how to find a vacuum leak

[vascott99]

all:

I have a 2001 jetta 1.8l and the car is running too rich.

How does one look for a leak besides the obvious of looking for one...what methods have you used...I have heard of using choke cleaner.and when the car stalls you found it..The idea of a car warming up and spraying a flammable liquid on it just doesn't seem like a brilliant idea...

Thanks all

[Vicegrip]

some brake cleaners are not flammable. being not flammable is how they work to find the leak the car stumbles or stalls when you hit the leak. good old school dirty trick was to hit someones air cleaner element with some red can Brake kleen. Car would not start until the fumes clear.

[matt de maria]

Sometimes I use a spray bottle of water to find vac leaks. On the big leaks like 944 intake manifold you can hear the water getting slurped into the manifold; rpm changes.
I helped my neighbor on a POS ford one time with brake clean; it backfired through intake and caught fire at the leak point. I had all I could do to keep huffing and puffing on it to delay the fire; my neighbor saw this and brought the air hose over to put it out.

[HoodPin]

....I helped my neighbor on a POS ford one time with brake clean; it backfired through intake and caught fire at the leak point. I had all I could do to keep huffing and puffing on it to delay the fire; my neighbor saw this and brought the air hose over to put it out.

:lol:

I guess this falls into the category of "Even a squirrel with 20/20 vision will sometimes drop the nut before opening it". :p

[jerome951]

For my 951 I have a round metal cup w/ a Schrader valve embedded into it. I hook it up just downstream of the turbo and pressurize the system. Easy to hear the leak then.
http://www.arnnworx.com/catalog/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=69&products_id=239

[walterlumplump]

all:

I have a 2001 jetta 1.8l and the car is running too rich.

How does one look for a leak besides the obvious of looking for one...what methods have you used...I have heard of using choke cleaner.and when the car stalls you found it..The idea of a car warming up and spraying a flammable liquid on it just doesn't seem like a brilliant idea...

Thanks all

Are you looking for a vacuum because the car is running rich?

Generally, vacuum leaks tend to lean the mixture.

More info would be helpful. Is the rich condition experienced at idle or under load?

Good luck,

Marty

[vascott99]

i cleaned the Mass air Flow...Replaced the MAF. Checked for vacuum leaks..changed spark plugs, air filter, gas filter...The last thing is the Fuel pressure regulator...Still running too Rich....Still saving the P0172 error. Which all the VW sites says it could be one of the items mentioned...

Any other ideas are welcome...

[Richard Curtis]

Pull the vacuum hose leading to the FPR. Smell it. If it smells like gas, the FPR diaphragm is ruptured.

[vascott99]

good to know...I will try that tonight...Thanks