Golf GT Sport TSI 2007 weird start up when cold

[BennyTheJet]

Hi All,

I've been reading plenty of the other threads before starting this new one but haven't identified anyone having the exact same issue as me, so hoping someone could shed some light on what is going on for me.

Here are the facts;
2007 Golf GT Sport my08 TSI
- When started after not driving for a full day or so, will take about 3 seconds of turning over ignition before it starts
- Once it starts it idles at 1100-1200 rpm and there is a slight shudder from the engine that can be felt through the cabin.
- This goes away after 30 seconds or so (when engine appears to have warmed up enough) and then returns to normal idle of 700-750 rpm.
- Does not affect driving of car and once car has been started for the day it will generally start up fine thereafter unless left sitting to go cold again for a long enough period of time.
- Sometimes it will still take a few seconds for ignition to kick in but will go straight to normal idle at 700 rpm so it is hard to diagnose the exact symptoms of this.
- Took it to a VW mechanic in Brisbane this week and without stripping the engine fully down to diagnose, he believed it may be an issue with a lack of oil being pushed into engine upon ignition.
- I also emailed some other VW mechanics who have been recommended in threads on this site. One replied and told me that this could be the 'cold start phase'.

At this stage I'm just trying to diagnose whether its worth spending money to get the engine stripped down to fix this, or whether this seems to be a known thing that happens with this model of car? Has anyone else had a similar experience and could shed some light on this for me?

Any help is appreciated, thanks guys.

[gldgti]

A very common issue with the 2.0l PD engines is fuel temperature sensor failure, which causes rough running at idle and starting. They are about $60 and easy to replace. I can't tell you how to diagnose it but do a bit of googling and you might find some more useful information.

[brad]

How often has the oil been changed & what grade / spec has been put in?

[idaho]

It is just the cold start mode to quickly heat the catalytic converter.

[BennyTheJet]

How often has the oil been changed & what grade / spec has been put in?

Serviced every year and literally just serviced two days ago (don't have the specs on me at the moment but I know it was the right oil as it was through a VW dealer mechanic). Same issue still happening as I drove home from the service that day.

[BennyTheJet]

It is just the cold start mode to quickly heat the catalytic converter.

I've had a few people tell me this now which is certainly making me less concerned. And can see quite a few videos on Youtube demonstrating the same thing. My only concern now is just the delay on engine starting when cranking the key in ignition. It can take up to 3-4 seconds sometimes. Would that still be related to the catalytic converter?

[idaho]

If it is slow to start when cranking it might need a new battery. My wife's GT Sport was noticeably like that before the battery was replaced.

[BennyTheJet]

Ok thanks for the info. Going to get some diagnostics run on it this weekend which should hopefully identify if/where the issue is occurring. Hoping that there's nothing wrong and its just the cold start that everyone's been talking about! Will update when I know more.

[BennyTheJet]

Just a quick update - it looks like I just need a new ignition switch and that will sort out the length of time it takes for ignition sometimes. Other than that all seems to be good. Thanks all for your input.