Hi reddit,I have a 2001 2.0 Jetta. My dad is a mechanic who also owns a jetta, and told me it sounded like a sparkplug/sparkplug wire. The problem: It started last month when the weather got cold (coincidental maybe?). It turns over ok, and but it idles really bad,lots of wealthy gasoline smells coming from exhaust, and shifts really shaky. It seems to get better after you get it warmed up and up to speed (after about 5 minutes on the road) but it still shakes pretty bad when shifting (auto transmission). It also has a slight delay from when I hit the gas petal to when it accelerates. Also when I first pull it out of the driveway, and if I need to earn a sudden pause or late down at all,it will die and a battery indicator light pops up. I replaced all of my sparkplugs, but my wires looked OK so I didn't replace them. This did not fix it. Reason I'm thinking battery: my sister-in-law says she had the same problems with her ford Taurus, and mechanic told her she needed a fresh battery and it solved her problems. Also,this only happened after we got our first cold snap with weather, and my battery is at least 4 years worn (bought car used 4 years ago). Another thing, or it drives a bit better after I get it "warmed up". Maybe this is just because my alternator has charged it up much more than it was at start up,because a bad battery can lose a lot of juice over night? besides, I'm going to test the battery tomorrow, or if it turns out it needs replacing,should I buy a fresh one? I guess what I'm saying is that is it even possible, given the symptoms I've described, and that it could be a battery? Or am I wasting my money? Any relieve is appreciated,and I'll try and respond to any questions. submitted by Jarloftheyear to MechanicAdvice[link][7 comments]
Source: reddit.com