Please Help diagnose an engine trouble code for my 02 passat?

Question

my check engine light recently came on and i ran a computer scan and got the following trouble code: PO118 - Engine Coolant Temperature Circuit High input. Does anyone know have any suggestions on how to trouble shoot this problem? Or should i take it to the machanic and spend a whole lot of money?

I changed the coolant sensor and i scanned the computer again. I am still getting trouble code P118. is there anything esle anyone can think of to do?

Answer 1

Likely the coolant temperature sensor. They are cheap, usually. You can even probably check it against specs on the internet or in the fsm with a multimeter to see if it is operating properly.

Edit: I'm not trying to be a smart-***, but did you reset the ecu? I'm not familiar with vw's, but some cars keep certain codes stored until they are cleared. The high input part seems to remove the possibility that the connection is bad or dirty.

Answer 2

Disconnect and clean the connections first.

Then replace the coolant sensor and hope it works.

The proper test may involve a Power On Engine Off test. You will need to take the voltage reading across the terminals (the connector will have this foam where the wires go into and you can stick in multimeter probes) and see if it is in operating voltage specs. (if the dealer is willing to tell you what the specs are)

Answer 3

its the coolant temp sensor,they do go bad and are cheap and you should be able to fix it your self, and here is the part number

if its a 4 cyl of 6 cyl its the same part number 059-919-501-A and the seal N-903-168-02 and every vw dealer has them.

Answer 4

Why don't you just go to one of those oil change places like Quick Lube, etc..? They can change your oil and other liquids and check things out for you. You should let them know up front what you suspect or what you found. ...It is not that expensive 20 -30 dollars. Good luck.