Little Pittsburgh Clan

[IwishTDI]

I'd be up for a GTG in the spring. Gotta get a new cam before then hopefully.

 

[astonishedboy]

Yeah... some day soon, if the ice melts. Anyone want to put a clutch in for me?

 

[Stirer]

A little expert help please

When PA had those few nights of bitter cold my car went inside the garage. Anyone in the Pittsburgh area have Vag-com that isn't on the list? I really need to get my timing checked.

Hey everyone, need some guru thoughts here. I scanned this car; it is a 2002 with 96k miles. All service was performed at the dealer before the purchase and the new owner believes the TB was done there at 60k. The intake has also been cleaned.

The car is only getting about 30 mpg in careful driving. I checked the timing and though it is advanced it is not out of spec. Of concern tho is the amount of "noise" in the measurement, sure is jumping around a lot. We also logged requested MAF against measured MAF and the MAF sensor looks good.

Any ideas?? This kid could use more expertise than I can provide.

 

[pyankura]

My friend Jamie near Washington Pa. is the "relatively unknown" guru of the area. He can put the clutch in and diagnose your problem. No doubt. If you like, give him a call 724-267-3555 and leave message. 10 years master VW/Audi and will not break the bank. "This guy is good" performance minded and very in tune.

PS I would certainly be down for a gtg.

 

[pm22071985]

All service was performed at the dealer before the purchase and the new owner believes the TB was done there at 60k.....The car is only getting about 30 mpg

Get this ride to Growler's STAT....
The dealer mechanic might have decided to not change rollers and water pump, that doesn't justify the 30mpg but 325$ is easier to swallow than 3K..

Just my 2cents, good luck, wish I could do more.

 

[IwishTDI]

Thanks again Stirer.
Where is Growler's at? The previous owner said the Water Pump was replaced, but he didn't say anything about replacing the rollers.

 

[Stirer]

He is in the Columbus, OH area. I know both him and Jon are a little bit of a drive but both are certifiable - as guru's that is .

 

[pm22071985]

For Growler info:
http://forums.tdiclub.com/showthread.php?t=235546

For Jon:
Jon W. Hamilton, ASE-Certified VW Mechanic
Jon's Auto LLC
22291 State Route 4
Marysville, OH 43040
(937) 209-0187

I've interacted with both, and have nothing but good things to say.
I would give them a call. The drive is worth it.

Good luck.

 

[Growler]

Thanks Pat, Appreciate the props and the heads up!

I would be glad to provide you with timing belt/intake cleaning service, but the clutch is a bit out of my league.

Jon Hamilton could do all for you if you need. I do have my availability posted for anyone to see. If you can do without the car for some time (say a week), A dropoff would prolly get it done faster than waiting for a saturday for February.

I have TB parts on the shelf BTW. complete Boraparts deluxe kit. Parts are $325, Labor is another $325. intake is $150 at the same time. also do vacuum/fuel return lines and I stock filter kits.


On the mileage, I see the car is an Auto, could it not just be short trips and winter fuel?

also, the noise could be a sign of a pump wearing out, how noisy is the pump at idle?

 

[pyankura]

Try Jamie yall. He can change you clutch on the side of the highway!! No Scheiße! He did it for his sister when her clutch went out on 70 going toward Belle Vernon.

 

[IwishTDI]

The shortest trip I take is usually 18-20 Miles, going to Butler or Ellwood. It might just be the winter fuel, but I'm always running 8oz of PowerService if it makes any difference. Could you be more specific on what noise I'm listening for?

 

[Delphi_Wiz]

Another Pittsburgh TDI.

I'm up in Cranberry Twp too, I've owned my Atlantic Blue Jetta TDI for the last 9 years and I bought it new from Bilco back in 2000.

My wife drove it for the last 6 years and I have inherited it back again; I realized again how much of the driving fun I've been missing.

Mine's got 90K miles on it and Bilco has been exclusively servicing the car(including Timing Belt change) but I saw the local mechanic in Gibsonia listed here and i may give him a shot for the next Oil change and/or servicing.

