Project: PolarXJ (M-TDI XJ)

[PickleRick]

I thought making a pedal adapter bracket was going to be a real pita in my rig but ended up being one of the easier parts of my swap with pieces of 1/8 flat bar welded together to make a bit of a triangle so my TDI pedal would bolt to the spot where the original pedal mounted. I used my brake pedal to kind of eyeball where the resting point was and adjusted the bracket up and down so I made sure I got 100%pedal travel.

I'm using a Passat pedals so my mounting surface may be a a different angle in relation to pedal travel than yours.


Once swap was completed I remembered it have ifs and Toyota 8" axles, I don't need 100% throttle.


I put my pedal bracket together before purchasing a rivnut kit. This means I drilled out and welded nuts to my bracket to mount the pedal assembly.

Once I purchased the rivnut kit, it was the equivalent to finally getting cable television. I have no idea how I survived before I aquired this magnificent invention.

 

[6_DoF]

i do love my rivnuts! but only 1/4" and less ... any bigger and i'll make bolt plates. also, heavy anti-seize.

i'm also fully willing to let the 8.25 rear axle eat torque, 100% is necessary!

 

[PickleRick]

What's the fun of all that diesel torque if you can't snap things at will?

 

[6_DoF]

maybe 2 weeks before i sent off the ECU and harness, i got the headliner re-glued in the XJ. not the best job ever, but re-using the factory fabric and lining up the holes on overly stretched fabric was a b!tch.

over the holiday i got the electronic TDI throttle pedal installed. i did basically the same thing as Bleepin from his YouTube and it was right there. i ended up adding some washers on final install to tip the top of the pedal fwd more though. just some bent sheet welded to the factory pedal mount and 3 nut-serts.

 

[PickleRick]

Look at that poor obd port,. You were really going to do an mtdi and get rid of it?

 

[6_DoF]

Look at that poor obd port,. You were really going to do an mtdi and get rid of it?

there is still a reasonable chance that i screw around with the MTDI and maybe go back to it! i'd love to have a direct comparison.

 

[6_DoF]

wow ... the epic levels of fail with this jeep are strong.

with the jeep's lift pump and cycling the vw computer, i feel pretty good about bleeding a lot of air out of the system. i can hear it bubbling in the tank, pump surging, then finally stabilize and run clean. bleed injector 1 and cranking, bleed injector 2 and cranking, that one glimmer of hope that it's going to start, stop bleeding injectors, endless cranking, then if i just let the lift pump run it'll start blowing huge air pockets into the tank again. not just bubbles, pockets.

this IP sat on this motor for quite a few years on the shelf before it got it ... i just don't see how it could be sucking this much air but not squirting fuel out when under pressure.

 

[PickleRick]

There's a reason many IPs have plunger primers on them, even priming the much smaller PD pump can kill a good battery.

 

[greengeeker]

Best bet is to put a vityvac on the return line of the IP and pull a vacuum until you get solid fuel. Are you getting a spurt out of each injector when cracked? Fuel stop solenoid has power when cranking? No codes for your QA?

 

[6_DoF]

no codes, really great fuel at every injector.

i haven't checked the fuel stop solenoid ... talked to Matt and i probably need to "Hammer Mod" the pump to get it started. i also need to pull the timing cover and see if I'm getting fuel leaking from the front shaft seal.

 

[greengeeker]

Did you have the pump apart?

 

[6_DoF]

apart, no. but the last time i got a tuned computer that wasn't the factory unit, i had to do the same thing. that one at least started though.

 

[6_DoF]

air bled ... IQ set ... everything else hooked up. alternator charges, n75 is in, MAP mounted, wiring tied up, and actually has way more pep driving than i thought it would!

still can't start it

seriously though ... i can bump start it, fires right up, but no amount of starter cranking will get it to even pop.

 

[Mozambiquer]

air bled ... IQ set ... everything else hooked up. alternator charges, n75 is in, MAP mounted, wiring tied up, and actually has way more pep driving than i thought it would!

still can't start it

seriously though ... i can bump start it, fires right up, but no amount of starter cranking will get it to even pop.

Make sure that the ignition switch is wired so it has power to the ecm even when cranking. I've seen it before where the ignition switch doesn't allow power to the ecm while cranking and it won't start, but it will if you bump start it.

 

[greengeeker]

Make sure that the ignition switch is wired so it has power to the ecm even when cranking. I've seen it before where the ignition switch doesn't allow power to the ecm while cranking and it won't start, but it will if you bump start it.

Spot on. You need to see power at the fuel shutoff solenoid AND your check engine light needs to stay illuminated WHILE cranking.

 

[6_DoF]

 

[6_DoF]

you guys are 110% correct ... omg ... i wired it to the 12V key switched i pulled earlier for the EGT gauge, and that blinks out while cranking.

i owe ya'll a few drafts for that one!

