'02 Jetta TDI

Maintenance/Repairs
1

The turbo charger in my '02 Jetta TDI went out and I’m asking what the ramifications would be if I don’t invest the $1200.00 to get it fixed?

2

As I recall you will loose power, but I guess you know that, but you also will find that the intake is likely to clog. I believe you can do some work on it to delete it.

However I suggest you stop by http://www.tdiclub.com/ where they know everything about TDI’s and I will guess they know a local TDI mechanic that can do the work for far less than the dealer or most other mechanics will charge.

Note:  TDI = Turbo Diesel Injection.  I have never had mine fail, but I understand that it is a really big difference without it.
3

It all depends how it went out. If the bearing is bad the next step for it is to explode into multiple pieces (spins 100k rpm) and introduce to your engine to shards of metals in the combustion chamber or engine oil and finish the engine off.

4

Agree; I would try to fix it or REMOVE it if that’s possible without violationg the emission settings.

5

You could have it bypassed on the cheap ($100?) and not have to worry about it doing damage.

But, then you will have much less power as well. It won’t hurt anything to run that way, but it will be a slug.