Volkswagen TDI talk

TRD270

Emptying Pockets Again
Supporting Member
Location
SaSaSandy
More teeth on the belt are missing than that I'll snap a pic when we get it out. Thankfully the cam is only a 1/2 degree off. Seems lucked out and only the injection pump skipped


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Greg

Make RME Rockcrawling Again!
Admin
More teeth on the belt are missing than that I'll snap a pic when we get it out. Thankfully the cam is only a 1/2 degree off. Seems lucked out and only the injection pump skipped

Holy Hell! Yeah, real lucky!

Now that I see the close-up pic... that's crazy!! I'm impressed, really!
 
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anderson750

I'm working on it Rose
Location
Price, Utah
Holy crap........

Not to side track the thread, but this is a good opportunity to ask......what is your opinion of a 2016 Jetta TSi? The previous owner who I know bought it from a local dealer with 1000 miles and traded it in on a 4 wheel drive to that same dealer.
 

Greg

Make RME Rockcrawling Again!
Admin
Holy crap........

Not to side track the thread, but this is a good opportunity to ask......what is your opinion of a 2016 Jetta TSi? The previous owner who I know bought it from a local dealer with 1000 miles and traded it in on a 4 wheel drive to that same dealer.

My current Jetta is a non-TDI.... it's a 2014 SE with the 1.8T and manual transmission. The 1.8T EA888 engine is new in 2014, lots of fancy forged engine components, variable vane turbo, etc. I really like it, seem to average 30-34 MPG and the 1.8 turbo is no slouch. Easy to drive long miles and comfortable. I think the current TSi will have the same engine, but a few sportier options? The 2014+ Jetta's have independent rear suspension which rides and handles much better than the older beam-axle VW's. I'd dare say it's even 'sporty' and handles well. I plan to get a set of 18" wheels and add a bigger rear anti-sway bar, for even better handling.
I'm going to add an APR tune and some intake & exhaust goodies. With their work, the little 1.8T can make almost 300 ft/lbs and almost 250 HP on high octane gas. I rode in a friends APR-tuned 1.8T and is was pretty quick.
 
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anderson750

I'm working on it Rose
Location
Price, Utah
My current Jetta is a non-TDI.... it's a 2014 SE with the 1.8T and manual transmission. The 1.8T EA888 engine is new in 2014, lots of fancy forged engine components, variable vane turbo, etc. I really like it, seem to average 30-34 MPG and the 1.8 turbo is no slouch. Easy to drive long miles and comfortable. I think the current TSi will have the same engine, but a few sportier options? The 2014+ Jetta's have independent rear suspension which rides and handles much better than the older beam-axle VW's. I'd dare say it's even 'sporty' and handles well. I plan to get a set of 18" wheels and add a bigger rear anti-sway bar, for even better handling.

I'm going to add an APR tune and some intake & exhaust goodies. With their work, the little 1.8T can make almost 300 ft/lbs and almost 250 HP on high octane gas. I rode in a friends APR-tuned 1.8T and is was pretty quick.
I'll take that as an endorsement for the car.:D

Thanks Greg
 

TRD270

Emptying Pockets Again
Supporting Member
Location
SaSaSandy
Found the culprit, idler pulley is all but seized. Serious doubts this was replaced when I was told it was
 

2002maniac

Active Member
Location
Brigham City
I picked up a 2002 4 door Golf TDI last week with 276k miles. Thanks to this thread I have a high level of confidence that I'll be able to keep it alive for another 50k+ miles, in which it should pay for itself.

I'm trying to forget all the issues I had with my 1991 GTI. I think that car was a lemon.

My immediate plans include full fluid change, clean out intake manifold, delete egr, and change the timing belt. It also needs at least 2 new tires as the fronts are bald. Then i get the joy of chasing all the annoying little "used car" issues. It has various rattles and creaks, it seems that time does not treat the interior plastics well.
 

2002maniac

Active Member
Location
Brigham City
Well, I've put 2k miles on the car now with an average of 44mpg. So far I've done an oil change with Rotella T6 full synthetic, put a pair of tires on it, Replaced a bad glow plug (No CEL now!) closed the front brake sensor circuit to turn off the warning light (wire was cut).

I'm hoping to get a chance to do the timing belt and trans fluid next week.

I think once I get the preventive maintenance out of the way I'll do an EGR delete, injectors and a stage 2 Malone tune. I'd also like to figure out a way to get some more comfortable seats in the car. Maybe Audi A6 or similar? With as many miles as I do, a little more comfort would be nice.
 

Rot Box

Diesel and Dust
Location
Smithfield Utah
A friend of mine just picked up a 2003 Jetta sedan ALH manual. 175K with service history unknown... and all the dash warning lamps lit up like a Christmas tree!

In the last few days we:
Swapped in a Diesel Geek timing belt, water pump etc etc kit. (all bearings were dry and belt cracked...)
Removed the snow screen from the snorkel as it was halfway plugged.
Drained the oil out of the intercooler as it was scary full.
Replaced both seized cooling fans.
Cleaned the intake manifold and EGR. Wow.. I've never seen one even close to being as plugged up as this one. I doubt a marble would fit through the carbon buildup :ugh:
Ran a VCDS scan. Didn't find anything too interesting other than glow plug harness failure which should be an easy fix.
Replaced the green'ish antifreeze with Pentofrost.

Everything seems in order now. Runs nice and smooth without and noticeable issues. Nice car just neglected when it came to maintenance by the po. Hope it works out for him :cool:



As from me I'm around 308K miles and it's running as good as ever. I replaced the coolant expansion tank as mine turned yellow to the point I couldn't see through it. Very inexpensive fix and it really cleaned up the engine bay. Hit the panzer skid plate HARD on a rock the other day... money well spent lol.
 

JK2NV

Active Member
I had a 2012 tdi put 60k miles on it in 3 years thanks vw for the buyback I didn’t want to give it back but the money was to good to pass up
 

2002maniac

Active Member
Location
Brigham City
Mine's at 281k now. (5k since I bought it)

I think I've got a loose rear beam mount. It's got a pretty good clunk to it.

So far I'm saving about $150 per month on fuel, but spending a couple hundred on repairs in that time. At some point I'll run out of stuff to fix, right?

I had the timing belt service done by a bay area TDI guru who was on a cross country road trip vacation doing mobile work along the way. He stopped by my house and busted it out in less than 2 hours.

IMG_20180608_170925.jpg
 
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