2.5 TDI: Fuel Injection Pump - Replacement? Reconditioned Unit?... Cut my losses!?

[23e Heure]

Hi All,

Just had one of those "why me, why now!"? calls from the garage...

I have a 2.5TDI A4 Avant. The car wouldn't start yesterday for my wife.
She called the AA who said it was the crank sensor needed replacing.

A quick look on here and my spirits lifted - that one sounds like a relatively cheap and easy fix.

Car was trailered to the garage today.
They just called to tell me that in fact the fuel injection pump has failed.

They are quoting ~@£1700+VAT for a replacement, plus 4 hours labour to fix.

Its an 03 plate, 115k miles... If fixing the car is that kind of cost it's questionable whether it's worth keeping it.

Can anyone help me weigh up my options? Right now I'm so upset that I can't focus!

Cheers in advance.

 

[quattrojames]

Bad times.

You can get a refurbed unit, in region of £500 last time I heard. maybe adamss24 can advise you better. If so, you'll get it back on the road for under a grand hopefully. Never good news, but better the devil you know and all that. I've heard the name 'Diesel Bob' mentioned in these situations.

Diesel Bob Tuning - Home

 

[23e Heure]

Cheers for the swift reply James. I'll drop dieselbob a line.

We just dropped ALL our savings on unexpected repairs needed to our house, so this news is like getting kicked while we're already lying on the ground!

 

[quattrojames]

Cars like doing that eh.

 

[abyrne153]

Most VP44 pump failures relate to the ecu on top of the pump. These can be removed with the pump still on the car and sent off for testing to specialists such as ecutesting.com to name but one. There are videos around on the internet showing the removal procedure. It usually takes around £300 to repair the ecu and many places give a lifetime warranty.

 

[gtiboy]

Most VP44 pump failures relate to the ecu on top of the pump. These can be removed with the pump still on the car and sent off for testing to specialists such as ecutesting.com to name but one. There are videos around on the internet showing the removal procedure. It usually takes around £300 to repair the ecu and many places give a lifetime warranty.

I have just got over this scenario and had the pump refurbised by Diesel bob total cost to refurbish the pump 645 inclusive of vat .
I phoned loads of people and got told all sorts of rubbish ,
Ended up dealing with diesel bob and for that amount you get the a brand new pump ecu fitted. He callibirates the pump on a test bed and warranties the whole lot for 12 months .
Well worth the money and peace of mind in the long run.
I was going to try the ecu route but thought if i did that and then the pump packs up i would be back at square one .
Advice was given to me by Chris Adams (adams24) and he also fitted and timed it for me .
I would strongly recommend getting the car code read first and see what codes it throws up .
Best of luck.

 

[23e Heure]

Thanks guys. Am waiting for a reply from dieselbob.

While I wait for that, can anyone tell me the part number for my pump?
My car is an 03 plate Avant 2.5 V6 TDI, it's a Quattro so 180 bhp.

 

[adamss24]

Hi All,

Just had one of those "why me, why now!"? calls from the garage...

I have a 2.5TDI A4 Avant. The car wouldn't start yesterday for my wife.
She called the AA who said it was the crank sensor needed replacing.

A quick look on here and my spirits lifted - that one sounds like a relatively cheap and easy fix.

Car was trailered to the garage today.
They just called to tell me that in fact the fuel injection pump has failed.

They are quoting ~@£1700+VAT for a replacement, plus 4 hours labour to fix.

Its an 03 plate, 115k miles... If fixing the car is that kind of cost it's questionable whether it's worth keeping it.

Can anyone help me weigh up my options? Right now I'm so upset that I can't focus!

Cheers in advance.

Where about's are you based ? As above, diesel bob does refurbish thr pump for under £700, drop me a pm, maybe i can fit the pump for you if not too far ! Definatelly not 4 hours labour, you'll have it done well for under a grand...Regards,
Chris- 07789912128.

 

[haytch75]

The best advice you can get on your car is from Adamss24. Take it.

