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I think it's a vacuum leak :(
Well... the good news is I've got my 2006 spur back from the paint shop (after sitting in the shop untouched for almost two months) and the bumper is touched up and the car has never looked more handsome...
...the bad news is when I picked up the car today I immediately noticed when I started it a rough idle upon start up (almost stalled) along with a CEL and traction control light on. Car seems to run fine once at speed. I can hear the vacuum pump running about 80% of the time I'd say. Pump kicks on the second I touch the brakes, even in park. Bad news? Could it be anything other than a vacuum leak at this point? |
I had a very similar experience. I had them change the plastic lines for stainless, but the check engine light came on, so I was headed back to the specialist. At the toll booth, I really launched it and popped off a vacuum fitting. The traction control light came on and it started idling horribly. I took it in, they found the loose fitting and reset the computer, everything was fine. I asked them how in the hell could the vacuum system have anything to do with the traction control...they shrugged their shoulders and said that Bentleys often had interconnected computer error messages for one problem.
Traction control light never came on again and vacuum lines are fine. If you need the vacuum lines, get the stainless ones, not the plastic ones. I spent $1,200 but right after someone said there is a guy who bends them for $200, which seems a fair price. $1,200 was a ripoff. Bad news: 33 hours of labor to pull the engine and replace it. Depending on your model and year, you may get away with less, I don't know much about the Flying Spur differences. I think your plastic lines still go across the transmission though. |
Originally Posted by British
(Post 4820999)
I had a very similar experience. I had them change the plastic lines for stainless, but the check engine light came on, so I was headed back to the specialist. At the toll booth, I really launched it and popped off a vacuum fitting. The traction control light came on and it started idling horribly. I took it in, they found the loose fitting and reset the computer, everything was fine. I asked them how in the hell could the vacuum system have anything to do with the traction control...they shrugged their shoulders and said that Bentleys often had interconnected computer error messages for one problem.
Traction control light never came on again and vacuum lines are fine. If you need the vacuum lines, get the stainless ones, not the plastic ones. I spent $1,200 but right after someone said there is a guy who bends them for $200, which seems a fair price. $1,200 was a ripoff. Bad news: 33 hours of labor to pull the engine and replace it. Depending on your model and year, you may get away with less, I don't know much about the Flying Spur differences. I think your plastic lines still go across the transmission though. |
Yes, sorry to be confusing. I had three problems in a row.
First, I had a turbo controller go bad, to change that, I had to pull the engine ($4,000 labor or thereabouts). While it was out, I had them change the vacuum lines to stainless, just because I never wanted to pull the engine again. Then...I had a bad wheel bearing and was taking it back for that when I accelerated hard and got the traction control and rough idle and check engine light. At the shop, they took it for a drive, confirmed the bad wheel bearing and the vacuum fitting that came off must have been somewhere accessible, because they fixed that in less than ten minutes. I know what you're thinking, "Maybe my leak is accessible." Probably not, if you search this forum, you'll find pictures of the plastic hose connectors that just disintegrate and they're generally around the transmission, but if they're starting to go bad, they're probably all in need of upgrade. It's really an enormous job. Search around and ask Johnny Hotspur too; depending on the model and year, some cars can get at the lines by removing the steering rack. My engine was out for a different reason (turbo controller) so I don' know if that was even possible. Read up on the "smoke test", in fact, you can do it yourself, but it will probably just confirm what you suspect already. Last question, do you have the VAG engine diagnosis software? That will tell you a lot of information. Ross Tech is what folks recommended and I think it works fine, although it is a bit counter-intuitive. Don't get the wireless connector, the cable is plenty long. I set my laptop on the passenger seat with the cable in the footwell, so I can turn the car on and off, press the gas, etc. |
Originally Posted by British
(Post 4821001)
Yes, sorry to be confusing. I had three problems in a row.
