Topic: My Jetta 1.8T Traction control or brakes malfunctioning .........

[aquadorhj]

 

one thing after another, eh....

started right after the day i changed my fuel/air filters.

here's what happens : i drive along, and suddenly, it feels like the brakes are grabbing, even though i'm not on brakes.  traction control light comes on and does not go away until i re-start the car.   it doesn't feel like ABS is pumping, just some of the brakes are gently grabbing.

happened twice so far this week.

my guess is, either wheel speed sensor, or ABS pump?  traction control module?  or brake line damage?  i don't see any leaks anywhere though.

arrgge...

EDIT : hmm.  after a brief search, it may not be brakes at all.  could it be faulty MAF sensor, and i perceived loss of power as brakes gently grabbing?

[johngenx]

Does it have Brake Assist?  Sounds like a BAS malfunction.  Have you been disconnecting the battery in an effort to clear codes or other reasons?

[aquadorhj]

i don't think my car has any EBD type assist other than normal brake and abs pumps.

never unplugged battery during my ownership.   (as far as i know.)

[safristi]

..........   JETTA-SON  it............... ...aujourdhi is another deja day..... ..are you part of the Groundhog day CLAN...

[articsteve]

 

Welcome to the world of VW/Audi

Try pulling the traction control fuse.  Otherwise, deal it. 

[johngenx]

Does it have a user-access circuit for it?  I know on the MB models we had, safety systems were not fused in a way that allowed owner access.

The traction control uses ABS hardware to engage and release the brakes, so it's more than possible than an ABS sensor/etc might be at fault.  That type of stuff of VWs (and most German cars) is often needlessly complex and stupidly expensive.  I had to make ABS repairs on a 190E I had, and was shocked at how "too much thinking by some engineer" made the repairs difficult and expensive.

[dr_spock]

Any codes with the VW scan tool or VAG-COM?

[safristi]

  hey this is  a  family site.............

[aquadorhj]

After extensive and exhaustive search,  on internet, i've narrowed down the cause.

MAF sensor.

I know it sounds weird.  but apparently, gurus on vwvortex confirms that this could happen, and a way to test it is to unplug the MAF and drive it.

So, even though it sounds weird, I try it.   TC light on my car. runs like crap, revs falling, power reduced. then i unplug MAF, voila, TC light off, and runs almost normal.  idles a little rough but overall fine.

since the last time it happened, it was fine for couple of weeks, but i guess the MAF finally packed up and gone to car parts heaven..  or probably hell.

TC light was on for 2 days straight, (of course, i plugged the dead MAF back in) and morphed itself into CEL.

I think my car is bypassing MAF all together now, as it is running fine, but with CEL on.

So, i order a MAF sensor.  Dealers quoted me $280 or around there.  :-(   but found a Bosch MAF on ECStuning with exact same part number as OEM for $150.

Hope this fixes my little issue for few years.

Got rubber floor mats for the fronts for $50, too.      hope they get here soon.

ps. will update after MAF replacement.