DMF? Cant imagine its an easy job either - a clutch is something I've never had to tackle!

Also the specialist mentioned that there are solid flywheels available for these cars now, has anyone had any experience with these?

ECP Prices

DMF £196+VAT

Clutch £109.20+VAT

At £358.61 all in I would need to be 100% certain this would fix my problem. So if waiting for failure is an option, I'd need to take it!

solid flywheels are available , some of the Fabia VRS owners have fitted them , but i think they are more expensive than the standard set up

you will just have to bite the bullet and have the gearbox removed

get a second opinion first though from another specialist , but from what you have already done/fitted i would come to the same conclusion that the DMF was faulty

I'd agree too; pretty much everything but the DMF has been eliminated.

I dont have another specialist locally - this guy is good though, always backed up with jobs!

Will I damage anything if I continue to drive it until failure?

Your chances of completeing the journey it fails on, for sure!

lol yeh! Generally dont use it for long journeys at the moment - if I do, AA to the rescue!

lol yeh! Generally dont use it for long journeys at the moment - if I do, AA to the rescue!

if it disintigrates(sp) completely it can take out the gearbox casing , mucho ££££

or the clutch will give up the ghost

hmmm dont like the sound of that. Maybe I should start putting some cash aside for a rainy day and then trick a mate into helping replace it! Would be around £650 for the specialist to do that job including parts!

if it disintigrates(sp) completely it can take out the gearbox casing , mucho ££££

or the clutch will give up the ghost

We had a Sharan that locked the flywheel solid when the customer was doing 80mpg up the motorway. Ripped the engine and box clean off its mountings and stuffed the top of the cam cover in the back of the radiator, absolute carnage. What a mess.

Thats shocking!

Does anyone know of a step by step write up for replacing the clutch on this car?

I have elsawin and a pdf of the Bentley Manual but unless i'm in the wrong section its not the clearest!

Does yours run a 6 speed box, if so you are gonna struggle without a ramp.

Yeh its 6 speed. Is it because of the weight? I was thinking I could stick it up on axle stands??

Weight and shear size, being doing well on axle stands to get it back in.

Thats shocking!

Does anyone know of a step by step write up for replacing the clutch on this car?

I have elsawin and a pdf of the Bentley Manual but unless i'm in the wrong section its not the clearest!

Ive done it

make sure you get the car really high up off the ground safely.

its easy to get the box off, getting it back on is another problem.

Are there any special volkswageny type tools required?

Are there any special volkswageny type tools required?

lots of variously sized 12 point spline sockets are required

6 or 12 point Torx drives are required for almost anything these days, but still a useful warning for some people. (those who don't own Torx driive sets yet).

I've got torx and splines. Apparently a tool for getting the clutch centred is extremely useful. I thought new clutches came with these for lining up.

I found a couple of write ups

VWvortex Forums: DIY - MKIV VR6 Transmission Removal / Clutch Replacement

Clutch change procedure G60 and DMF flywheels - TDIClub Forums

Sounds like a big job - up to 12 hours if its the first time you've done it!

Hello folks!

I've had a local Audi mechanic offer to do this job as a homer for a very reasonable £150. I just want to be sure that its definitely the DMF so had a couple more symptoms to ask about.

When pulling a trailer (about 350kg) away from stand still the judder gets MUCH worse.

There is a definite loss of power across the whole rev range when accelerating.

Do both these point to DMF?

yes