...And replace it again in 100K miles. It's not the bearings that wear out, it's the valve lobes themselves because the profiles are wrong. Put a Frank or Colt in there and be done with it. The physical differences between the cams is minimal. None of my customers have been able to tell the difference with a BEW aftermarket cam in their BHW. While you're doing all this, there's no excuse not to tune the car. They drive soooooo nice tuned up.You could buy an OEM BHW camshaft and do the Frank06 bearing oiling mods...
I never said the bearings wear out (although some are damaged)...the mod allows more oil to the lobes/followers....And replace it again in 100K miles. It's not the bearings that wear out, it's the valve lobes themselves because the profiles are wrong.
A .015" difference is negligible on the cam's performance? I think that's a lot when we are talking about cams. Even the chamfer is .015" and once that's gone the cam is toast.Frank's bearing mods are great, but more oil isn't going to fix an improperly ground cam. The ramp angles are too steep for the size of the lobe, but mainly there's a .015" bump just as the ramp starts from the base circle. That bump is normally only on a solid lifter cam to take up valve lash but someone at VW screwed up big time on that one. On a hydraulic follower setup, all it does is beat the lifter. The 5w30 oil surely doesn't help, but there's no magic cure for an engineering goof.
The injector lobe differences are less than ~.015" between the bew and the bhw. That's a very negligible amount.
On the injector lobe, not the valve lobes. The next time I talk to Geoff I'll ask him for the exact measurements but I know it was barely anything on the injector lobe.A .015" difference is negligible on the cam's performance? The chamfer is .015" and once that's gone the cam is toast.
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I take it the BHW is .015" taller on the injector lobe than the BEW? That still sounds like alot.On the injector lobe, not the valve lobes. The next time I talk to Geoff I'll ask him for the exact measurements but I know it was barely anything on the injector lobe.
The valve lobes are another story and Paul posted the lift/duration chart recently for them.
Good to know just how badly vw designed this cam;Frank's bearing mods are great, but more oil isn't going to fix an improperly ground cam. The ramp angles are too steep for the size of the lobe, but mainly there's a .015" bump just as the ramp starts from the base circle. That bump is normally only on a solid lifter cam to take up valve lash but someone at VW screwed up big time on that one. On a hydraulic follower setup, all it does is beat the lifter. The 5w30 oil surely doesn't help, but there's no magic cure for an engineering goof.
The injector lobe differences are less than ~.015" between the bew and the bhw. That's a very negligible amount.
Something along those lines. Don't hold me to my memory but I know it's less than .015" which isn't much considering the injector is bypassing the majority of the fuel pumped. Even with a tune, you're not using anywhere near the full pressure stroke of the injector.I take it the BHW is .015" taller on the injector lobe than the BEW? That still sounds like alot.
Regarding the valve lobes, are the specs exactly the same between the OE BHW and OE BEW cams?
Yeah, VW screwed up pretty bad on the PD cams. No offense to the good people on this forum, but I still read about people refusing to believe a design issue with the OE cams. I wouldn't have a pile of 20 catastrophically munched cams here with anywhere from 55K-200K on them if there was only an incorrect oil usage issue. A 5w-30 synthetic oil won't put holes in multiple lifters in 100K. It may slightly increase wear over a 5w-40 oil, but it's not going to cause premature total failure.Good to know just how badly vw designed this cam;
poor oiling
narrow lobes
extra bump in lobe, which I had not heard of before now
No wonder why they are now dropping like flys...including mine which has at least one missing chamfer. This is why the passat is no longer daily use, once or twice a week until fixed.
And it's a fact that no super special oil can cover up a huge design problem. I have numerous customers from TDI club that use nothing but the 505.01 oil, mann filters, use frost heaters, etc, etc, and still have a munched cam at 100-120K. I had a mk5 come in here not long ago that's been run on 15-40 rotella dino oil it's whole life (old farmer) and at 200K his cam looked like the usual ones I see running VW spec oil at 120K.Less width means less contact area, which means more psi between the lobe and follower. It's not a theory it's a fact. That was the intended purpose of the 505.01 spec, to provide better protection against this design.
I've been lurking and searching to try and figure that one out myself... Fortunately inspecting it is not too difficult a process, as that seems to be the best way to know for sure.how does one discover the need for a new camshaft, e.g. how is the engine performance impacted?
Well, the camshaft is a wear item, just like many of the parts in the car. Unfortunately, in these cars, it sees severe duty. The camshaft is case hardened steel, and once the hardness area and thickness is worn through, things go to hell in a hurry. A good indicator of this is when the 45 degree chamfer on each lobe is worn away, meaning the lobe is wearing down into the non-hardened material. If that metal deterioration continues far enough, corresponding valves won't open in "time" or far enough causing combustion issues in that cylinder.how does one discover the need for a new camshaft, e.g. how is the engine performance impacted?
Yea, I must have been in a fog when I mentioned that. I was referring to the case effect that induction hardening provides through the process (Martensite) and not the old technique of case hardening gun barrels, etc..Tony, I think you'll find the hardening is induction, not case hardened. It is probably rare to find anything but a custom cam that is case hardened. thats why the hardened layer is so thin on oem cams, cranks, etc
Doesn't that kinda prove that 505.01 is complete and udder bullcrap?And it's a fact that no super special oil can cover up a huge design problem. I have numerous customers from TDI club that use nothing but the 505.01 oil, mann filters, use frost heaters, etc, etc, and still have a munched cam at 100-120K. I had a mk5 come in here not long ago that's been run on 15-40 rotella dino oil it's whole life (old farmer) and at 200K his cam looked like the usual ones I see running VW spec oil at 120K.
52 MPG in a non-B5 car, right?Matt,
Thanks for the 'thumbs up' on our cams. We made our own design and we find that there is an additional power and, if the torsion is properly set ( see http://forums.tdiclub.com/showthread.php?t=336279&highlight=torsion) fuel economy improvement. Our main goal with our cam design is economy and durability.
We regularly have reports of fuel economy improvements. Several cars have seen 52mpg. As a general rule, everybody feels the improved response and most are achieving 'best fuel economy' numbers.