 

[6_DoF]

i can't believe i did that ... but i'd much rather swallow my pride on a stupid mistake than the bill for a rebuilt IP. new wire, instant BRAP!

drove it to buy it's own wiper blades, and that feels good. definitely has enough enough power, that's really nice. it's the Golf i always wished i had back in the day.

the drive shaft angles are junk right now from me just throwing it together, so they vibrate. i used poly engine mounts and the engine vibrates the chassis at a light more than i expected vs the old golf. plus something in the front axle isn't happy. something is binding, or grinding, or just worn out ... but jacked up and wigglin' everything it's all tight. i'll have to get deeper later. tonight's a win and i'm celebrating.

 

[6_DoF]

drove it to work yesterday, definitely need to work on some things. the idle is way too rough to be correct, and my drive shaft angles are super bad. but it runs!

i got back into the IQ and 'hammer mod' reset myself to a steady 3.8-4.0, not jumpy at all. that seams pretty good, but it's still just shaking the crap out of the jeep. smooth while cruising, so I'm hopefully it's something like a timing adjustment with VCDS that i need to look up the procedure for.

building this i put the engine in where it fit the best, and just blindly swapped the lift kit on quick so i could move it around. now that it's running, it's time to go back and tune in the drive shaft angles. measured last night and I'm 13deg out in the back and 16deg out in the front!

 

[greengeeker]

i got back into the IQ and 'hammer mod' reset myself to a steady 3.8-4.0, not jumpy at all. that seams pretty good, but it's still just shaking the crap out of the jeep. smooth while cruising, so I'm hopefully it's something like a timing adjustment with VCDS that i need to look up the procedure for.

Nice! Any way you can post a video of it "shaking the crap" out of the jeep? Went back and looked at what appear to be solid poly mounts? Yeah, those are going to be teeth rattlers. I'd highly recommend Passat hydro mounts. Night and day difference.

 

[6_DoF]

Nice! Any way you can post a video of it "shaking the crap" out of the jeep? Went back and looked at what appear to be solid poly mounts? Yeah, those are going to be teeth rattlers. I'd highly recommend Passat hydro mounts. Night and day difference.

i'm down for knowing the engine is there, vibrations are fine and why i drive old junk like this. but i used a different, stiffer, poly to mount a 12V Cummins in a 55 chevy truck ... and it has to be half the idle vibe to the chassis. we are at "blurry radio screen" vibes

 

[greengeeker]

we are at "blurry radio screen" vibes

lol.

You're comparing apples to oranges. inline 6 has perfect primary and secondary balance. inline 4 has the former but requires a balance shaft to achieve the latter...which your TDI does not have. The bigger the jugs, the bigger the secondary imbalance. You should experience the difference between a B4.5 (4cyl version of the 6.7) with and without a balance shaft. Anyway, your poly mounts are very efficiently transmitting those imbalanced forces into you radio screen.

 

[6_DoF]

URL to the mounts you suggest?

i'm with ya on the 4 vs 6cyl deal, it comes up a lot when everyone discusses the 4bt vs 6bt swaps. but this 1.9L idle is kind of right between the normal idle of the 6bt, and the idle of a jeep 4.0 i6 running with 2 rods hanging outside the block.

 

[greengeeker]

URL to the mounts you suggest?

i'm with ya on the 4 vs 6cyl deal, it comes up a lot when everyone discusses the 4bt vs 6bt swaps. but this 1.9L idle is kind of right between the normal idle of the 6bt, and the idle of a jeep 4.0 i6 running with 2 rods hanging outside the block.

lol I like your description.

Engine Mount Set, BHW – Cascade German Parts

www.cascadegerman.com

Feel free to shop around for aftermarket parts (the link are OEM). Don't waste your time with cheap amazon/ebay crap though.

 

[6_DoF]

lol I like your description.

i speak from experience!

 

[6_DoF]

things are getting good now!

- drive shaft issues 98% sorted, eventually need to replace my temp rear shaft with a nice new machine balanced one.
- registered VCDS and got my timing dialed ... just under the blue line and mid 3's on the IQ

it runs pretty great, and while a lot better, the idle vibe is still a lot. i would have NEVER have thought this little motor could resonate this much. can't do anything about it now, but will most definitely be looking into the hydro mounts now.

 

[greengeeker]

for the time being you can raise the idle via VCDS. https://forums.tdiclub.com/index.php?threads/adjusting-engine-idle-speed-101.1622/

 

[6_DoF]

dude, awesome link, i was planning to try and find that info when i got home from work today!

drove the jeep about 150miles round trip last night, was good. got new wheels n tires from a buddy and swapped em on at his shop, way way better now. only issue was the VNT vac diaphragm blew out on the way home.

TDI-XJ with 18-20PSI: Good!
TDI-XJ with 2-4psi: nooooottt as good!

 

[Mozambiquer]

dude, awesome link, i was planning to try and find that info when i got home from work today!

drove the jeep about 150miles round trip last night, was good. got new wheels n tires from a buddy and swapped em on at his shop, way way better now. only issue was the VNT vac diaphragm blew out on the way home.

TDI-XJ with 18-20PSI: Good!
TDI-XJ with 2-4psi: nooooottt as good!

I've got a used vnt actuator from a turbo that blew.

 

[6_DoF]

I've got a used vnt actuator from a turbo that blew.

thanks much! i ordered a Chinesium one from Amazon last night already, if it turns out to be junk i'll let ya know.