Leaking injection pump

[03wgn5spd]

The IP on my 03 TDI is slowly dripping fuel. I can smell it after a long drive.

Below is a video. The position makes it awkward to pinpoint.

I just replaced the oring for the triangular bolt on the 02 which was cakewalk.

I don't think it is going to be that easy on the 03.

Any suggestions?

Thanks.

 

[super1]

The IP on my 03 TDI is slowly dripping fuel. I can smell it after a long drive.

Below is a video. The position makes it awkward to pinpoint.

I just replaced the oring for the triangular bolt on the 02 which was cakewalk.

I don't think it is going to be that easy on the 03.

Any suggestions?

Thanks.

Looks like it’s your pump, head seal leaking very common. It’s very doable, but you have to go slow and be careful very easily. You can ruin the pump.
Have you changed the top cover gasket & IQ gasket yet?
If you plan on doing it yourself, watch the videos a few times before you attempt to do it yourself

 

[super1]

 

[03wgn5spd]

Looks like it’s your pump, head seal leaking very common. It’s very doable, but you have to go slow and be careful very easily. You can ruin the pump.
Have you changed the top cover gasket & IQ gasket yet?
If you plan on doing it yourself, watch the videos a few times before you attempt to do it yourself

No, not yet. Thanks for this.

 

[STDOUBT]

Find the several really great tutorials here for that very job.
It's a process to do it on the car. Set aside an afternoon once you're educated on how-to.
Take your time, do it clean. Read this too:

Deluxe Injection Pump Seal Kit for TDI

Don't replace that leaky VW injection pump, reseal it. A ton of customers have fixed their leaking TDI injector pump's quantity adjuster seals with this kit!

dieselgeek.com

Also!
Hear me now and believe me later. In your first video? At 18 seconds in, that drip of fuel is coming off the insulation jacket for the two wires that power the pump's Advance Solenoid (N108). The diesel will destroy that jacket and foul the wires rendering that little bugger inoperable.
At that point, to save the pump, it's gotta come off the car so you can replace (or repair) that solenoid. IF you can find it.

Looks like Kerma thinks they can get one....

OEM VW N108 Injection Pump Advance Solenoid for 10mm AlH Injection Pumps (MK4 ALH -Manual)

Kerma TDI features N108 Injection Pump Advance Solenoid for 10mm AlH Injection Pumps.

kermatdi.com

Once the job is done (maybe even before too!) de-grease that jacket - get it nice and clean and dry.

 

[03wgn5spd]

Find the several really great tutorials here for that very job.
It's a process to do it on the car. Set aside an afternoon once you're educated on how-to.
Take your time, do it clean. Read this too:

Deluxe Injection Pump Seal Kit for TDI

Don't replace that leaky VW injection pump, reseal it. A ton of customers have fixed their leaking TDI injector pump's quantity adjuster seals with this kit!

dieselgeek.com

Also!
Hear me now and believe me later. In your first video? At 18 seconds in, that drip of fuel is coming off the insulation jacket for the two wires that power the pump's Advance Solenoid (N108). The diesel will destroy that jacket and foul the wires rendering that little bugger inoperable.
At that point, to save the pump, it's gotta come off the car so you can replace (or repair) that solenoid. IF you can find it.

Looks like Kerma thinks they can get one....

OEM VW N108 Injection Pump Advance Solenoid for 10mm AlH Injection Pumps (MK4 ALH -Manual)

Kerma TDI features N108 Injection Pump Advance Solenoid for 10mm AlH Injection Pumps.

kermatdi.com

Once the job is done (maybe even before too!) de-grease that jacket - get it nice and clean and dry.

Thanks.

I purchased that kit. How do I know if it's buggered already? What are the symptoms?

 

[STDOUBT]

You'd know. It kind of throws you into a limp-mode-like state. Very bogged down running. I think the ECU drops the pump into a kind of brain dead fueling level to avoid damage. You can maybe get up to about 55 mph eventually all the while it runs like crap.
Even at idle, you can hear the engine's unhappy - sounds like an old tractor.
BUT, you shouldn't be driving that car with a leak like that anyway. If you do, keep a fire extinguisher on the passenger seat!
Good job buying that kit. Lets you run Biodiesel w/o worrying about that o-ring pretty much ever again.

 

[STDOUBT]

Bio will swell the (original non-Viton) o-ring, and once you put any D2 in the tank, it shrivels back up and....leaks.

 

[03wgn5spd]

How do I prime the fuel pump after this work?

I watched the video but the poster says what he is using is not the right tool.

Thanks.

 

[STDOUBT]

The return line pipe that comes off the top.
Mity-vac the snot out of it (takes time to get a solid flow), and that fills up the pump enough to safely fire it up.
Also recommended before doing that is to disconnect power from the fuel shut-off solenoid (8 mm nut, driver side of pump),
and crank a few seconds, a few times, before lighting it up.
Might need to crack the injector top nuts to purge air since you had them off.

