Former VWDieselParts.com Forum

1.6L diesel Vanagon. Black smoke under a load trying to get up to speed. I tried to adjust the pump timing, but could only set it to .70mm instead of the .86mm reccomended by the bentley. The pump is turned as far as it will go towards the head. Does this sound like a pump issue or an injector issue?

I cranked it quite a bit with the pedal all the way down. To the point of killing the battery. I should also point out that I had the starter tested and it is fine. So not a starter issue.

Tyler Durden, do you think I should take the pump in to have bench tested at a diesel repair shop? Maybe the engine is cranking a proper speed and the pump is not getting fuel to the injectors like it should?

When I spin the pump with a drill it squirts fuel out of the top of the injectors when I crack them open. It also pulls fuel very quickly from the bottle. So it seems like the pump works. The engine just doesn't crank fast enough to pump fuel or build compression. I did only get 10.5 volts at the st...

That's good advice. I have tried flipping the lines and still no fuel even at a low speed. I don't know the history of this pump, so it's possible that it is no good too.

Thanks for the reply 82vdub. As of now, I'm using an injection pump I did not take apart. I gave up on my rebuild, lol. I am bottle feeding it directly to the pump on the inlet banjo. The interesting thing is, when I spin it with a drill, I get fuel to the injectors and it pulls the fuel from the bo...

And one more afterthought, is it possible that the wiring to the starter is incorrect? The car has a new battery too.

Ok, so I installed a 2 notch head gasket and the same story. Engine cranks slowly not building compression or pumping fuel. The block cranked fast with the head off and the injection pump pumps fuel with a drill. But once everything's back together, it cranks slow. Any other ideas out there?

I tried a hillbilly measure and i'm thinking that I need a 2 notch head gasket.

So I pulled the head and cranked the block with the starter. It spins fast. My theory now, maybe an incorrect head gasket? I tried measuring the piston height but may have done it incorrectly. I put in a 1 notch. So now i'm thinking that the resistance i felt was piston/valve contacting slightly. An...

So if the head is rebuilt, what else could it be? I also lubed the starter bushing but no difference.

I did not measure the ring gaps. Prob should have. Lol. As for turning the engine by hand, it does take some effort in spots. More so then turning a worn in engine. I also don't hear that hissing sound from compression taking place like normal. My gut is telling me something is wrong in the block. I...

I put standard size piston rings on these pistons. It's the only thing I can think of that might be binding up. Maybe i'll do a quick compression test, but it looks like I'm tearing back in to the block.

Thanks for the tip 82vdub. Unfortunately I did not lube the starter bushing. I know it's in there nice and tight. My concern is the piston rings are too tight. is that a possibility?

Update: I turned the injector lines 90 degrees to see if the injectors were injecting, and nothing. I think the engine is just not turning fast enough. I'm not even getting oil on the cam yet. New starter maybe? Both starters I used spin fast when bench tested, but slow on the car.