'97 AHU into ’81 Rabbit LX

'97 AHU into ’81 Rabbit LX

Booster stuff, pedal cluster and gold plated lines finally got reinstalled.



Torched the tape and 99.99% of it came off clean. Absolutely no media in the block.

With my VAG wood block, I yanked the crank bolt. I was surprised the engine stand didn't want to topple over... easy affair.




Check out that crazy clipped counterweight. It's stamped with "2" on the flat area, so I'm positive it's supposed to be like that. It was the only one like that.... never saw that before.





Crank nose and sprocket look good. It appears thread locker was used on the threads. I'll clean the bolt up and reuse it.




Jk... I have a couple new bolts sourced from the stealership.

-Todd

'97 AHU into ’81 Rabbit LX

Engine and trans needed to swap places. It's much easier to paint on the stand.




Tucked the block to the rear of my spacious garage. I also need to change the title of the thread. Just noticed the code on the block is 1Z.




Stanced my engine stand in preparation of case drilling.




Started by cleaning out the area for the holes with gas and the chip brush. Dumped some leftover ATF in the trans. Drilled slowly, alternating the depth of each hole, evenly. As I continued, I cleaned the flutes and the case several times to avoid pushing chips into the trans.

Once I barely poked through and saw red, I finished each hole. I only drilled 2 holes instead of 3, and didn't wallow either. Lower hole was plugged until the upper hole stopped draining, then pulled the bit until the lower stopped draining.

I repeated this several times with ATF, then repeated the process again with gas, then repeated again with acetone.








Engine stand wanted to participate in the X Games. Shot acetone in the tower hole and let it drain more, to ensure it was as clean as I could get it.




Some of the metal chips. The pan had a lot more.




Pulled the plugs and keep rotating the trans to get as much of the old fluid out as possible. I'll let it drain for a few more hours, then seal it back up for the acetone bath. Want to get this painted...

-Todd

You've gotten a lot done this weekend,every bit gets you closer.

And I'm not even halfway there...

I want this to be over, lol.

-Todd

Trans was primed and painted. I couldn't imagine painting this without the stand.






Before and after.






The paint came out a lot brighter than expected. The test piece I brushed, had more of a cast look that I was going for. I'll live with it, although I was planning on spraying the head the same color.... I'll need to think about it.

Went under the box on medium, all night. Currently, on a timer. 2 hours on and 2 hours off, all day.

-Todd

Todd,

That block color looks familiar! Good work sir. I'm curious to know what the specs of the air compressor you're using. I'm buying one for my dad for Christmas this year and want to be able to borrow it from him on occasion to learn how to paint. I was also unaware that the 02A had the same fluid access issue the 02J does. Is that why you drilled those holes?

Looking Good,
Justin

Thanks, although I didn't go with your fancy "JD" green, lol.

As a side note, I spoke with my body shop friend Pete. I mentioned using the acrilic enamel hardener and reducer (that I had) and he said it would have worked fine. He used to know plenty of guys who sprayed Rustoleum.

We started talking about paint cocktails and I mentioned reading people thinning the paint with gas. He told me some guy he knew had a trailer queen painted with lacquer, and cut with gas. A few days later, the car was wetsanded with gas. Pete said that car looked incredible!

I'm using a 60 gallon upright that's a over a decade old. It lives in a storage loft that I built over the garage door. 11.8 CFM @ 40 and 10.3 CFM @ 90. 135 max PSI.




For small stuff you may be able to get away with a 30 gallon. If it weren't for the clean up, I'd use the gun every time.

-Todd

jhax said:

I was also unaware that the 02A had the same fluid access issue the 02J does. Is that why you drilled those holes?

Click to expand...

Correct. I believe the later 02Js got some type of oil bridge to aid with the 5th gear oiling. From what I understand, this bridge can be added to the 02As.

If I ever crack this puppy open, I'll go that route, but this will suffice for now.

