How to block your front grill with pipe insulation
- Thread starter scurvy
- Start date
hobbyshop
Veteran Member
i just went out to take a peak at what i was supposed to cover up to help with warming up the engine... i'm not sure what i'm supposed to be blocking... doesn't look like there's any space in there behind the FMIC (nor can i get behind there).. and i assume blocking behind the fans isn't going to help any
Hobbyshophobbyshop said:
If the intercooler is close to the AC condenser or radiator. Then there may be no way to block air flow through that part of the radiator without also blocking the intercooler.
You should still be able to block the upper grill, so there is less air flow through the radiator and engine compartment.
rbanwart
New member
A friend told me about a VW Part for my Golf TDI that handles this function. It is their "Cold Weather Front," part no. ZVW-193-899. It was $29.59 plus tax. I picked it up this evening after work, and have not yet installed it. It comes with three parts/covers...two for the upper center grill (one on each side of the VW emblem), and one for the lower grill. The lower passenger and driver-side grills are left uncovered. The instructions are simple and detailed. I expect it will take about 5 minutes. The parts appears to be of high quality 'car bra' type material. It seems like a reasonable price for the best-looking, and probably most effective, solution...and has some professional engineering behind the design. I'll post again when I witness the results.
jetdoc
Active member
What year of Golf? The local dealer told me there is not one available for the 06?rbanwart said:
CMB430
Veteran Member
Well, a little update for you guys. I have had my front covered for a while now. I heat up about 40% faster, have picked up about 2 mpg in the mornings (its chilly here in MN), and I did NOT use zip ties and have made it through 3 car washes with no foam moving. If you follow my instal points, as well as the others' who mirror the opinion, for less than $5 you can have a nice solution. Happy wintering!
2td
Well-known member
cmb430 is your body an mk5, I believe this is start of the 06 jetta line.. I have such, and before I saw this Post, I duc tapped off the entire front to keep out the salt & rocks & obviously get the car to warm up and stay up.. (the cheeper tape will kill my paint) before said thread didn't even know there was a difference.. If the mk 4 cooler is in the side, is the mk5 the lower of the center grills?
2td
Well-known member
sweeps I have an 06 like yours,, can you block off too much? Also where is the inter cooler on this car,, I used coroplast and covered the whole bottom.. Wikepedia has an article which said you may go beyond engine design..but maybe thats @ l00degrees.?? tom
daniel_mad
Veteran Member
Perfect fit
if you cut the pipes length wise just enough for them to squish tighter, you can get them to fit perfectly, to the point where they're not even noticeable. Such as this picture:
I dont know about you, but it sure looks alot nicer than those grill covers and cheaper too, while keeping the original styling of the car. Total cost: $9.45 and i've actually noticed a nice increase on my MGP when i use powerservice with the insulation.
if you cut the pipes length wise just enough for them to squish tighter, you can get them to fit perfectly, to the point where they're not even noticeable. Such as this picture:
I dont know about you, but it sure looks alot nicer than those grill covers and cheaper too, while keeping the original styling of the car. Total cost: $9.45 and i've actually noticed a nice increase on my MGP when i use powerservice with the insulation.
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Foam covers (city vs long hwy trip)?
My drive to work is very short, and my car does not warm up (it has been -20*C in Montreal). I like the foam idea and will definitely try it on my 03 wagon. My question is, should I take the foam out for longer trips? I drive to Toronto (500kms) every few weeks. I like the idea of zip ties, but that would be a waste if I would need to remove them.
Also...in another thread on TDIclub, I read that shifting at higher RMPs (longer through the gears) would help warm up faster. Is this ok? I tried this for the past few short drives to work, and the coolant temp gauge actually moves off the first three bars and close to centre.
Thanks!
My drive to work is very short, and my car does not warm up (it has been -20*C in Montreal). I like the foam idea and will definitely try it on my 03 wagon. My question is, should I take the foam out for longer trips? I drive to Toronto (500kms) every few weeks. I like the idea of zip ties, but that would be a waste if I would need to remove them.
Also...in another thread on TDIclub, I read that shifting at higher RMPs (longer through the gears) would help warm up faster. Is this ok? I tried this for the past few short drives to work, and the coolant temp gauge actually moves off the first three bars and close to centre.
Thanks!
NarfBLAST
Top Post Dawg
Longer trips are no problem, unless you drove somewhere really hot like over 25degC and got stuck in traffic there... even then you might be okay.
dayne66
Veteran Member
and no temp probs at 9*c..........just used the left-over insulation from my reno and taped off the back of the VW logo....looks better at 20'!!
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Fix_Until_Broke
Top Post Dawg
Get a scangauge if you're unsure, but even in the summer with the A/C on and a full frontal block my coolant temps never go over 205 F unless pulling a trailer like mentioned above.Fix_Until_Broke said:
TT71
Veteran Member
dayne66- Nice job but I have 2 questions for you: what size diameter pipe insulation did you use? Also did you do the lower left and lower right grills?
dayne66
Veteran Member
3/4' above the plate and 1 1/4" below. Have not done the lower left/right yet. .....don't really need it here...but I am going to make some for them too, for trips to Alberta...also going to taper the ends a bit better on the ones I have installed already.TT71 said:
Note: air intake is located at top drivers side!!
TT71
Veteran Member
thanks for pointing it out. I kinda figured that you left that part on intentionally. THe pic you took is quite detailed.