 

[03wgn5spd]

Well it looks like the lower head bolt toward the firewall for the IP is missing. I bet that will do it. I will have to dig deeper to see if it is just plain missing or if it isn't there due to a broken head bolt or stipped out female threads.

 

[03wgn5spd]

No problems with threads. Ended up using the dieselgeek bolt as I didn't have much of an option.

The bolt tightened to 10 ft. lbs. like the rest and didn't bottom out so I was fortunate.

Maybe they will sell me another for the auto when it is time.

I am not sure if this fixed it. Really had to mighty vac the living crap out of it AND crack injectors to get it start.

I wish my guru and I were able to sync up but shipping for the kit took too long.

Not my cup of tea and the job took waaay longer than I anticipated.

I certaintly didn't anticipate breaking the oil dipstick tube while at this either.

Thanks for the support though and hopefully this fixes it.

 

[AndyBees]

Although you've already delved into the job, I'll throw in a few comments anyway.

The re-seal kit should have all the seals, etc., you need to do the job. Always order a new dip stick tube as part of the job. They are prone to become brittle.

First, I would pressure wash the heck out of the Injector Pump and engine in general (cold engine). Cover the end of the Alternator with an old Walmart grocery bag to protect it. I pressure wash my engine at least every two months. A clean IP makes the job so much better. The hoses need the leaked diesel fuel knocked off anyway.

After you finish pressure washing, fire-up the engine and let it idle with the AC on so the fans will help evaporate the water. And, you can also use compressed air.

The plug on the end of the IP has an O-ring that will also leak fuel. Without the proper tool, I modified a 15/16" (24mm) 6-point socket to do the job. Below are a few photos.

Also, I re-sealed the IP on the 2002 ALH TDI engine that I installed in my 84 Vanagon. The Big O-ring on the IP head was stuck. I could not peel it out. So, I had to remove the head. In the link below are numerous photos with narrative of my experience. If I remember correctly, this was in 2012 or 13. It was all new to me at the time. Note: There are some pics in the link unrelated to the disassembly and re-seal.

ALH TDI Injection Pump Re-seal

forums.tdiclub.com

 

[03wgn5spd]

Although you've already delved into the job, I'll throw in a few comments anyway.

The re-seal kit should have all the seals, etc., you need to do the job. Always order a new dip stick tube as part of the job. They are prone to become brittle.

First, I would pressure wash the heck out of the Injector Pump and engine in general (cold engine). Cover the end of the Alternator with an old Walmart grocery bag to protect it. I pressure wash my engine at least every two months. A clean IP makes the job so much better. The hoses need the leaked diesel fuel knocked off anyway.

After you finish pressure washing, fire-up the engine and let it idle with the AC on so the fans will help evaporate the water. And, you can also use compressed air.

The plug on the end of the IP has an O-ring that will also leak fuel. Without the proper tool, I modified a 15/16" (24mm) 6-point socket to do the job. Below are a few photos.

Also, I re-sealed the IP on the 2002 ALH TDI engine that I installed in my 84 Vanagon. The Big O-ring on the IP head was stuck. I could not peel it out. So, I had to remove the head. In the link below are numerous photos with narrative of my experience. If I remember correctly, this was in 2012 or 13. It was all new to me at the time. Note: There are some pics in the link unrelated to the disassembly and re-seal.

ALH TDI Injection Pump Re-seal

forums.tdiclub.com

Very nice pics and info. I too replaced that o-ring on the auto with that same socket.

 

[Gothmolly]

Bring the car to a shop, have them replace the pump. Replacing seals is a big deal that can lead to a dead pump (from experience).

 

[P2B]

Bring the car to a shop, have them replace the pump. Replacing seals is a big deal that can lead to a dead pump (from experience).

Many of us have done this job successfully using the guidance available here. I trust myself more than most shops.

 

[AndyBees]

Re-sealing a VE Injection Pump is not Rocket Science. As P2B said, many of us have re-sealed our Injection Pumps.

As I stressed above, cleanliness is very important. The inside is already clean. So, do not enter if the outside is loaded with road grit and diesel fuel. And, as can be see in the linked photos, I basically gutted the IP on the 2002 TDI ALH engine in my 84 Vanagon. Since those days, I've driven it more than 60k miles.,,,,,,,,,,, two trips to Alaska pulling a 1200 lb popup camper.

Also, I've disassembled several VE IPs for the little 1.6 NA VW Diesel engines to clean out the crud due to folks burning Waste Vegetable Oil. I never had one to fail to start and perform.