I recently did a 400 mile round trip to see him. He knows these cars better than anyone and therefore spends less time diagnosing & faffing about. Also you won't find a more honest and helpful bloke.

 

[robotplant]

The best advice you can get on your car is from Adamss24. Take it.

I recently did a 400 mile round trip to see him. He knows these cars better than anyone and therefore spends less time diagnosing & faffing about. Also you won't find a more honest and helpful bloke.

I second that too, Chris really knows is Audi's and is a very helpful guy!

 

[adamss24]

Thanks guys. Am waiting for a reply from dieselbob.

While I wait for that, can anyone tell me the part number for my pump?
My car is an 03 plate Avant 2.5 V6 TDI, it's a Quattro so 180 bhp.

Make sure the garage that fit the pump has the necessary gear to pull codes and know how to program the immobiliser to accept the pump as well...otherwise it will be an expensive trip to the dealers ! £480 all in is rather cheap for a fully refurbished pump (?), the pump's control unit on it's own is £375 from Bosch then it needs stripping and some key components replaced as they wear out. Even diesel bob's pumps are cheap considering they need 4 hours calibrating on the bench- that's where the money goes to ! I do hope for your own sake they are not using one of these internet based outfits that just repair the EDC, pumps wear internally as well due to low sulphur diesel and water in diesel which cause corossion on advance solenoid and timing pistons... Please get back to us with results as i am rather intrigued especially if they quoted you 4 hours labour ! Good luck !

 

[gtiboy]

For peace of mind and doing the job right first time Chris (adams24) is your man .
Ill third that !

 

[23e Heure]

My fingers are crossed.
Thanks to all of you for your replies - great forum.
Will let you know how I get on...

 

[foursprungdugtechnique]

I had my injection pump reconditioned, mine packed in at 95k. My local Audi specialist sent it to Diesel Dave (probably not related to Diesel Bob lol). It cost me, a few years ago, less than £700, and a couple of hundred labour (other stuff getting done at the same time), car has run great since

 

[Brentquinn]

Hello All,

I'm new to this site...so hi!

I have a similar problem to that outlined above and to summarise where I am:

I have an Audi A4 Cabriolet 2.5TDi S-Line 2005 plate. The car was slow at starting for a while and was pouring out blue smoke on start up too. I stupidly ignored this (I know...hindsight!) until it would no longer start...at all! It has subsequently sat in an Audi specialist now for 3 weeks and I have been advised that the 'fuel pump has gone'. I was also told that a new one will cost circa £1400 and that the ECU would have to be reset by Audi at a cost of some £750 and this is all before any labour charges kick in! To add insult to this injury, I'm also advised that this MIGHT not solve the problem as it may be masking something else. This would mean I'd likely have little change from £3k on a car that's probably worth £5k, on a good day!

I've since had a look myself and have a couple of ideas floating around my head:

a) I've found 2nd hand pumps on Ebay for around £500ish. My question on this is if I buy this and get it fitted by someone in the 'Audi know', because of the ECU issue, will the car 'reject' the new part? Or is there a way it would accept it? If so, I'd have thought this seems the easiest and cheapest option?
b) I have a local diesel specialist who will test the mechanical aspect of the pump, but will charge a) £200 to remove the pump and b) £60 for an initial test and then a further £200 for more testing if the 1st test doesn't throw up the correct solution. If this shows up the pump is fine mechanically, it may be an ECU issue and I could have wasted best part of £500 in process.
c) send to Automotive ECU Testing - ECU Repair and Exchange but still have to pay to get the pump removed and for the testing process, which I'm unclear about in terms of costs.

If a) is a go-er it is my best choice, but both b) and c) can be very costly, and with no guarantees.

I have been a bit confused by all of this but some of the posts above have given me some hope! So, if anyone can advise me on what they think would be my best course of action, that would be very much appreciated

I'm based in Edinburgh by the way...

Thanks in advance for any help!