-Todd

Yeah, I wont be able to do that. The one I just got is a 20gal 5.5hp model. Oh well. I have been calling around to local paint stores to get pricing and "brand" information. From what I have read, when you paint, you want to use what's called a "paint system." Or the same brand of primer, paint, clear, hardeners etc etc. What's your opinion on this? I really want to get it done right the first time and would like to find a good quality system and the cheapest I've found so far is Lesonal at about $730 for the entire system. I see duplicolor and I have heard O'reilly's products are fine to use.

I'm no authority, but I've heard the same. But then again, I'm shooting Rustoleum and a different brand of hardener. If I'd known my Omni AE hardener and reducer would have worked, I'd have used it.

I have no experience with the brands you're mentioning. I'm used to shooting single stage Omni. Pete tells me Omni (low line PPG) is the equivalent of what Macco would paint your car with. If you keep it indoors, you may get 10 years from it.

Do you have a paint supply house near you? Why not a known name like Sikkens, DuPont, PPG, BASF, Glassurit, etc., if you're going to drop that type of money on paint?

-Todd

jhax are you trying to paint yourself? there is allot of $$$ on tools and supplies beyond the paint, i learned this the hard way.

also for those without 220 power, you can chain 2 120 volt compressors together and get a nicer than harbor freight gun with low air requirements and paint a car.

there are numerous namebrand paint systems out there and many should have generic line paint and color effects the price. or just take a chance and buy a system from a catalog company like eastwood for the paint and clear. they also have doable primers.

i have been to a few shops with guys that will pound anything on because they know how to work things on the fly. i have noticed a definate difference in some cheap materials like primers for example and how they sand.

but frankly like i said the eastwood products as an example will get the job done and aren't too terrible. high build and their epoxy is easy to use.

i used like 6 different brands of primer on my rabbit project and never had a reaction, just follow the techsheets. if dealing with an old substrate, primers, etc. rather than a bare to metal restoration i wouldn't mess around and would seal it before basecoat.

is that duplicolor you mention that water like stuff in funky colors the paint stores sell? that stuff is crap in my opinion, they even have a clear in a can that isn't activated, good luck with that holding up.

only reason i mention all this is because you said do it right but mention the word cheap. those don't go together

Some good points. What do you mean by chain 2 compressors together?

I think EW rebrands Kirker products.

Some areas need to be taken down to metal. Pete made me strip the roof, because it was metallic and badly cracked. He said if we just sanded, hi builded, then sealed, the cracks would probably telegraph through. I'm unsure why, but he's the expert, so I did what he told me to do.

I don't mind the rough metal repair, but I don't enjoy the sanding. There are a lot of tricks to blocking panels properly. I let his guys do that. He had me running the DA and wiping panels for hours.... it sucked.

If I have him paint another car for me, I'll likely pay him full price to do everything. FWIW, my car was painted with Sikkens.

-Todd

damac, I have taken that DIY could end up being as expensive into consideration. I wonder if it would be cheaper for me to just sand everything down and de-trim, not in that order. And just take it to a shop to have them paint it back up if it would be cheaper. Thanks for the advice!

Justin

since the air tools need the airflow higher vs. psi you can take 2 compressors that run on 120 volt and run the outputs into a common output. i set the auto shutoff switches to a lower psi like 100, take into account tank pressure limits if different. i run a zig zag line of piping on the wall with 3 drains and then my filtering system before i hook my air hose in. i also use high flow fittings.

i had to do this because i don't have 220 at my brothers place but different 120 circuits. its amazing the difference 2 compressors makes when sanding. this is just 2 30 gallon harbor freight types.

this works great for the right matched sanders, etc. for painting you have to be very specific when choosing a gun and i would undershoot the specs so you don't run out of air. i used a concourse pro gun from eastwood.

air guns can be real air hogs but the make lower volume guns.

Minor progress. It feels good to get rid of parts... resealed the short block.






Some block heaters purchased back in 2012. One used one from around 2008, pulled from Big Blue's lump. Used one went to the rear side, in case it fails. Easy to get to....




K7003801... not looking for the rattle.




Need to get the block and trans in the car... I'll gain garage space by losing these parts, the engine stand and I get the hoist out of the shed.

-Todd

I am very curious about those heaters. It looks like they would fit the alh but I would be concerned about weaping due to exhaust manifold heat.

