Recently replaced headgasket - Now car is sluggish and gets 25% less MPG- Any Ideas?

Asked by ColoradoSteve Dec 13, 2008 at 10:19 AM about the 1997 Volkswagen Jetta GL

Question type: Maintenance & Repair

Ok, I have a Jetta GL 2.0 (1997) with about 105K miles. Recently the head gasket started to leak so I pulled the head and had it completely rebuilt, then replaced the head gasket and put it all back together. The car cranked up and ran GREAT - but - There is a little bit of a stutter at low rpms when you first take off or shift gears (it is a 5 Speed) and it feels just a little sluggish. It is also getting 25% to 30% less MPG than before. The plugs are new and correctly gapped, the Rotor button is new, Distributor cap is new, Timing is set correctly - and Triple checked. Any one have an idea of what to look for or where to start with trouble shooting?

thanks!
Steve
slucent at hotmail dot com

6 Answers

2,735

botched job u may be loosing compression is my only thought there... also you could have a bad rewiring job... could be lots of stuff could you be missing something like a O2 sensor or something???

1 people found this helpful.
16,855

Start with a compression and/or leak down check on all cylinders to ensure that the combustion chamber is sealing.

90

Start with basics check compression in all four cylinders the proper way to do a comp check is with throtle wide open and pull the ECM fuse so you dont flood your Eng get 4 strokes out of every cylinder (you feel the comp tester pulse 4 times while holding it)

90

it is ok to have 10-15 psi difference anything higher is not good. Also most importantly you may be off a tooth on the camshaft check and make sure that you timing marks are aligned crankshaft and cam are aligned to their respective marks sometimes they move at initial start up I've had it happen. the dead giveawy that camshaft isoff distributor is moved to max adj it doesnt set at same spot prior to job

1 people found this helpful.
2,735

but you would know that right away wouldnt you??? ive seen it too but it was immediately obvious... when we had immediate engine failure that is... lol...

Your Answer:

Jetta

Looking for a Used Jetta in your area?

CarGurus has 1,896 nationwide Jetta listings starting at $995.

Postal Code:

CarGurus Experts

  • #1
    Deathjam4
    Reputation
    12,620
  • #2
    Goodwrench707
    Reputation
    5,410
  • #3
    o_jayne
    Reputation
    2,680
View All

Find great deals from top-rated dealers

Search

Related Models For Sale

Used Volkswagen Passat
16 Great Deals out of 402 listings starting at $4,700
Used Honda Civic
180 Great Deals out of 3,705 listings starting at $1,995
Used Honda Accord
40 Great Deals out of 910 listings starting at $1,599
Used Toyota Camry
52 Great Deals out of 985 listings starting at $2,212
Used Toyota Corolla
108 Great Deals out of 2,035 listings starting at $2,795
Used Volkswagen Golf
26 Great Deals out of 444 listings starting at $3,987
Used Hyundai Elantra
163 Great Deals out of 3,544 listings starting at $2,995
Used Volkswagen Golf GTI
25 Great Deals out of 608 listings starting at $4,900
Used Nissan Altima
22 Great Deals out of 716 listings starting at $1,400
Used BMW 3 Series
71 Great Deals out of 1,176 listings starting at $1,995
Used Nissan Sentra
77 Great Deals out of 1,812 listings starting at $2,195
Used Audi A4
43 Great Deals out of 698 listings starting at $4,750

Content submitted by Users is not endorsed by CarGurus, does not express the opinions of CarGurus, and should not be considered reviewed, screened, or approved by CarGurus. Please refer to CarGurus Terms of Use. Content will be removed if CarGurus becomes aware that it violates our policies.