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Leslie green

Barn Find Laser Green 1.9 Gti.

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Leslie green

Got the gasket on today ,started ok but I suspect the timing is off a bit despite me marking it as best I could , move the dissy a bit and it ran a bit better . Put on a new sad valve hose id been waiting on and managed to snap off the rad overflow while trying to fit the end to the inlet manifold ,should have took the rad off but didn't like disturbing the pipes again as they were a pain to fit !

Doesn't like to idle just tuned up the throttle stop last week but tried to follow the haynes and set it right using the air bypass of the throttle body to lift the idle , I also metered the throttle switch stop and it's working despite having a big crack in it but need to set its position right , still leaking oil from rocker cover where screw is stripped but much less now but will try some chemical metal type stuff to give something to tap out and put a helicoil in see how it goes .

Tried to get the back bumper of but no way the screw on the sides will budge and don't want to bust the bumper plastic so will try a nut splitter next time .

 

Temporary fix !

 

20170706_163254.jpg

 

Bit of rust on inner wing needs welding .

 

20170706_162959.jpg

Edited by Leslie green

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Leslie green

Well chemical metal was as much use as butter in a hot engine,helicoil pulled out when hot ! Got a man to tig weld it up yesterday ,made a little jig to hold it tight with a bit of copper pipe on the bearing surface to act as a heat soak and protect it during welding. ground it flat in the pillar drill today with an abrasive pad ,took about a mm too much off but no matter then drilled and tapped it . Seems to fit just as it did before and had the engine running ok , oil weeps out past the cover bolt heads when hot so need a fibre washer to stop that and I managed to tear my new stat gasket fitting the bearing ....had ordered plastigauge to check clearance but got impatient and it runs ok so far .

 

Idling ok now after adjusting the bypass on throttle body ,bolt was missing holding the oil filler to inlet causing an air leak too which wasn't helping. Tried to get back bumper off but nuts wouldn't turn so tried a nut splitter , got one side off but the other just chewed up it's off now but a little of the bumper came with it as patience ran low .The centre bolt rung off with vice grips so bumper is off at last and ordered 2 bumper mount pressings as at least one side is rotten.

 

36465093445_2f81543b06_b.jpg20170809_105325 by Leslie, on Flickr

 

36419365146_71386dc605_b.jpg20170809_125305 by Leslie, on Flickr

Edited by Leslie green

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Leslie green

Got 2 rear bumper mounts and have made a Start on the welding , not too much needed as far as I can see so started with the inner wing on passenger side,turned out ok. Have a leak down the back of the engine and checked closely today and the block has a crack ,might have been the reason it was taken offroad all those years ago or it got frost damage in storage.It's just below the bottom of the head bolt in the recess . I used air pressure to put 1 bar in the cooling system and then it drips quite a bit ...Are 1600 and 1900 blocks all the same ?? might make getting one a bit easier !

 

36484201302_2d57087f8b_b.jpg20170816_154224 by Leslie, on Flickr

 

35844383513_bdc1e3ed54_b.jpg20170818_151916 by Leslie, on Flickr

 

36515259351_1228ed79f0_b.jpg20170818_171153 by Leslie, on Flickr

Edited by Leslie green

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welshpug

any 8v alloy xu block will do, specifically its easier to find one with the same type of tensioner, saves faffing with studs or tapping holes.

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Leslie green

Thanks Mei good to know , going to give kseal a go soon as its a minor leak and it may take a while to get another block/engine.

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toolie72

It'll probably work (after a fashion) long enough to locate another block

However

I had to do this a few years ago and I started having hoses popping-when I stripped block it was obvious that the sealer had set on the back side of block resulting in limited water flow (like only three sides of the rectangle) so something to watch for

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welshpug

unlikely kseal will do much as its not a gasķet thats gone, well yet anyway!

 

the rear bolts will no longer be pulling the head down onto the liners.

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Leslie green

It says it seals holes/cracks in blocks but yes as this is a linered engine I see what you mean .It's only below 1 stud at present as far as I can see in the recess though how far that extends is hard to tell, plugging the leak till I get it though mot would be nice not expecting any miracles !

