97 Passat TDI Engine Cover

bmixon · Nov 17, 2006

Did the 97 Passat TDI come with the Black Plastic Engine Cover that says TDI on it or did that cover come on later models.

tditom · Nov 17, 2006

it came with a cover

rdkern · Nov 17, 2006

Mine has one.

bmixon · Nov 17, 2006

Thanks, where is a good place to get a replacement cover. I will check this site and and some other online websites.

BKmetz · Nov 17, 2006

96 came with the same cover. So did any of the A3 Jetta TDIs.

paramedick · Nov 17, 2006

Nope, A3 Jettas are different shape. Have one here in the shop.

Jetter_Sprinta · Nov 17, 2006

BKmetz said:
96 came with the same cover. So did any of the A3 Jetta TDIs.

Yep, 97 B4 as well, also A3/B4 covers are different.

bmixon, why do you want one so badly? Pretty much for looks. A lick of sound deadening assuming it's still got the foam, but aside from that it's just in the way!

bmixon · Nov 17, 2006

Jetter_Sprinta said:
Yep, 97 B4 as well, also A3/B4 covers are different.

bmixon, why do you want one so badly? Pretty much for looks. A lick of sound deadening assuming it's still got the foam, but aside from that it's just in the way!

You're right, I wanted it pretty much for looks and I had read that it helps with the sound deadening. I just got the car last night and it is so nice and very clean under the hood that I thought it would give it the finish look. When I was looking for a TDI Passat, everyone had a cover so I got use to seeing the cover on the engine. Other than the sound deadening, does the cover provide any other function (likes helps the engine warm up faster and helps retains the heat in the winter months). I live outside of Philadelphia and it can get cold. I know if just a piece of plastic.

Jetter_Sprinta · Nov 17, 2006

warm up faster, I highly doubt it.
retain some heat, I'll buy that it would help slow down the cooling, but I'd doubt you'd notice any difference.
There is a pretty good chance that if you are able to find a used one that the foam will be gone anyhow. You'll have to improvise one in there, or bendova & go new

.

It does give a nice finished look though

.

Where did you get your 97? Have you any pictures? Miles?

bmixon · Nov 17, 2006

Jetter_Sprinta said:
warm up faster, I highly doubt it.
retain some heat, I'll buy that it would help slow down the cooling, but I'd doubt you'd notice any difference.
There is a pretty good chance that if you are able to find a used one that the foam will be gone anyhow. You'll have to improvise one in there, or bendova & go new .

It does give a nice finished look though .

Where did you get your 97? Have you any pictures? Miles?

I brought this car from a Volkswagen dealer in Virginia and had it delivered to my house. It was a one owner and only had 67730 miles on it. I had to act immediately or I would have lost the car to someone else. The owner traded it in and brought a brand new TDI. I was able to verify the mileage with Carfax, the owners name and address and the car was always services by Volkswagen. I was able to verify when the timing belt had been changed (at 54000 miles), whether it had been serviced properly and any warranty work done to the car. The car looks almost brand new inside and outside (at least to me). I will try to post some pics tomorrow.

Jetter_Sprinta · Nov 17, 2006

Sounds like a B(4)eauty! Best of luck with her!

whitedog · Nov 17, 2006

paramedick said:
Nope, A3 Jettas are different shape. Have one here in the shop.

I could find that out by looking at my ETKA.

paramedick · Nov 17, 2006

whitedog said:
I could find that out by looking at my ETKA.

Santa come early???

whitedog · Nov 17, 2006

paramedick said:
Santa come early???

Yep.

Now the hard part.

Install.

BKmetz · Nov 18, 2006

paramedick said:
Nope, A3 Jettas are different shape. Have one here in the shop.

Hmmm.... I've worked on a bunch of A3s and didn't see any difference, but then I wasn't looking that close either. Learn something new everyday.

bmixon · Nov 19, 2006

Photos of 97 Passat TDI

Jetter_Sprinta said:
warm up faster, I highly doubt it.
retain some heat, I'll buy that it would help slow down the cooling, but I'd doubt you'd notice any difference.
There is a pretty good chance that if you are able to find a used one that the foam will be gone anyhow. You'll have to improvise one in there, or bendova & go new .

It does give a nice finished look though .

Where did you get your 97? Have you any pictures? Miles?

