1995 Polo -- Very Rough Engine --

[p.o.l.o]

Hello,

I have a 1995 Polo 6NS with a 1.2 litre engine with approximately 107,000 miles. Earlier today, I was out for a drive and everything seemed fine. I stopped to park for about 5 minutes. When I restarted the engine, it felt very rough as if it is firing only only 3 of its 4 cylinders.

It is now very sluggish when moving away from a stopped position and I must keep the revs up quite high and let the clutch out very gradually or it stalls. The car is now so underpowered that only the first two gears can be used effectively--and have not driven more than 20 mph as the roughness of the engine seems greater at higher speeds. I should mention that the car starts fine even after sitting for several hours and there is no smoke coming from the exhaust.

Does anyone have an idea as to what the problem might be or any tests I can do to narrow down the possibilities? Could it be that it's a case of a spark plug going bad or perhaps the distributor needs replacing?

--John

[p.o.l.o]

There are some new developments regarding the Polo that might perhaps shed some additional light on the matter.

As I attempted to start the car today, the motor cranked for less than a second and that’s it. It won’t turn over. However, I did notice that prior to turning the key in the ignition, the car’s clock was reading the correct time; as soon as I turned the ignition, the clock reset to 00:00. Each time I turn the key, it resets the clock.

Does this clock problem shed any light on things?

--John