triptik

For the past few days the car is having a rough start after sitting overnight. The first crank it tries to start but it barley turns over but dies quickly. It usually takes 3-5 tries but it eventually starts but the engine has a lot of hesitation and remains very sluggish for about a minute before running normal. I've ran about a half tank of gas with fuel injector cleaner, changed the (dirty) air filter, and cleaned the maf but the problem continues.

turbo510

That could be due to a lot of things, but for starters, the coolant temp sensor is a usual culprit. Check the coolant temperature with your VAG-COM if you have one, to see if the ECU is getting a reasonable value. I've gone through two on my '96 in the last five years, and they caused poor starting, so if in doubt, install a new one.

Other causes could be air leaks, throttle position sensor, or a bad MAF, which cleaning wouldn't help. The last two can also be checked with VAG-COM. Supposing the problem is mixture, do you know if it's too rich or two lean? You can pull a spark plug after a failed start, and if it smells like gas, that's too rich.