1.4 VW Polo cutting out

[darceysdad]

My 1.4L VW Polo keeps cutting out when I'm slowing down at junctions.  The engine dies when I press the clutch down, when I lift the clutch it bursts back into life. It never cuts out unless I press the clutch down and I have no problems starting the car.  This only used to happen now and again but recently it's become more frequent.  At the moment it seems to happen at every other junction, any advice would be appreciated.

[Disco Fever]

You possibly need it servicing.

[Eoghan]

Hey Darceysdad, I've got a 1.4L Seat Cordoba (1997) with the exact same problem. I believe it has the same engine as your VW Polo. Mine cuts out after cruising between 2000 or 3000 rpm (60mph/100kph), when I drop the clutch the revs die and the engine cuts out. This can happen when the engine is cold or hot. It can be dangerous, because I loose power steeing when the engine dies. Normally I just lift the clutch again, and the engine jump-starts straight away. Other than that, the idle is smooth, it revs to the max without any problem, no smoke, no smell. I've known the car for 6 months (my gilfriend's car), the problem has only appeared in the last month. I'm trying to find root cause by servicing it myself, bit by bit. All I've done so far is change the oil (I didn't expect that would solve it, but it's a good first step in a service, right?), I'm working my way towards the spark plugs and then the coils, I'm sure the plugs will tell me something. A few other sites suggest that coils are cold/wet, which is very possible, winter in Ireland is not warm/dry. I'll get to the plugs after my holidays, and will update then, but it would be great if somebody could point us in the right direction. Thanks.

[MORELLO]

I have an Astra which was doing the same thing. According to Vauxhalls it was a camshaft sensor causing the problem. A snip at just �175 + VAT! They also made me buy a Throttle Box (?) at �325. I don't go to dealers anymore... Take it to a reliable independant garage where they can plug your Polo into a diagnostic system.

[nath999]

hi guys i had a metro that did the same it ****** me off that much i became a car mechanic!! a bit drastick i know but i found the answer it is all to do with the mixture of petrol and oil in to the engine if you have to much petrol you flud the engine but if you have to much oil it will cut out!!!!

 

the cure is to get the engine tuned by the best tuner around ask around and fined out who it is!!!

 

hope it helps

[mr toad]

hey ive got a problem and had this problem too so i know how annoyin it is! its usually down to a dirty throttle body or a faulty temperature sensor even though i had both. the throttle body can easily be cleaned with throttle body/carb cleaner without havin to take the throttle body out. the faulty temperature sensor should show up on the dashboard as the temperature gauge not moving or only slightly. the diagnostics check didnt realise this for me. its a cheap fix to do yourself and can be bought from vw.