I bought a 97 jetta GT about 7 months ago and it recently died on me. When I bought the car, the person who sold it to me said they replaced a hose that we severed in half, where in reality he just stuck a little hose insert into the hose and electrical taped over it. When I brought the car to the dealer, they said that I had a bad throttle body, secondary air pump, and EVAC sensor, but I doubt all these things failed all at once. I'm trying to replace the hose first to see if it makes the car drivable, but it looks attached to the pump at the bottom. It's the air hose that leads from just before the throttle body and I'm assuming goes to the secondary air pump. does anybody know what I need to do to replace this? Or perhaps what I actually need to replace to get the car working? It starts up fine and revs in neutral, but I soon as I shift into gear and drive the engine sputters out and dies

 

Definately get the hose fixed. The dealer is just telling you everything that is wrong, and suggests getting fixed. May or may not all need to be fixed, but not ALL dealers are out to screw you either. Get a price check on all the parts you need, then go from there. Ask the dealer what's needed to get the car running so it won't die, saying that you're tight on money, and will return when I have the rest so that he can fix it.