This kind of reminds me of the folks that think the Refrigerant (R132a) must be weighed perfectly when re-charging the AC system. Well, how do you think I got the R132a system in my Vanagon going with the TDI engine and AC Compressor? Well, with all new hoses and associated components, I vacuumed it for at least 18 hours. Then, I added the R132a until the system began blowing cold air below 40f with outside Temps above 75f. It is not Rocket Science.

 

[03wgn5spd]

Bring the car to a shop, have them replace the pump. Replacing seals is a big deal that can lead to a dead pump (from experience).

Cool, but looks like I was successful. I don't see any leaks. I don't trust anyone with my car besides me or my local guru. I understand your experience and the fact that you earned it. There are some things that I have experienced too which which will make me never want to do a given job ever again.

 

[Gothmolly]

Cool, but looks like I was successful. I don't see any leaks. I don't trust anyone with my car besides me or my local guru. I understand your experience and the fact that you earned it. There are some things that I have experienced too which which will make me never want to do a given job ever again.

Nice! I followed the instructions someone posted here, and it got to a weird point where the motor wouldn't turn past a certain point without a hard metallic CLICK. Towed the car.

 

[AndyBees]

Nice! I followed the instructions someone posted here, and it got to a weird point where the motor wouldn't turn past a certain point without a hard metallic CLICK. Towed the car.

So, you had the car towed. Then what?

 

[Gothmolly]

So, you had the car towed. Then what?

Then paid a guy to put in a new pump.

 

[AndyBees]

Then paid a guy to put in a new pump.

Did you scroll thru the pics I linked in Post # 13?

The day I commenced the reseal process I had no clue what I was getting into. I never followed any instructions. However, I did know there was a shim that could fall out if the IP head was pulled out too far. But, the issue I faced was the big O-ring was stuck. I had to remove the head, put it in a vice to hold it while I used a Dremel to remove the stuck rubber. Anyway, two or three of the four rollers fell out. Logic told me where to place them. I put all back together and it functioned properly.

Since that re-seal event, I've resealed several of them and not one had a stuck O-ring.

As I stated previously, it is not rocket science. Numerous TDI Clubbers have successfully resealed their IPs.

 

[Gothmolly]

I never got that far.

 

[AndyBees]

I put this one back together after cleaning out crud build-up over a number of years as well as lots of miles.
It worked just fine. (this photo is in the linked photos above)

 

[Gothmolly]

I was following the instructions for resealing it while still on the car. Never would take it apart like that, lose 1 part and you're doomed.

 

[J_dude]

Lol. Doomed. Totally. Bahaha!

 

[J_dude]

Yeah I guess some basic knowhow and common sense is required. As well as a willingness to learn...
But then I should talk, I took apart every toy I had when I was a kid AND put them back together, so I guess I must be above average or something.

 

[P2B]

I was following the instructions for resealing it while still on the car. Never would take it apart like that, lose 1 part and you're doomed.

I decided to clean an outboard carb while enjoying the sun on the deck once. A gust of wind flipped the cardboard I had laid out parts on and half of them fell between the deck boards. I spent 4 hours peering in the dirt under the deck, but I did find everything

 

[AndyBees]

I was following the instructions for resealing it while still on the car. Never would take it apart like that, lose 1 part and you're doomed.

The first re-seal I did of an Injection Pump was on the engine. The linked photos shows it all. I did not remove the IP from the engine. As I noted in that post with the link, some of those photos never pertained to the IP reseal where I had to remove the distributor head to get the big O-ring off. It's all in the link if you will just click and scroll through. I've included narrative with each photo.

The photo I posted above is with all the parts was a different IP. I just posted it for illustrative purposes.

As I stated, since that first reseal job, I've been inside numerous VE IPs. I know where the parts go. If I doubt anything, I refer to illustrative drawings, etc. It is quite basic inside. Several parts will only go in one location. As for losing parts, I put everything on a work bench in a working order. Generally, all an IP needs is cleaning and resealed.

The basic $15 reseal kit doesn't require full disassembly. To move the IP distributor head back from the pump housing, you need a special bolt that will only allow the head to move a certain distance from the housing. The reason is to maintain tension on the Cam Springs which in turn will not allow the little shim to fall out. That's where most people make a mistake.

The bolt can be seen near the center of the photo below.

 

[PakProtector]

Doomed. Doooooomed!!!!!

Danger! arms flailing wildly...

The Bosch kit, augmented with a DieselGeek head o-ring goes a long way to keeping these things running for me. Son and I did an IP head seal after spending a whole bit o' time reading here and looking for warnings about, 'if you happen to do *THIS, yer in deep shoot'. My favourite specialist says he always pulls the pump out and *THEN replaces the head o-ring.

I have a pair of 414 pumps that leaked, and I will be cleaning them and re-sealing at least one of them. They get quite dirty when left leaking for a while...LOL

Douglas