Your ALH has frost plugs...?

-Todd

I just had a look at my ALH and it has none.

Yeah, I screwed up on that one. Mine has been sitting in front of me this whole time and I didnt even notice that it doesnt. Woops.

Progress has slowed in the car. Been focused on garage organization, adding shelving, and more lighting.

Pulled the trans off the stand and saw weeping at the lowest, left hole in the bell housing. Not quite sure what to make of it....




Pulled the bolt, and cleaned out the hole with brake clean and a brush.




Plan is to reinstall the bolt with threadlocker to seal the threads. I'll coat the an inch of threads, below the head with some Ultra Gray. Not planning on splitting the case for this.

Ordered some Weather Pack stuff, for when I start lengthening the harnesses into the bay.




No clue why I ordered so much....

-Todd

Well whatever you have left over Ill take off your hands. I have yet to get a wiring harness but I know ill be lengthening it.

ToddA1 said:

Some good points. What do you mean by chain 2 compressors together?

I think EW rebrands Kirker products.

Some areas need to be taken down to metal. Pete made me strip the roof, because it was metallic and badly cracked. He said if we just sanded, hi builded, then sealed, the cracks would probably telegraph through. I'm unsure why, but he's the expert, so I did what he told me to do.

I don't mind the rough metal repair, but I don't enjoy the sanding. There are a lot of tricks to blocking panels properly. I let his guys do that. He had me running the DA and wiping panels for hours.... it sucked.

If I have him paint another car for me, I'll likely pay him full price to do everything. FWIW, my car was painted with Sikkens.

-Todd

Click to expand...

When I learned the trade years ago we did the same. Anything that was cracked badly, especially if it was down to base coat, was removed completely. Even if it was sealed and built up it would reappear later down the road.

I've always been a big advocate of the notion that nothing sticks better than the original finish but in the case of severe cracking I don't think you can make a case for keeping any of it.

Making great progress Todd. If I would have done my wagon to this level of quality it would have been 2018 before I'd have been able to drive it, and I don't have the patience to do that!

As for painting, I won't undertake any project anymore that requires serious paint work. I haven't painted in years and have no good space for that. Paying someone else for paint work has become a luxury that I can't really justify. I remember a couple years ago a friend trying to find a body shop to paint his Mk2 GTI and hearing his "friend of the owners" price of $6300 for all his work. When I hear that I just lose interest.

Yours will be super when it's done. I know you've said you don't know whether you're going to keep it or not but I would encourage you to do so.

PS - did you really need all those block heaters?

Steve

Painting the car is a double edged sword. I wasn't planning on painting it, but I wasn't going to drive it around, looking the way it did after the rust repair.

Do I need three heaters? Likely not, but I've never had a problem with them leaking, so why not? In the bay, with the manifolds and turbo in the way, they'd be impossible to install, so I took advantage of the easy access. I also added redundancy, if one fails.

I'm used to running 2 400w heaters on the IDIs. With one runnng, I'd need 40min on a 1.6 to make a difference. If I was in a rush, I'd run both.

Each of the B4s has a 1500w tank heater on it, but I don't like the fact that they eat real estate. Personally, I think the block heaters do a better job.

Anyway, I replaced that lower bolt in the trans. Waiting an hour, prior to the final torque on the bolt. I'll probably add a little dollop of Ultra Gray on the nose of the bolt, in the bell housing to seal it up.

After 24 hours (likely more) I'll dump a couple quarts of cheap oil in, it to leak test. It'll get drained, then the trans gets resealed. Need to spray that endcap...

-Todd

I vote periwinkle.

Steve Addy said:

When I learned the trade years ago we did the same. Anything that was cracked badly, especially if it was down to base coat, was removed completely. Even if it was sealed and built up it would reappear later down the road.

I've always been a big advocate of the notion that nothing sticks better than the original finish but in the case of severe cracking I don't think you can make a case for keeping any of it.

Making great progress Todd. If I would have done my wagon to this level of quality it would have been 2018 before I'd have been able to drive it, and I don't have the patience to do that!

