White smoke - muffler - car hiccups

Hi,
I own 1997 VW Jetta GLS , manual transmission with 137,000 miles on it
in Michigan. I am pretty much a novice at car maintenance.

Off late I have noticed 2 problems: any help is appreciated.
1) Whenever I accelerate my car from rest, I hear a big growl/rattle
coming from the rear of my car. Also, I feel as if something is moving,
the kind of feeling you get when a small bag moves about in your trunk
when u accelerate. I looked under the car and nothing seems to be
jutting out or no pipes hanging loose. The problem seems to be further
highlighted when the road is sloping upwards.

2) Its been quite cold and rainy off late and my car is parked outside.
So thats bad news right there! This morning I noticed my car puffing
away thick cloud of white smoke (my muffler and exhaust pipes were
replaced 2 months back). Also I noticed that my car engine isn't
sufficiently heated so I waited, but nothing changed. What makes it
worse is that when I shift from 1st to 2nd, the car jerks/hiccups and
it seems that its going to stall and stop. Infact it did so on an
up-ramp of my office parking lot. Its an uneasy feel behind the wheel
because the car seems to panting.

please help,
dg.

> wrote in message
ups.com...
> Hi,
> I own 1997 VW Jetta GLS , manual transmission with 137,000 miles on it
> in Michigan. I am pretty much a novice at car maintenance.
>
> Off late I have noticed 2 problems: any help is appreciated.
> 1) Whenever I accelerate my car from rest, I hear a big growl/rattle
> coming from the rear of my car. Also, I feel as if something is moving,
> the kind of feeling you get when a small bag moves about in your trunk
> when u accelerate. I looked under the car and nothing seems to be
> jutting out or no pipes hanging loose. The problem seems to be further
> highlighted when the road is sloping upwards.

May be time for a new fuel pump and filter. I would also take a good
look and feel (when cold) of the heat shields around the exhaust and all the
hangers.

>
> 2) Its been quite cold and rainy off late and my car is parked outside.
> So thats bad news right there! This morning I noticed my car puffing
> away thick cloud of white smoke (my muffler and exhaust pipes were
> replaced 2 months back). Also I noticed that my car engine isn't
> sufficiently heated so I waited, but nothing changed. What makes it
> worse is that when I shift from 1st to 2nd, the car jerks/hiccups and
> it seems that its going to stall and stop. Infact it did so on an
> up-ramp of my office parking lot. Its an uneasy feel behind the wheel
> because the car seems to panting.

White smoke is not unusual on cold damp days. There may be nothing
wrong there. Are you loosing any coolant?

I suspect the "jerks/hiccups" are related to question #1 and is the fuel
pump-fuel filter.

Good Luck

>
> please help,
> dg.
>



--
Joseph Meehan

Dia duit

"Joseph Meehan" > wrote in message
. ..
> May be time for a new fuel pump and filter. I would also take a good
> look and feel (when cold) of the heat shields around the exhaust and all
> the hangers.

Yes it could be a saggy hangar.

>> 2) Its been quite cold and rainy off late and my car is parked outside.
>> So thats bad news right there! This morning I noticed my car puffing
>> away thick cloud of white smoke (my muffler and exhaust pipes were
>> replaced 2 months back). Also I noticed that my car engine isn't
>> sufficiently heated so I waited, but nothing changed. What makes it
>> worse is that when I shift from 1st to 2nd, the car jerks/hiccups and
>> it seems that its going to stall and stop. Infact it did so on an
>> up-ramp of my office parking lot. Its an uneasy feel behind the wheel
>> because the car seems to panting.
>
> White smoke is not unusual on cold damp days. There may be nothing
> wrong there. Are you loosing any coolant?

The white is nothing but steam. It's normal if it's coming from
condensation in the exhaust burning off, esp. this time of year. If you are
losing coolant though that's a BIG problem b/c it's getting into the
cylinders.

However this time of year with damper/colder weather it's usually an
ignition problem like old/cracked plug wires and old distributor cap and
rotor. Replace those items...not too expensive.

Matt B. wrote:
> "Joseph Meehan" > wrote in message
> . ..
>> May be time for a new fuel pump and filter. I would also take a
>> good look and feel (when cold) of the heat shields around the
>> exhaust and all the hangers.
>
> Yes it could be a saggy hangar.
>
>>> 2) Its been quite cold and rainy off late and my car is parked
>>> outside. So thats bad news right there! This morning I noticed my
>>> car puffing away thick cloud of white smoke (my muffler and exhaust
>>> pipes were replaced 2 months back). Also I noticed that my car
>>> engine isn't sufficiently heated so I waited, but nothing changed.
>>> What makes it worse is that when I shift from 1st to 2nd, the car
>>> jerks/hiccups and it seems that its going to stall and stop. Infact
>>> it did so on an up-ramp of my office parking lot. Its an uneasy
>>> feel behind the wheel because the car seems to panting.
>>
>> White smoke is not unusual on cold damp days. There may be
>> nothing wrong there. Are you loosing any coolant?
>
> The white is nothing but steam. It's normal if it's coming from
> condensation in the exhaust burning off, esp. this time of year. If
> you are losing coolant though that's a BIG problem b/c it's getting
> into the cylinders.
>
> However this time of year with damper/colder weather it's usually an
> ignition problem like old/cracked plug wires and old distributor cap
> and rotor. Replace those items...not too expensive.

Good point, I failed to think of. I suggest that the ignition system
should be checked first as it is almost always cheaper to fix and likely due
for maintenance (tune-up) anyway.


--
Joseph Meehan

Dia duit

thanks a lot for your suggestions Matt and Joe. I will get it checked
and keep u posted.
dg.

When the rear shocks on my Fox were worn out (and then some), the rear
end would do all sorts of interesting things like shudder and growl and
throw the back end around. But I would replace the fuel filter first
and see what that does.

> wrote in message
oups.com...
> When the rear shocks on my Fox were worn out (and then some), the rear end
> would do all sorts of interesting things like shudder and growl and throw
> the back end around. But I would replace the fuel filter first and see
> what that does.

I second that.

What care are we talking about here (did the o.p. say?).

If it's a Mk2 Golf/GTI/Jetta they're known for bad in-tank fuel transfer
pumps. The OE one made by VDO is usually the one that goes bad. The
replacement Pierburg one is preferred. This pump isn't too pricey...I got
mine from http://www.germanautoparts.com.

The main fuel pump under the car usually doesn't go bad. That one is a lot
pricier too.