 

[gtiboy]

£500 is rich money for a seond hand pump whe Diesel bob can recon your pump and fully guarantee it for Approx £600 ish for that he also replaces the ecu for the unit .
this then gives you the the peace of mind that the pump is correct and true to the tolerances it should be within.
When i had mine done i tried and tried to cut corners and always came to the same conclusion that money spent now would save money long term .I would have bought one second hand but after taking to Adamss24 he recomended that even if i bought a pump at 300 how long would it work for ? also the cost of labour fitiing and removal is still the same regardless of new or reconditioned .
My advice to you is get the car code wrad initially an that should head you towards the right direction.
I was at my wits end with this problem but after talking to adamss24 it was crystal clear the path to take .
hope this helps?

 

[antony89]

Ive recently put a new engine in it started revd up then cut out and wont start now judt turns over these are the codes that have come up These are the codes and description his computer gave mate

01318 X2 control module for injection pump (j339) 37.10 faulty intermittent

00522 coolant temperature sender implausible signal (g62)

00542 needle lift sensor 30.10 open or short to b+ intermittent

P1570 engine start blocked by active immobiliser

P1570 powertrain data bus missing message from a/c controller 008 implausible signal

 

[adamss24]

Check timing and if found ok then the pump is Us !

 

[antony89]

It turns ova fine and has compression

 

[abyrne153]

For a start the immobiliser is blocking starting probably because the pump has not been coded to the car. If your engine came with the pump fitted then it either needs matched or you could fit your old one. The j399 code may indicate a faulty pump ecu but until you get the immobiliser sorted you can't do much more diagnostics.

 

[antony89]

Got it coded ans started but think need a new one as it runnin rough thanks to guy that fitted it as he took the top ecu off the pump and there a plunger under it witch is now not lined up as he removed it

 

[abyrne153]

You need to get the fault codes cleared and then run the engine and see what new codes are generated. This will give you a steer on what is causing the engine to run rough. If it is the IP and I suspect it probably is then you need to get the pump off and sent away for testing. The vp44 pumps are precision set and any messing with them causes all sorts of bother. Repairs to the ecu on its own often leads to poor running , starting problems etc. The only answer is for the pump to be sent off to a specialist Bosch pump dealer for testing and repair. It is expensive as you can budget £600 + vat for the pump repairs alone but a well set up injector pump will transform the car.

 

[chrisA4conv2.5TDIs]

Great information guys , I have exactly the same issue with my A4 V6 2.5l TDI;
pouring out white smoke , lumpy running etc . I have spoken to a company called (excuse the name) VAG tek, the guy know his stuff , as he pin pointed me to the same solution as you guys cam up with,but I'm still waiting for him to turn up.
If there is anyone available to take of the ECU for me and get it repaired and calibrated the work is here . I live in Surbiton Surrey

 

[abyrne153]

Don't be tempted to repar the ecu on its own. I did it previously and the car never ran right after. The only answer is to send the whole pump away for repair by a Bosch diesel specialist as it needs set up using a special test bench. They usually fit a new ecu so the pump immobiliser will need to be matched to the car when you get it back.

 

[chrisA4conv2.5TDIs]

any ideas on cost, as I am struggling with repair value in relation to vehicle value . I tried to get the car towed home from where to broke down this morning and the towing eye pulled out of the thread. I am beginning to think I should not have bought it.

 

[chrisA4conv2.5TDIs]

Ive recently put a new engine in it started revd up then cut out and wont start now judt turns over these are the codes that have come up These are the codes and description his computer gave mate

01318 X2 control module for injection pump (j339) 37.10 faulty intermittent

00522 coolant temperature sender implausible signal (g62)

00542 needle lift sensor 30.10 open or short to b+ intermittent

P1570 engine start blocked by active immobiliser

P1570 powertrain data bus missing message from a/c controller 008 implausible signal

Anthony, how much did your new engine cost? as i might need one!!

 

[abyrne153]

Try and get in touch with Adamss24 on this forum. Chris Adams seems to always have lots of spares for these and he is a true expert on these engines. He is based in London so not too far from you and if anyone can fix it for you he can. What makes you think the engine has expired anyway?