Pinging at idle

[Topend]

Hi,

My wife's new Golf VI is making a pinging noise at idle only. It can only be heard when outside the front of the car. Once off idle the sounds goes away. If the A/C is switched off the sound also goes away as the load is removed.

The sales person told me before we bought the car they always fill their cars before displaying them on their yard. It is a Feb 2009 model so has been sitting for some time. I have put it down to old fuel.

I spoke to the dealership and they had their service people look at it. They could not find any faults and also put it down to fuel. They want me to return the car after 1000km and will go over the car again free of charge.

We ran the car sedately until the tank was very low. I then filled it with 53.6 litres of BP Ultimate 98, therefore there was less than 2 litres of the old fuel remaining. I have only driven the car 20km since then and the sound is significantly reduced. I am expecting it to continue to improve.

The other issue was rusted brake discs. After a tank worth of fuel they have come good but I can detect a minor noise at car park speed. The service department can check this too.

When I take it back I might also ask them to change the oil and filter at my cost.

Has anyone else experienced anything similar to this?

Cheers,
Dave.

[Corey_R]

It's very possible that the pinging was due to 'old' fuel. So it's good that you have put a full tank of BP Ultimate in there. I wouldn't worry if it goes away.

As for the 'rusting' of the brakes. It'll happen even only a few hours after you've washed the car. Don't worry too much about it - after a few brake applications it goes away.

I would DEFINITELY be asking them to change the oil and filter though.... actually ask for an entire service for free. The service schedule is 15,000km OR 12 months. They've sold you the car 12 months old, so it's due for a service now.

[Topend]

Once the BP Ultimate has been used up we will normally run 95RON, my wife will probably use Shell and if I'm filling I will get Caltex.

If rust shows up on the discs after a wash, you can imagine how much rust was there after a year.

Dave.

[Corey_R]

yeah - it's just a surface reaction though - it doesn't actually rust into the disc...

[Guest0608]

Hi,

My wife's new Golf VI is making a pinging noise at idle only. It can only be heard when outside the front of the car. Once off idle the sounds goes away. If the A/C is switched off the sound also goes away as the load is removed.

The sales person told me before we bought the car they always fill their cars before displaying them on their yard. It is a Feb 2009 model so has been sitting for some time. I have put it down to old fuel.

I spoke to the dealership and they had their service people look at it. They could not find any faults and also put it down to fuel. They want me to return the car after 1000km and will go over the car again free of charge.

We ran the car sedately until the tank was very low. I then filled it with 53.6 litres of BP Ultimate 98, therefore there was less than 2 litres of the old fuel remaining. I have only driven the car 20km since then and the sound is significantly reduced. I am expecting it to continue to improve.

The other issue was rusted brake discs. After a tank worth of fuel they have come good but I can detect a minor noise at car park speed. The service department can check this too.

When I take it back I might also ask them to change the oil and filter at my cost.

Has anyone else experienced anything similar to this?

Cheers,
Dave.

Get them at the dealership to make sure the noise at idle isnt coming from the gearbox / flywheel, as you say the a/c is on you can hear it makes me think the engine is loaded up, if this is the case it MAY require a engine update to the latest version, this raises the idle speed of the engine very slightly so that the flywheel doesnt rattle under load.

Remember I havent seen/ heard you car and I cant quite remember the engine that the update is for, just ask about it, they should know about the update and can check if its required for your engine code or not.....VW....

Could still easily be fuel, aussie fuel eh!......

[Topend]

Get them at the dealership to make sure the noise at idle isnt coming from the gearbox / flywheel, as you say the a/c is on you can hear it makes me think the engine is loaded up, if this is the case it MAY require a engine update to the latest version, this raises the idle speed of the engine very slightly so that the flywheel doesnt rattle under load.

Remember I havent seen/ heard you car and I cant quite remember the engine that the update is for, just ask about it, they should know about the update and can check if its required for your engine code or not.....VW....

Could still easily be fuel, aussie fuel eh!......

I've driven about 80km on the 98RON fuel now and the pinging noise is still there at idle. I will talk to the service department today about the flywheel theory and ask about any updates.

Dave.

[tbone malone]

Not sure if this is 'pinging' or not...

While travelling in peak hour this morning I experienced a dull popping/knocking noise. It sounded like it was coming from the near end of the engine bay but was a bit hard to tell.

It was only occuring when coasting downhill in 2nd gear at approx 1600-2000 rpm with no throttle input... oh, and A/C was on low. Fuel is Shell vpower, half a tank left.

Can anyone diagnose? Any help is appreciated

[Topend]

My wife left the car with VW service this morning. They had no idea about the car or the noise even though I have spoken to them many times.

They asked my wife where we purchased the car.
They then asked if the car was purchased used.

One week ago we purchased this car new from them. They have forgotten about us already. We are previous customers to them that have bought a new car (Honda) and had it serviced with them for six years. We still have the Honda and have to get it serviced one more time before selling it. They should know us.

After hearing all this from my wife I called the dealership. I was put through to the dealer principle who promptly put the mechanic on. I am now satisfied they are doing all they can. They now have the opportunity to get the car fixed and provide us the service we deserve. Here's hoping it all goes well.

Will post an update later today and thanks for the opportunity to vent my disappointment.

Dave.

[pologti18t]

You sure its pinging? That usually only happens underload. More likely just the noisey direct injection system

[Topend]

You sure its pinging? That usually only happens underload.

I agree, but it does sound like pinging. Another suggestion was a rattle from the flywheel/gearbox. I mentioned this to the mechanic so he can investigate.