TDI_Farmer
Member
I have an inexpensive solution to the EGR cooler flapper valve leak. I had that same hissing sound on my 2006 Jetta TDI (with 157K miles). Yes, the leak is coming from what is left of the shaft seal. The seal looks like a ceramic/graphite substance. I fixed it for $2.50 and a few scraped knuckles.
I got some woven gasket material used on wood burning stoves. It looks like rope and is a woven fire-proof material. I presume its Nomex. I used the 1/4 inch round variety (see picture below).
After removing the right drive axle and vacuum actuator, I removed the spring clip. Be VERY CAREFUL. The spring clip has a small barb which must be pushed down while removing. Just use a small screw driver (see picture below).
Scrape out all of the seal from the gallery around the shaft. It crumbles like pencil lead (see picture below).
Cut a thin strip of the Nomex rope lengthwise as if you were trying to make a string about 2 inches long. The braids will fall apart, but the idea is to stuff as much as you can in the gap between the shaft and valve body (an annulus of about 1 mm). Use a small screw driver or pick set. Keep stuffing until the shaft no longer wiggles. Then, cut off 2 ½ inches of the Nomex rope, and insert it into the gallery. Again, use a small screw driver or pick set. Try to make two passes. Loop the first pass against the shaft, coiling outward to a second pass against the galley wall (See figure below).
Take a ¼ inch washer and cut out 6 mm of one side to form a letter “C” (see first picture above).
Slide this “C” clip over the shaft with the open end opposite the spring clip slit.
Here’s the tricky part. Push the C clip down to compress the rope into the gallery with a small screw driver. Simultaneously, reinsert the spring clip back in the slot making sure the prongs go OVER the C clip. This may take a few tries, and visibility is awful. At first, only insert the spring clip 1/16 inch, and then use a dental mirror to confirm both prongs are over the C clip. If so, then push the spring clip all the way. Pushing down on the other side of the C clip helps drive it home. If you have difficulty getting the spring clip started, remove the rope, cut off ½ inch and try again. It took me several tries. Good Tip: Pre-compress the spring clip with a small electrical cable-tie before inserting, and then cut it off when fully inserted.
The final configuration looks like the following figure.
I erred on the side of using too much Nomex rope, and really compressing it, rather than too little rope. The proper amount of compressed rope in the gallery produces a slight resistance on the valve shaft when actuated by hand. As you can see, a little rope sticking out of the open side of the “C” clip. Apparently, this is not an issue because I ran the engine this way, and the lack of hissing was music to my ears. As of this posting, this solution has 3000 miles on it, and all is well. I’ll keep you posted on the longevity of this fix.
I got some woven gasket material used on wood burning stoves. It looks like rope and is a woven fire-proof material. I presume its Nomex. I used the 1/4 inch round variety (see picture below).
After removing the right drive axle and vacuum actuator, I removed the spring clip. Be VERY CAREFUL. The spring clip has a small barb which must be pushed down while removing. Just use a small screw driver (see picture below).
Scrape out all of the seal from the gallery around the shaft. It crumbles like pencil lead (see picture below).
Cut a thin strip of the Nomex rope lengthwise as if you were trying to make a string about 2 inches long. The braids will fall apart, but the idea is to stuff as much as you can in the gap between the shaft and valve body (an annulus of about 1 mm). Use a small screw driver or pick set. Keep stuffing until the shaft no longer wiggles. Then, cut off 2 ½ inches of the Nomex rope, and insert it into the gallery. Again, use a small screw driver or pick set. Try to make two passes. Loop the first pass against the shaft, coiling outward to a second pass against the galley wall (See figure below).
Take a ¼ inch washer and cut out 6 mm of one side to form a letter “C” (see first picture above).
Slide this “C” clip over the shaft with the open end opposite the spring clip slit.
Here’s the tricky part. Push the C clip down to compress the rope into the gallery with a small screw driver. Simultaneously, reinsert the spring clip back in the slot making sure the prongs go OVER the C clip. This may take a few tries, and visibility is awful. At first, only insert the spring clip 1/16 inch, and then use a dental mirror to confirm both prongs are over the C clip. If so, then push the spring clip all the way. Pushing down on the other side of the C clip helps drive it home. If you have difficulty getting the spring clip started, remove the rope, cut off ½ inch and try again. It took me several tries. Good Tip: Pre-compress the spring clip with a small electrical cable-tie before inserting, and then cut it off when fully inserted.
The final configuration looks like the following figure.
I erred on the side of using too much Nomex rope, and really compressing it, rather than too little rope. The proper amount of compressed rope in the gallery produces a slight resistance on the valve shaft when actuated by hand. As you can see, a little rope sticking out of the open side of the “C” clip. Apparently, this is not an issue because I ran the engine this way, and the lack of hissing was music to my ears. As of this posting, this solution has 3000 miles on it, and all is well. I’ll keep you posted on the longevity of this fix.
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