So you all know CAMERAS but what about CARS???

holy crap. thanks to you tommy i am going to need an auto terminology-to-idiot dictionary.

ha. Well, this morning i took her out for a spin. She seemed fine, though I only drove around the block a few times.

The check Engine light IS on...however, it came on two days after she bought it (2 weeks ago). She took it in, they swapped the thermostat and it was off. Then, last weekend, it popped on again and remained on until Tuesday at which time it miraculously shut off. Then, it was off until what I will now refer to as the "THE GREAT VW NEW BEETLE DEEP-WATER INCIDENT". At which time, the engine light was not just on, it was blinking. The manual suggested we look at the catalytic converter. However 10 minutes later, the check engine light went from blinking to just being solid. So, its still on. Could have to do with THE GREAT VW NEW BEETLE DEEP-WATER INCIDENT or the fact that the check engine light seems to be quirky.

As it stands, I've got an appointment with the dealer to have them look at it as well as the light. Though, they are booked solid until the 30th. ugh.

Thanks all and I will keep you posted.
 
rlm7189 said:
holy crap. thanks to you tommy i am going to need an auto terminology-to-idiot dictionary.

ha. Well, this morning i took her out for a spin. She seemed fine, though I only drove around the block a few times.

The check Engine light IS on...however, it came on two days after she bought it (2 weeks ago). She took it in, they swapped the thermostat and it was off. Then, last weekend, it popped on again and remained on until Tuesday at which time it miraculously shut off. Then, it was off until what I will now refer to as the "THE GREAT VW NEW BEETLE DEEP-WATER INCIDENT". At which time, the engine light was not just on, it was blinking. The manual suggested we look at the catalytic converter. However 10 minutes later, the check engine light went from blinking to just being solid. So, its still on. Could have to do with THE GREAT VW NEW BEETLE DEEP-WATER INCIDENT or the fact that the check engine light seems to be quirky.

As it stands, I've got an appointment with the dealer to have them look at it as well as the light. Though, they are booked solid until the 30th. ugh.

Thanks all and I will keep you posted.
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Sorry. I tried to keep things simple. lol

If the Check Engine light freaked out when you went through the puddle, then yeah, it has (or had) something ECU (Electronic Control Unit) related - most likely a sensor. It's possible that an Airflow sensor got a little moisture in it, which threw off the calibration until it dried. They have a little wire inside that detects how much air is passing it from the temperature (and it can determine air pressure from the temperature). If it suddenly got damp, that would either a) impede the flow of electrons between the wire or b) greatly reduce the temperature of the wire, but most likely (a).

Anyway, there's a good chance that it should be fine, but keep an eye on it.
 
thanks to you guys, my girlfriend is going to have to swallow her words next time she is tempted to call you guys my geeky-dvxuser friends.
 
rlm7189 said:
holy crap. thanks to you tommy i am going to need an auto terminology-to-idiot dictionary.

ha. Well, this morning i took her out for a spin. She seemed fine, though I only drove around the block a few times.

The check Engine light IS on...however, it came on two days after she bought it (2 weeks ago). She took it in, they swapped the thermostat and it was off. Then, last weekend, it popped on again and remained on until Tuesday at which time it miraculously shut off. Then, it was off until what I will now refer to as the "THE GREAT VW NEW BEETLE DEEP-WATER INCIDENT". At which time, the engine light was not just on, it was blinking. The manual suggested we look at the catalytic converter. However 10 minutes later, the check engine light went from blinking to just being solid. So, its still on. Could have to do with THE GREAT VW NEW BEETLE DEEP-WATER INCIDENT or the fact that the check engine light seems to be quirky.

As it stands, I've got an appointment with the dealer to have them look at it as well as the light. Though, they are booked solid until the 30th. ugh.

Thanks all and I will keep you posted.
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Oh dude! I had a VW Jetta a few years ago, and I went through water once and the CHECK ENGINE LIGHT came on, and it was water in the air filter!
 
don't ever drive through standing water on a flooded road. in addition to damaging your car, it could put your life and the lives of others at risk.
 
If your check engine light is still on, take it to your local auto parts chain store and they will diagnose the problem for you. They have a little machine that they can hook up to your car and it'll tell you what problem the car is registering. Note that this might not exactly tell you how to fix it, though.
 
ugafan said:
don't ever drive through standing water on a flooded road. in addition to damaging your car, it could put your life and the lives of others at risk.
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yeah...i hear that. its hard to explain but it wasn't raining too hard. it was doing more of a heavy drizzle for an hour or two...so none of the roads were anything but wet. This road was flooded and we didn't know it until we cruised right up on it. Rather than navigate a very tight 3 point turn in the middle of traffic congestion, I opted to 'go for it'. That was my mistake.

So far, the car seems to be back to normal. I checked the air filter out, looked fine. The CHECK ENGINE light is still on. But, thats been quirky since she bought the car. So, I made an appointment with the dealer to fix the problem once and for all. I'll let you know what happens.

As a side note...its a Robins Egg Blue VW New Beetle Convertible and I have a blast driving it. Does that mean I'm gay? Not that there is anything wrong with it.
 
Here's a tip for when the check engine light on new VWs goes on for no apparent reason. Before you take it in to have it checked out, make sure your gas cap is seated properly. Then drive it for a short while and see if it goes off. It's happened twice on my wife's Passat and this was the problem. The tip was given to us by a friend who works for a VW dealer. She said this is the most common reason that light goes on.
 
Kholi said:
I know when I had my ricey Honda Civic, I ran through a puddle on the highway and my engine drank water via the super long Intake, causing the vehicle to choke and damned near blow a hole in the oil pan.
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Same thing happened to me except mine was an RSX. Water got sucked into my cold air intake and it almost murdered by car. Car choked and died in middle of the freeway.
 
Dangitskang said:
Same thing happened to me except mine was an RSX. Water got sucked into my cold air intake and it almost murdered by car. Car choked and died in middle of the freeway.
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So much flooding lately.

Bigger picture... it must the polar caps are melting faster than we thought.

Seek higher ground and bicycles.
 
Here's the door handle of the 67. I'm trying to find time to take some more photos but work really cuts into my time. :(

1177128058.jpg
 
Thanks Tommy! Love Mustangs. Drove one around San Francisco for a three weeks last year, on our honeymoon... wasn't a '67, but still got under my skin in a great way. Got on well with the new Mrs too!


tommyinla said:
I'm trying to find time to take some more photos but work really cuts into my time. :(
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Yeah, I have that problem too. Shouldn't really be fooling around on DVXuser.com.... but it's addictive.
 
It sounds like your ESP traction control was engaged that night with the wet roads the car sensed you slipping and beaked/ throtled down the engine.

Water getting into the engine is unlikely as the VW air box has a flap to take air from the engine bay if the intake tube gets clogged, so there would not be enough pressure to suck water in.

I have had ESP do some strange things in my GTI...

For the CEL chances are you have a dirty MAF, or possibly bad O2 sensor.

If you keep getting CEL you might want to buy a VAG-COM so you can scan the car yourself and save the dealer fee, you can get them off ebay for like $50... Its always fun to go to the dealer with the code and tell them whats wrong with the car :P
 
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you guys rock. although, with each passing posting rife with car terminology i can feel my gnads shrinking. I am so not handy. ugh.
 
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