As for painting, I won't undertake any project anymore that requires serious paint work. I haven't painted in years and have no good space for that. Paying someone else for paint work has become a luxury that I can't really justify. I remember a couple years ago a friend trying to find a body shop to paint his Mk2 GTI and hearing his "friend of the owners" price of $6300 for all his work. When I hear that I just lose interest.

Yours will be super when it's done. I know you've said you don't know whether you're going to keep it or not but I would encourage you to do so.

PS - did you really need all those block heaters?

Steve

Click to expand...

I to have had my bad painting experiences, i delt with the one I currently have on my truck and painters are a pain to work with, my other truck I'm not looking forward to the paint, i may try it myself, it's the body work that I'm not interested in

I guess I got lucky or found a good shop. The owner and his wife are good people who I've built a rapport with. I stop by at least a couple times a month to just chat.

I've used this shop several times and although he overshot the deadline, the quality of work is excellent. I go in knowing my cars are to be worked on, between other jobs, so I don't really mind.

The quality of work is excellent.

-Todd

vw_nut said:

I to have had my bad painting experiences, i delt with the one I currently have on my truck and painters are a pain to work with, my other truck I'm not looking forward to the paint, i may try it myself, it's the body work that I'm not interested in

Click to expand...

The body work can be no joy ride if you don't have ready access to a decent welder. I have access to one if I need it but haven't taken advantage of that recently. I might in the future if I really plan to stay in the mid-west and keep the wagon on the road. The rockers are there but there's some weakness that will show up likely in the future.

ToddA1 said:

I guess I got lucky or found a good shop. The owner and his wife are good people who I've built a rapport with. I stop by at least a couple times a month to just chat.

I've used this shop several times and although he overshot the deadline, the quality of work is excellent. I go in knowing my cars are to be worked on, between other jobs, so I don't really mind.

The quality of work is excellent.

-Todd

Click to expand...

Todd, you've gotten lucky finding a shop that will work with you like that. Without getting into the whole story of what happened I will say my friend ended up spending $4k for a paint job that wasn't worth $500, it was so bad and it was so poorly applied and the body repair so poorly done that I encouraged him to sell it immediately before anything started to show up, and it would have.

I honestly don't know how the guy who sprayed it can call himself a painter, I sincerely think I could have done a better job not having held a gun for 20 years. On the lower body where it curves inward there were areas where the paint was so thin you could see through it or the paint was non-existent. The paint was dry but the clear was applied so heavily that it ran everywhere and the painter said he was going to scrape it all.

At any rate the car got sold quickly...and luckily, but it really poisons other people on paint work.

Yours is going to be spectacular when it's finished!

Steve

Finally painted the trans end cover and drive flanges. Needed to get the trans resealed, to leak check the one leaking bolt, in the bell housing.

One seal sleeve popped out when trying to pop the seal. Never had that happen before. Had to destroy the seal to get it out, but the sleeve was perfect. I'm reusing it... a rear control arm bushing is the perfect drive arbor.




Smeared a light coat of Ultra Grey on the sleeve and tapped it in. Getting the drive flanges compressed is a chore, on the bench.




The guide tube that came out was OE. I'm curious what was machined off the replacement.






Filled it, let it sit for 24 hours and was satisfied.

This got me thinking of the sets of Rein CV boot kits on the shelf. The outers are "Made in Germany". Something was sanded off of them.




Look closely, and you can make out a part of the VW logo.




You can definitely make out the VAG markings from the inside.




Not crazy about the sanding... those areas are considerably thinner. Likely wouldn't be an issue, but I'll clean those areas up and smear some Ultra Grey on them, to bulk them up.

Needed to reblast some parts.... flash rust was appearing, from sitting. Got some paint on the reblasted parts.






They'll bake for 24 hours.

-Todd

The engine and transmission were finally married! They came apart briefly, because I realized I left the alignment bushings out.




No clue what the point of these "isolators" are. Honestly, I never install them... Check out the great VW quality control… all three have the same part number but are noticeably different in size.




I decided to install the engine from the bottom. I didn't want to get the hoist out, or take the hood off, because Pete had it gapped nicely.










That was an effortless installation.

-Todd

Like a glove!