Performance issues and smoke from AHH motor

Hello everyone,

My father drives a Passat 3B5, model year 2000, with an AHH engine and approximately 195,000 kilometers on the odometer. Recently, he's been experiencing a problem where, at approximately 1900-2000 RPM, for example in 3rd gear, the power momentarily drops, a cloud of smoke comes out of the exhaust, and then the power slowly returns.
Generally speaking, one might feel that something is lacking in overall performance.
I have VAG Com in the free version, and the error memory is empty.
The air filter and diesel filter were once replaced as a test, but they eventually needed to be replaced anyway .
I carefully cleaned the mass airflow sensor with brake cleaner, but it didn't work. I've had success with that method on my old 1Z before. Would this error code appear in the error memory if something was defective?
I once read that you could temporarily replace the mass airflow sensor with a resistor to diagnose a potential defect, but I'm not sure if that's still accurate.

I would be grateful for any advice.

Regards,

Martin.

Quote:

I own VAG Com in the freeware version

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Unfortunately, I don't think I can help with that. The minimum requirement would be VCDS Lite, and having access to live data would also be helpful.

Best regards, Rainer.

Check if the AGR valve is closing!
Boost pressure is definitely a topic!
Is the LL system down?
I don't know what your VAG Com can do, but it should have a diagnostic data display, right?
You can also see the boost pressure there; the 11 series shows the target and actual pressure. If you go further...
You can narrow it down once you figure out what it is.
Best regards, Patrick.