SoKYTDi
Veteran Member
Careful with what you read on Wikipedia!
Off-topic, but a relevant warning for all!
Most IT folks and schoolteachers and anyone else looking for actual facts avoid WP simply because almost any entry is editable by any person. WP was a great concept, but has no accountability for the person posting or editing.2td said:
Off-topic, but a relevant warning for all!
rodejetta
Veteran Member
Did mine also. I could test two options. First I put on the 3-part vinyl cover that covers only part of the intakes. That did with -20 C make no difference in heating-up time/distance. Then I filled in the rest with the pipe insulation next day, except the smallest opening in front of the intake cooler. Again, with the same temperature, no difference. to my disappointment. The driving must be the reason. I start driving 80-90 km/h from start and do so for 1/2 hour, and this way it apparently takes about 8 km to get to 90 C coolant temperature, no matter what the outside temperature or whether the grille is covered or not. In city-driving I think it makes the real difference.
This place is a godsend, I can alway find the answers here, thanks a billion! ? it has been below normal this past two or three weeks, and I been going insane with my jetta tdi. I had the tb, wp, and ts done in late September. I am usually not cold, so I use my heat infrequently, but the past two weeks I have noticed that it takes over 20 minutes for my temp to reach 150/160 range. If do turn my heater/defroster on, it only blows cold air. My son is in tech school to learn vw mechanics, so he changed my oil in December, and in an effort to save himself time latter on he left off my top engine cover(the plastic cover on top of the engine). Will putting the cover back on make a difference? I am definitely going to try the foam in my grill, but am curious if I should also put the cover back on. Could a ts go bad in three months?
Sweeps
Veteran Member
- Joined
- Jul 24, 2005
- Location
- Orillia, Ontario, Canada
- TDI
- None currently. MK4/5/6 Jetta's in the past.
Just another comment to this thread.....while I have the pipe insulation on the front, which helps warm the car up faster for sure, another thing that works REALLY well ( other than a TDI heater ) is to turn off interior heat/fan completely.
Even at -25 celcius, with the pipe insulation, and the interior heat off, my car warms up to full operating temperature in 6 or 7 minutes, or about 8km ( 5 miles ).
Even at -25 celcius, with the pipe insulation, and the interior heat off, my car warms up to full operating temperature in 6 or 7 minutes, or about 8km ( 5 miles ).
rodejetta
Veteran Member
I agree with that, it is to me a given that when starting any car from cold, the engine gets all the heat it produces, because it does not have warm clothes on like I do. Only when at 90 C do I switch on the heater, with the fan on low, and then as a bonus it really feels nice, even though only little heat is produced the next 10 km. The higher wear and tear at low temperatures is of course the main reason.Sweeps said:
NarfBLAST
Top Post Dawg
Update: I finally blocked off my lowest most grille after moving the cord from my tdiheater (see link below). The results were interesting, I achieved 100degC on a very long uphill stretch (had never exceeded 94 before pusing it up hill, never over 90 this winter on the highway). So I removed the duct tape from the VW badge but it was still getting up to 97, so I removed the insulation from one slat of the upper grille, still not happy on city streets temps around 95, so I removed all the insulation from the uppper grille.
Am I a wimp? Also, ambient temps have been just above zero deg C here.
Am I a wimp? Also, ambient temps have been just above zero deg C here.
Sip'n Diesel
Veteran Newbie
you are not a wimp. I think you can safely operate up to ~225F (~107C) before the idiot gauge starts to move. I think it's almost time to let our grilles breathe free againNarfBLAST said:
NB_TDi
Vendor
I have the cold weather kit and on the highway @ 100km/hr and -1c outside I was at 86.7c.
100c might be a bit too high, for me anyway.
100c might be a bit too high, for me anyway.
XXX_er
Veteran Member
I might try that , looks like a good idea
I leave my lower front grills out ,on the passenger side I have instaled the hook in case I need a tow ... why not have it instaled and ready to go if its needed
the drivers side is a good place to store my block heater plug instead of letting it hang down
I leave my lower front grills out ,on the passenger side I have instaled the hook in case I need a tow ... why not have it instaled and ready to go if its needed
the drivers side is a good place to store my block heater plug instead of letting it hang down
daniel_mad
Veteran Member
Hey guys, Times are a warming up. Just wondering when you guys are going to start ripping your pipes out. I think once the average day temp hits about 5 degrees, i'm going to start, i dont want to be over heating my engine on the highways. Also, i just washed my car to get that salty grim out, and man, that pipe insulation stopped alot of dirty and salt from hitting my grill in the winter. Washed it all off.
Man... I had the OEM winter fronts on yesterday and it was 60 degrees farenheit all day long, hwy, city, etc! It wont overheat... I run it all winter temps from 0-50 farenheit. You WONT overheat your engine at 5 degrees lol... We have very efficient cooling systems IMO.daniel_mad said:
I haven even ran the OEM winter front (on a golf) when it was 75 degrees out... Freak warm day last year. No problems. Wouldnt recommend it though.
Although the front blockers arent really necessary over 30f i would say... They dont make a big difference over these temps.
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NarfBLAST
Top Post Dawg
It was warm last couple of days, ScangaugeII recorded max water temp 96 deg C when it used to never go over 91 deg C. This is with everything blocked but the top two grilles on the Golf. Also the VW logo is open. I'm going to pull out one piece at a time starting from the top but only if I see water temps consistently over 96.