Edited by Leslie green

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ciarandeery1

Be good to see another local car out and about :)

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Gaz205

Nice welding ????

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Leslie green

Yes Ciaran see you are adding more to your fleet and have got a 1.9 now :D Looking a cheap 1.9 block (pre cat )or a complete running 1.9 engine if you hear anything local .. Thanks Gaz turned out better than expected made a start on the rear bumper mount but my daughters summer school club was flooded and wrecked last night so will be closed for a while so on childcare duties till back to school time so progress stopped (again !)

Edited by Leslie green
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ciarandeery1

Yes Ciaran see you are adding more to your fleet and have got a 1.9 now :D Looking a cheap 1.9 block (pre cat )or a complete running 1.9 engine if you hear anything local .. Thanks Gaz turned out better than expected made a start on the rear bumper mount but my daughters summer school club was flooded and wrecked last night so will be closed for a while so on childcare duties till back to school time so progress stopped (again !)

 

if i ever finish my black 1.9 thatll be 2 :lol: im sure that shouldnt be too hard to come across. will put the feelers out for you.

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Leslie green

These things take time :) Back to school so got a bit more done , Got 1 bumper mount fitted these are a bit of a faff to weld in the arch and I had to adjust them a bit to fit with a big hammer ,looks like these little pieces and a bit of sealer is all holds the 1/4 on as I could see a small gap where the inner arch meets the 1/4 that had sealer in it .Luckily nothing else in there had any rot at all which was a bonus .Got the panels of EMPA on facebook .There is a dent in the arch end looks like it was caused by big wheels in the past but was hidden by the plastic arch and has also worn the edge of the rear valence ,bump stops had rotted away and were long gone !

 

36527838010_e63363ee6b_b.jpg20170830_150035 by Leslie, on Flickr

 

36527840310_2b784f4f15_b.jpg20170830_170615 by Leslie, on Flickr

Edited by Leslie green

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barneys66

Nice work.

 

I've got a cracked block too, and Radweld (the version for blocks) has held up well so far..

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Leslie green

Thanks Barney that's good to know , I went in for kseal but was handed "holts sealit" which is for blocks , haven't used it yet just drained the cooling system as I had only water in it till I got the leaks fixed and it's getting cool some nights now and don't need any bigger cracks .My local mechanic suggested getting it welded by the guy who fixed my cam bearing probably from the inside so would have to take the liners out etc .Problem is you have to build it all up to see if it's fixed .

Seems a common gti problem looking at resto threads surprised there are any blocks left now ,guess too many had leaks /busted heater matrix etc and left the antifreeze out .I know a mate did that years ago and it went for scrap after .

Edited by Leslie green

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Tom Fenton

You'll find the crack will be due to corrosion inside the water jacket that has thinned the area. Remember the head bolts put a lot of load into the block in this area.

I'm not saying if couldn't be welded, but I've tried and failed in the past.

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Leslie green

I see Tom, I thought it was frost damage , I haven't seen inside the engine but its been without water for possibly 10 years now so could be a right mess inside.

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barneys66

No problem, Leslie - it's not ideal but it has bought me a few months (of hard use!) until the winter and a block change can take place at my leisure.

 

I torqued my head bolts up as per the manual, but having read more on here realise that it's probably excessive, so will be using one of the guides this time - far less stressful on a 30-year old block.

 

If I were you I'd continue the search for a short/long block rather than attempting a repair - they're still out there.

Edited by barneys66

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Telf

Leslie, here is a pic of the corrosion in one of the blocks I stripped- as Tom says it can be quite bad even with a serviceable replacement.

 

I had to reject this one for a rebuild even though it was a known good engine.

post-21474-0-99101100-1504971169.jpg

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Leslie green

Can see that's a bit dodgy by the liner seat alright Telf. No engines have surfaced locally yet but got other jobs to do anyway .