Regards

Dave

 

[Growler]

The shortest trip I take is usually 18-20 Miles, going to Butler or Ellwood. It might just be the winter fuel, but I'm always running 8oz of PowerService if it makes any difference. Could you be more specific on what noise I'm listening for?

at idle do you hear any noises that sound like a small tack hammer hitting cast aluminum? tak tak tak tak etc

its a sharp rapping sound that you are listening for.

 

[pghPAtdi]

Beer caps make that noise when i drink while working on my Tdi and toss then into the engine bay.

Delphi: I've got a Pella if you would like to give it a go for changing your oil.

Dave

 

[IwishTDI]

I popped the hood at idle. I hear just a slight tap but I can't pin point where it's coming from. FYI the Engine was up to temp when I listened.

 

[Growler]

sounds like your IP isnt noisy then. its usually pretty noticeable when its doing its thing. good news for you

 

[IwishTDI]

The ticking under Acceleration still has me worried. It does it in Park too, it's just not as loud.

 

[pghPAtdi]

Hey growler, What years are affected by the soft cams? Could I tell by the VIN

 

[Growler]

The ticking under Acceleration still has me worried. It does it in Park too, it's just not as loud.

With a 2002, you really ought to get your cam/lifters looked at for abnormal wear.

have you had anyone look at your system recently?

I have the 21st (saturday) of february available if you would be willing to come to Columbus. if you are prepared to pay for a cam & lifters & timing belt system replacement, I would be wiling to do the work for you that day if it is determined that your cam is one of the soft ones...

PM for details if interested. I will need to know soon so I can get a cam & lifters on the way over.

you can take a quick look at your cam lobes for any abnormal pitting at the edges & corners by popping the valve cover off.. A ball end 5mm allen socket is best tool for taking the valve cover bolts off. takes about 10 minutes, and they only need retightened to 7 foot-lbs.. (really not very tight at all)

if you have a nice digital camera with a macro mode some clear digital pictures of your cam lobes would tell us a lot.

Aaron

 

[jwlionking]

The ticking under Acceleration still has me worried. It does it in Park too, it's just not as loud.

Out of curiosity, how many miles you have on that?

 

[IwishTDI]

No ones looked at my system. I've been meaning to get around to it for a while now, but I just haven't. I'm visiting Erie College the 20-22 so I can't make a trip out to Columbus. I'll try to get some pics today after I get the car washed and cleaned. There's just below 93,000 miles on it and no slippage in the tranny. FYI, When I went to Stirer's I told him the wrong mileage, My Bad.

 

[Delphi_Wiz]

Beer caps make that noise when i drink while working on my Tdi and toss then into the engine bay.

Delphi: I've got a Pella if you would like to give it a go for changing your oil.

Dave

Dave, I may take you up on that. I live in Cranberry by North Boundary Rd. I still have about 7 K miles left before I need an oil change.

We'll keep in touch here.

 

[PitPassat]

Another TDI North of Pbgh

Hello everybody,

just found this thread and realized that I am not alone out here. I live in Chippewa - northwest of Beaver Falls (a mile away from the Beaver County Airport).

I am the original owner of a green 1996 Passat TDI Stationwagon, now with about 130k miles on it.

A couple of weeks ago the turbo gave up on me. I am currently taking the engine apart and got the shock of my life when i discovered all the gunk (carbon buildup) in the intake manifold, only to find out that this is quite common with this engine. Is there anybody in the area who has experience with this? I am wondering whether I should take the whole head of to get it cleaned. Bolland Machine here in Chippewa, who does work on utility diesels (mostly for these little Tugs used on airports) offered me to clean it for me if I take it off and bring it to them. Since I need to replace the timing belt anyway I am inclined to do this, yet I still hesitate. Any advice?

Anyway, nice to see that there is a TDI group here in Western PA. Let me know if there is a GTG and I will certainly try to be there.

