2001 Passat 1.8T Clicking/Clanking Noise on start up

So it only happens when I start the car, I’m thinking its the starting needing to be replace. The car starts everytime, Just when it cranks it makes a the noise, but fires up right away. The noise is gone once the car is started.

It might be a bad cam chain tensioner. It’s located under the valve cover at the rear of the engine. Have someone listen while you start the engine and see if it is coming from that area or you can just remove the valve cover and check it.

VW motor has timing chain? Not belt?

No, I didn’t say timing chain. I said cam chain. Yes, the 1.8T has a timing belt on the front of the engine like any other timing belt engine. The engine has two cams, an intake and exhaust, but the timing belt only drives one of them. So how is the other cam driven? It is connected to the timing belt driven cam by a chain at the back of the engine, the cam chain. That chain is hydraulically tensioned but the assembly can go bad and the chain can make noise. If the tensioner fails, it will also throw the cam timing off some due to the loose chain. Anyway, that is the chain to which I was referring.

Also, please note that I’m not saying this is definitely the problem. I don’t think we have enough information to make a positive diagnosis yet, at least I don’t. It’s just something to be considered and maybe checked.