Haven't done much but I am preparing to fix the B post which has become detached at the bottom as a few spot welds have rusted out and a crack has started along the panel ,the only thing holding it was the door rubber ,I have seen on a few other threads where the b post is sitting up from the sill and I thought they were supposed to be like this !

I need to drop the tank though as one of the studs for the lower seat back was rung off and it's 2 inches from the filler neck for the tank which is a bit too dangerous for my liking. Carpet and seats out ,floor looks good apart from a few careless jacking dents in it .I gave the seats a coat of Autoglym leather seat cleaner and balm and the leather is in ok condition for 26 years old but the drivers bolster has turned to dust and will need replaced.

 

37446116152_e54445f014_b.jpg20170908_142153 by Leslie, on Flickr

 

37446119342_5f9eba165e_b.jpg20170908_142448 by Leslie, on Flickr

 

23624688458_d2763fc5d2_b.jpg20170908_142321 by Leslie, on Flickr

 

37446124262_3c2bf71daf_b.jpg20171003_133653 by Leslie, on Flickr

 

23624692408_57e55ce651_b.jpg20171003_133626 by Leslie, on Flickr

Edited by Leslie green

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Leslie green

Got a little more done , took the tank out before going any further,one of the tank nuts the head was rusted of it so it took ages with the vice grips and wd40 to remove and the jubilee clip for the filler was seized solid as well . Reattached the bottom of the B post and filled the crack and hole beside the sill with weld ,a lot more solid now . Found a little rust at the edge of seat pan so fixed that too with a patch ,I noticed the driver's seat mount is split and looks like it would pull though so another think to fix.

 

37379792610_a7e50250f3_b.jpg20171011_124819 by Leslie, on Flickr

 

36967195623_2310346c72_b.jpg20171011_131608 by Leslie, on Flickr

 

37379794610_c25994d1c9_b.jpg20171011_154155 by Leslie, on Flickr

 

36967199153_70b649f5ac_b.jpg20171011_155213 by Leslie, on Flickr

 

37379796630_c2f7bc753f_b.jpg20171011_155246 by Leslie, on Flickr

Edited by Leslie green

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Leslie green

Got the seat mount welded up by putting a piece of steel underneath to strengthen it then welding up the cracks ,then started cleaning down the under tank area and painted it with bonda primer (zinc rich primer) , manged to spill the jar with it while working underneath ,didn't realise till I felt the wet ,nasty . Think I might take the axle out to do the bootfloor .Little bit of corrosion under the rubber tank mounts otherwise very sound in there .

 

37764874642_6642e0b4de_b.jpg20171012_155654 by Leslie, on Flickr

 

37796827871_7a74d6b392_b.jpg20171019_164223 by Leslie, on Flickr

 

37796826761_28faa28457_b.jpg20171019_164144 by Leslie, on Flickr

Edited by Leslie green

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Leslie green

Decided the axle is in the way so dropped it out , then used petrol to clean as much of the waxoyl of as I could so I can see whats left but save as much of the original coating where its sound .

Most of it is fine just at seams it needs a cleanup to bare metal where it has peeled, There is what looks like a jacking dent in the spare wheel carrier mount so I'm guessing the axle has been out before as I can't see how the dent could have got there otherwise ,one of many dents caused by jacking in weak areas on this car unfortunately,the chassis legs have had a fair bit of abuse as has the splash guard panel behind the rear wheels either side . One of the rear mounts for the axle can spin round so was about to fall apart anyway and neither bump stop mount will undo as the heads are rotted off but will get them off another day .

 

37814935861_20c9ab5d8c_b.jpg20171020_143105 by Leslie, on Flickr

 

37766278976_f46889cbba_b.jpg20171020_162518 by Leslie, on Flickr

 

37814938021_d0081aeb66_b.jpg20171020_162631 by Leslie, on Flickr

Edited by Leslie green

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Telf

Yours looks like it has rot in almost exactly the same places as mine. Good work- mines in a workshop, I don't have the facilities to do body work repair so my wallet it taking the strain instead!


It might be worth checking the scuttle panel area as mine is a right royal mess- hence the wet footwells

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