First, I had a turbo controller go bad, to change that, I had to pull the engine ($4,000 labor or thereabouts). While it was out, I had them change the vacuum lines to stainless, just because I never wanted to pull the engine again. Then...I had a bad wheel bearing and was taking it back for that when I accelerated hard and got the traction control and rough idle and check engine light. At the shop, they took it for a drive, confirmed the bad wheel bearing and the vacuum fitting that came off must have been somewhere accessible, because they fixed that in less than ten minutes. I know what you're thinking, "Maybe my leak is accessible." Probably not, if you search this forum, you'll find pictures of the plastic hose connectors that just disintegrate and they're generally around the transmission, but if they're starting to go bad, they're probably all in need of upgrade. It's really an enormous job. Search around and ask Johnny Hotspur too; depending on the model and year, some cars can get at the lines by removing the steering rack. My engine was out for a different reason (turbo controller) so I don' know if that was even possible. Read up on the "smoke test", in fact, you can do it yourself, but it will probably just confirm what you suspect already. Last question, do you have the VAG engine diagnosis software? That will tell you a lot of information. Ross Tech is what folks recommended and I think it works fine, although it is a bit counter-intuitive. Don't get the wireless connector, the cable is plenty long. I set my laptop on the passenger seat with the cable in the footwell, so I can turn the car on and off, press the gas, etc. |
VCDS by Ross-Tech.
They have one that is wireless and one with a long cable, I like the cable. You can set it for up to three cars (Volkswagen Auto Group cars). It's important to read the instructions first, because there is a lot of information. When I was a new owner, I ran it, and it displayed all of the errors. I'll show a sample below. You can clear the errors if you think some are nuisances, but of course, they recommend against that. I downloaded all the errors, cleared them, drove the car and re-checked to see what came up again. Below is the very first scan. I had a bad thermostat, bad third brake light and bad exhaust flap. Apparently the ECU stuff is just nuisance. Scan 'way back when I first got the car: Code:
Thursday,11,April,2019,10:30:53:08985 |
Just for clarification, the Flying Spurs never had any vacuum lines over the transmission, over the trans was only for the GT's 2004-06.
However, the FS and GT share the vacuum line setup along the firewall behind the steering rack, there is a thread here about the rack removal and line replacement, also the FS has the vacuum solenoids under the "B" cover at the back of the intake manifold, check for leaks there also. Johnny |
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Update...
Update: my mechanic tells me she is running like new again. I won't be able to pick her up until this weekend. I forget the name of the part, but I will post it once I get the invoice...
If I remember the phone call correctly, he said there is a rubber seal between the turbo and the airline I believe? He thinks somebody must have bumped it while I was having my bumper touched up in the body shop. Simple fix and he said she's running like new. I'm having a couple of other small things done while she is in the shop: OEM rear brake pads, brake line flush, general checkup and inspection, etc. I will post more details once I pick her up. I am fortunate that I found an independent shop within two hours from me and these guys specialize in Bentley, Ferrari, Lamborghini, and Rolls Royce. I can tell already the key to me being able to enjoy this car is having somebody that knows how to work on it that I can trust. I initially went to a shop nearby that specializes in exotics to run the codes but I could tell he was basically lost so I sought out an independent shop specializing in Bentley. Thanks for your input, as always, everyone! Until next time... happy motoring. |
That's great news! Didn't expect that.
Still, get the Ross-Tech, you'll be glad you started checking codes. |
Awesome. Your service guy sounds like a keeper.
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Update #2:
So. My Bentley service guy seems amazing so far (this is my first experience working with him, but when I dropped the car off there were three other Bentley's there... based on the online reviews this guy is honest and trustworthy and knows his Bentleys in and out). Once the air line to the turbo was fixed he said it was running like a champ and threw no new lights in about the twenty miles he put on it. However, just to be certain he ran codes again and found a "pending code" (not enough to throw a CEL he said) for some sort of exhaust thermostat or some such I believe? Anyway, he decided to smoke test the car to be thorough. He said he did find a vacuum leak, however, he claims it is in a spot that is tough to get to, but can be gotten to without dropping the engine or transmission (I believe he said he has done this same spot on multiple Spurs and it is towards the rear of the car and a common place for the Spur to develop a leak). So far we are as follows:
The reason I am being so descriptive and up-front in this post is because when I first went Bentley shopping, I really wanted to have an idea of maintenance costs and upkeep costs, etc. I hope this post is helpful for those shopping and for those solving current problems. The gentleman who is working on my car is know (according to his many positive online reviews) as a perfectionist and is known to look over the cars up and down, in and out. He said the car is solid and in very nice condition underneath and all over. That said, I am very happy with my purchase so far. Now that I know of this garage, any exotic pre-owned cars I purchase in the future will undergo a prepurchase inspection with this particular garage. Hopefully this will be the last update for this thread... stay tuned :) |
Where is your guy located just in case it’s members near that may want to use him?
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Wow, that's great prices for the work and OEM parts!
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Originally Posted by TeamJones1962
(Post 4821943)
Where is your guy located just in case it’s members near that may want to use him?
Rosso Service in Maryland. |
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