Here a couple of Photos of the car. (97 Passat TDI) If you see anything strange about the engine, please let me know. I am still a newbie.

BleachedBora · Nov 19, 2006

Very nice! It even still has the G12 coolant--that's often a rare find in some of these cars...
Personally I took off the engine cover on both of my cars--I think a nice polished engine looks better than a piece of plastic over it. The '97 cover I gave away, and the '98 cover I threw away. Oh well...sorry I can't help you with that.

Please feel free to check out my for sale thread if you need any filters or oil etc.. for your car, I deal a lot with the A3/B4 crowd!
Cheers,
-BB

lupin..the..3rd · Nov 20, 2006

Wow congrats on the beautiful low milage car!! A B4 TDI with such low milage is a rare find indeed. My favorite color too. Take good care of her!

I've never seen a B4 engine cover that still had the insulating foam intact. I keep my cover on, mostly for the tiny bit of sound deadening that it provides. Takes away a very small bit of the clatter when at idle, but that's about it.

Now that I'm thinking about it, I've thought of taking one of those tin-foil looking survival space blanket things and folding it up and attaching to the underside of the plastic engine cover. Maybe it's a good idea maybe bad, but seems like it might restore the insulating function of the now-MIA foam...

jollyGreenGiant · Nov 21, 2006

Nice find! Even the headlights are pristine...

ninedee_golf_tdi · Nov 25, 2006

Nice car. It's a small point, but the coolant return line going back to the reservoir is routed incorrectly. It is supposed to be between the two intercooler tubes, not underneath them. Look close and you'll see two "ridges" on the tubes where the hose is supposed to be within.

Lug_Nut · Nov 25, 2006

I don't recall seeing a yellow dipstick and guide tube before.
My (very early) 97 came with G11, not G12.

bmixon · Nov 25, 2006

Thanks for the tip about the coolant return line going back to the reservoir. I will fix that in the morning. The only thing I know about the G12 is that the owner manual that came with the car had an insert that said "The coolant additive in your vehicle is different than the one specified in your Volkswagen Owner's Manual. The Coolant additive in your vehicle has the designation: G12 A8D. Never use any coolant additive other than our G12 A8D additive".

Thanks for your comments. I am still reading the owner manual and ordering the Bentley manuals.

IndigoBlueWagon · Nov 25, 2006

Very nice looking car. I'm a recent B4 convert. They really are nice, and there are still some great ones around. Enjoy it. Mine came with an engine cover but no foam. On my A3 I put some sound deadening on the foam-less cover and reinstalled it, but I have to say I really didn't notice much of a sound difference.

Jetter_Sprinta · Nov 26, 2006

ninedee_golf_tdi said:
Nice car. It's a small point, but the coolant return line going back to the reservoir is routed incorrectly. It is supposed to be between the two intercooler tubes, not underneath them. Look close and you'll see two "ridges" on the tubes where the hose is supposed to be within.

Noticed that too, in addition it appears that those same two IC pipes are not fastened together which keeps that hose in its place. You'll see the location for the screw while relocating the hose. Be sure the engine is cool or you have bled off the pressure from the coolant bubble before removing the hose.

IndigoB4Wagon said:
I'm a recent B4 convert.

some people are slow to lean

!

bmixon · Nov 26, 2006

Jetter_Sprinta said:
Noticed that too, in addition it appears that those same two IC pipes are not fastened together which keeps that hose in its place. You'll see the location for the screw while relocating the hose. Be sure the engine is cool or you have bled off the pressure from the coolant bubble before removing the hose.

some people are slow to lean !

Jetter: I rerouted that hose this morning while the car was still cold. I noticed that screw missing but I thought if might be one of the holes for the engine cover. You really do have excellent eye sight to be able to pick that up off a photo. I don't have a Bentley manual yet. Does anybody have an idea what size bolt/screw that might be so I could go buy another one tomorrow. Thanks again for pointing this out.

Lug_Nut · Nov 26, 2006

The screw has a coarse thread, almost a sheet-metal screw. A wood screw may do the trick.
And the A3 cover will fit on the B4, but a B4 cover won't fit the A3.
The B4 cover has a longer 'nose' over the alternator than the A3. The A3 radiator is closer to the engine and moves the A/C line closer, too. The B4 cover would interfere if installed on the diminuitive A3.

97 Passat TDI Engine Cover

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