You haven't said what the compression values were for all 4 cylinders. I would set the tappet clearances correctly as said and do the compression test again. Also you didn't say what symptoms suggested a 'broken' engine. Was the engine running rough.
The van is still in the local garage, awaiting a cost estimate for swap. Regardless of it, my plan is to take it (tow or drive) to a specialist garage for assessment. They want to open the engine to see where the problem is. So, you mean that these clearances can be checked with the engine in, unlike any further inspection which requires the cylinder heads to be removed which in turn requires taking the engine out, is that correct and a logical order? Thanks.
I was told compression is generally low and slightly unequal but mostly okay on the remaining 3 cylinders. I seem to remember figures of 5 point something, 7 point something, etc. The guy told me it, he didn't give me results in paper. I took the van to the garage because it pulls very little. Idle is not too bad, but I have to push hard on the throttle to get it moving, and doing so feels like it will break, which I guess is probably true
If hydraulic tappets, buy 2 new followers and fit to the cylinder that doesn't work. The rocker adjustment screws need to be adjusted/pre loaded by the correct amount of turns. Adjust them on a cold engine. You will then have eliminated bad followers and wrong rocker adjustment. When you no the hydraulic followers are ok and are adjusted correctly and its still on 3 cylinders you need to look else were for the problem. Like check head stud torque.
He's in Madrid I would have thought that a Californian van would be ok in Spain, similar temperatures. My ex fi type 4 engine from Arizona had an extra oil cooler underneath. I had a 1600 engine vw in southern Spain and it coped fine, tho I probably never looked at the gauges
My bad. Solid and hydraulic cams of course but what is the difference for injection and auto? And can you buy them?
The cooling system is the same on a Californian spec van as any other and you’re right for most of the time it’s ok but when the ambient is high and the engine is under heavy load (prolonged high speed or climbing long hills) the standard oil cooler is unable to control the temperature. One of the reasons for this is the fan shroud design which provides more air to the right side of the engine compared to the left where the cooler is and VW improved the T25 type 4 shroud which has a much more even air distribution. And the standard cooler is really too small, hence the fitting of an additional cooler is common.
An interesting comment, but I was asking on another thread about heat distribution. I noticed that my right hand heat exchanger, riser, flap valve and concertina all seemed to have deteriorated faster than the left due to what I assumed was excess heat. I’ve since imagined it was due to the air flow being concentrated on the left over the oil cooler. Now I don’t know. Regarding driving in Spain, I’ve had my bus up to 120c with no ill effect. The most alarming is driving in town after coming off a motorway on a hot day.
Somewhere on thesamba is a thread detailing all five variants of the type 4 camshafts, what motor they relate to and cam specific details such as lift & duration
I still think its worth taking to another garage to get the compressions re checked and write down the values. I am thinking low power may be fuel starvation ads it idles ok but low on power when you drive it. Get the fuelling checked out. When did the engine have a full service. Maybe sparking is weak.
Engine number is GE0911xx Thanks Nice, thanks. I don't work on the van myself, but when working with garages it's good to know what steps are reasonable, so this is helpful.
Oops! OK, good to know this too. Although, by the look of things, it's time to actually find out what's happened rather than going for an engine swap. This thread is giving me a lot of information and also quite some hope...
Well, for sure I'll take to a specialist garage I know before any work is done. I was really surprised that the local garage recommended an engine replacement (no less) without even opening the engine to see what's wrong with it
> I still think its worth taking to another garage to get the compressions re checked and write down the values. That will definitely happen. > I am thinking low power may be fuel starvation ads it idles ok but low on power when you drive it. The local garage said compression is bad on one cylinder and I trust them on it. I just think they are not very good, therefore I'm taking the van somewhere else. > Get the fuelling checked out. When did the engine have a full service. Maybe sparking is weak. All that has been checked twice recently... it's in fact the second local garage I take it to.