Greetings,

PitPassat

 

[Growler]

you do not need to take the head off to clean out the intake ports.

what you DO need to do is while you have the timing belt off and the crank locked and cam locked, either remove/loosen the cam (do not lose the nuts)

and reach behind your motor with a shop vac and a small scraper and do your best. do be sure to get all the lose material out. it will be difficult. if its only a light coating on all the surfaces you should probably leave it alone. if you have a LOT of buildup on the valve and walls then try to get it out.

what you need to avoid is getting any lose gunk down into the cylinder after you scrape.

once you are satisfied with the head ports, use a pressure washer or a local car wash to clean out your intake manifold. do keep the pressure away from the EGR diaphragm but otherwise spray as much as you can down into the intake and up thru the 4 ports at the head attachment.

its mostly labor. depends on how dirty you wanna get. it can be done without popping the head off the block which requires the replacement of a lot of other misc seals & bolts etc.

best of luck, Aaron

 

[PitPassat]

Thanks Aaron for getting back so quickly. I will try to clean it out with the head on then. I suppose the removal of the crank is to prevent any valve from being open so no gunk can go inside.

How about any buildup on the valve stems? I have seen pictures of heads that came off that had all the intake valves with a good amount of buildup on the stems. Does this clean out itself over time or might this be reason for considering washing the head.

On another tune: Is there anybody in the area who has the TB tools and could lease them for a weekend?

Thanks,

Wolfgang

 

[Growler]

Thanks Aaron for getting back so quickly. I will try to clean it out with the head on then. I suppose the removal of the CAM is to prevent any valve from being open so no gunk can go inside.

How about any buildup on the valve stems? I have seen pictures of heads that came off that had all the intake valves with a good amount of buildup on the stems. Does this clean out itself over time or might this be reason for considering washing the head.

On another tune: Is there anybody in the area who has the TB tools and could lease them for a weekend?

Thanks,

Wolfgang

Fixed your message there. yes, removing the cam does make it so all the valves are closed at once. upon reassembly, you really wanna make sure that the cam is in the correct position and or the crank is turned 45 degrees to guarantee that the valve cannot hit the pistons. this way you can get the cam in and locked down before you go to line the crank back up to get it back in time. if you don't understand how to do this, you might want to ask for help at this stage or get the car to someone who can re-time it safely.

my guess is the pictures of intake valves with tons of buildup come from cars with a SVO/WVO conversion on them. the waste oil builds up even worse than the normal egr gunk. basically get the intake manifold off and look back there with a bright flashlight and a mirror to see how bad your buildup is.

if you don't have huge amounts of buildup on the intake ports/valves I would leave the cam alone and just clean out the manifold as best as you can.

Aaron

 

[WVU TDI]

Has anyone dealt with the VW dealership in Canonsburg? I'm getting ready to finish up my master's program and should have a good job coming out of school, would like to swap my '01 (sell it to my dad) for a new Sportwagen TDI. Thought I might ride up that way this weekend and see what they've got, but I'd rather not even pull on the lot if they've got a crappy reputation.

 

[pyankura]

Very good rep! Ask for Bobby Ventura Or Vito they call him for nickname. Tell him Pete Yankura sent you. He/they will take care of you. The dealership is in Mcmurray and it is Three Rivers VW. They also have quite a few 09's. Get the six speed Better for tuning.

Has anyone dealt with the VW dealership in Canonsburg? I'm getting ready to finish up my master's program and should have a good job coming out of school, would like to swap my '01 (sell it to my dad) for a new Sportwagen TDI. Thought I might ride up that way this weekend and see what they've got, but I'd rather not even pull on the lot if they've got a crappy reputation.

 

[WVU TDI]

Sounds good, I won't be ready to buy until June, but I'm a big fan of planning ahead. Would like to maybe try out an '09, with the stick of course, and see if it's really what I'm after.

 

[pyankura]

I must say that it is a bit more refined than what you are used to. I drove one pretty hard stock and then drove it tuned. Very nice and smooth and great power. It was a six speed.

Sounds good, I won't be ready to buy until June, but I'm a big fan of planning ahead. Would like to maybe try out an '09, with the stick of course, and see if it's really what I'm after.