[Vwdiesel] Glow plug How-to

[Mary Beth and Chris Geiser]

Personally I think it's easier to change glow plugs with the injectors
out.  My hands fit in there much better - especially behind the injector
pump.  Also, with the injectors out, you can turn the key on and look in
the injector holes to see which glow plugs are the bad ones.  The good
ones turn bright orange...
My .02
Chris



-----Original Message-----
From: vwdiesel-admin at vwfans.com [mailto:vwdiesel-admin at vwfans.com] On
Behalf Of Gerry Wolfe
Sent: Tuesday, March 19, 2002 7:56 PM
To: vwdiesel at vwfans.com
Subject: Fwd: Re: [Vwdiesel] Glow plug How-to

Heck, compared to the experience I had with a local stealership (Don
Valley 
VW in Toronto), you're lucky.

Between Christmas & New Years two winters ago, my local VW fixup place
was 
closed (they do *excellent* work). I do shift work, way out in the
boonies, 
and was having cold-start problems.  I knew exactly what the problem was
-- 
one (perhaps two) bad glow plugs.  Went to the stealership, and asked
them 
to identify which plug(s) bad and replace it/them.  Now you gotta 
understand I was in a bind -- can't work on the car out in the street in

freezing cold, gotta get into work.  Coulda taken it to my buddy's
heated 
factory, but that would have ended up in losing a day at work and
prob'ly 
going thru a box of beer and having to cab home & back (yada yada yada).

The stalership ended up replacing 3 glowplugs, at a total cost of
slightly 
in excess of $500.  This included $100 for "diagnostic fees" - "We have
to 
hook it up to the computer to diagnose, this is our standard 
charge".  Refused to do the work without this diagnosis -- "there are
too 
many backyard mechanics coming in telling them what to fix, and they get

peed off when their diagnoses are incorrect".  #2 glowplug had been 
replaced by the good guys a few months before; the stealership replaced
all 
the others.  Had the audacity to state that the good guys had even
messed 
up their install of the #2 plug -- they had not tightened the #2
injector 
after the replacement and it was leaking (altho the entire engine bay is

pristine and dry).  Even I know that you don't have to pull an injector
to 
replace a glow plug...

BTW, asked the good guys to do winterizing this winter past, and they 
discovered a bad glowplug; one of the ones replaced by the 
stealership.  Charged me only parts, no labor, taking pity on me.

The moral of the story is... if you can't do it yourself (or it's not 
convenient), build a good relationship with a fixit place that does good

work and you can trust.  The Good Guys I'm refering to is Nick's / E&W
VW 
place on Kingston Rd, just east of Warden Ave in Toronto Ontario.

rgds, g.

>Delivered-To: vwdiesel at www.audifans.com
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>From: "Nate Wall" <NWall at envasns.org>
>To: <Jdtower23 at aol.com>, <vwdiesel at vwfans.com>
>Subject: Re: [Vwdiesel] Glow plug How-to
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>Date: Tue, 19 Mar 2002 08:40:46 -0500
>
>** Proprietary **
>
>The dealer wants $32 per glow plug too.  Just take them the car, come
pick 
>it up and write them a check for $268, plus the 10 percent or so Misc. 
>shop fee + tax.  It'd be about $300!!!  Something we can do for about
$50!
>
>--Nate
>
> >>> <Jdtower23 at aol.com> 03/18/02 04:57PM >>>
>Anyone know of a good website with instructions on how to change the
glow
>plugs? think i'm going to give it a try even though I'm not the best
working
>on cars to say the least :) Dealer wanted $140 in just
labor...ridiculous...
>I believe Roger Brown may have had one but i've lost the links....
>
>Thanks,
>John
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