1978 Rabbit Project.. Suns out Guns out

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vdubbin0
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1978 Rabbit Project.. Suns out Guns out

Post by vdubbin0 »

Hello all

Car is a 1978 1.5L Diesel Rabbit,
The car isn't mint but its pretty clean for a Michigan find.

Back story on the car: Car is from Cali and was the PO's Grandfather, he passed away and his uncle got the car in 88' and brought it to Michigan, the car has been sitting and garaged since 92. His uncle ended up passing away and that's how the PO ended up with the car in 12'
Quite a few receipts from 88-89' at German Auto Service here in GR which is pretty cool.

Plans are...
Get it running, lower it, fix all the little things that need to be taken care of and just drive it for a bit and enjoy it.

I already have a Project thread on MIVE (Michigan Volkswagen Enthusiasts) but wanted to start one here as well.

When i first picked up the car..
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some cracks in the dash, seat back foam is shot... and the drivers seat adj. knob is seized or something.
Brown Town
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Brakes before...
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Upgraded fronts and rears and flushed with new fluid..
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fixed this hose..
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Lost the after photo..

yup.. Racelands
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and how its sitting at the moment..
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Engine bay shot as it sits now...
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Currently stumped on the motor..
It has fresh diesel, new fuel filter and line to the IP

Right now it idles fine. If I try revving it up it won't rev or seem like it has any power. If I let off from trying to rev it the idle will dip down run rough & then dies.

I don't know if the car sitting for so long has messed up the injection pump or injectors. It is getting fuel to all 4 injectors and fuel out of the injection pump.
I don't have the timing tools yet but trying to figure out where to start first.


If anyone has any tips or thoughts I'd like to try and figure it out if I can.
Last edited by vdubbin0 on Thu Apr 10, 2014 4:59 am, edited 2 times in total.
vdubbin0
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Re: 1978 Rabbit Project.. Suns out Guns out

Post by vdubbin0 »

Progress on the rabbit today..

I filled the IP through the return banjo fitting until diesel came out & hooked up a bottle feed system.
I could get the car to idle pretty well & rev up decent by squeezing the bottle and forcing fuel into the IP.

So.. sounds like a fuel pressure problem or the IP isn't pulling enough fuel?

also the exhaust is pretty white but it smells like a diesel would

first start up and dipping idle.. VIDEO
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_oX9k1N ... bQEIHGTh1g


here is more messing with it and the exhaust.. VIDEO
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=31IHDLd ... e=youtu.be


I tried ATF in a bottle ran some of that through it to clean it.. That is currently sitting in it.

I have loosened up each union at the injector so I know it's getting fuel there, I forgot to check to see if fuel is actually coming OUT of the OUT fitting while it's running.
I was thinking I should make sure that the supply and return line ARE clear first to the tank.. If the cars sat for so long maybe they are plugged? Seems to run best off the bottle and not so good hooked up normal... Like won't idle well and rev up.
82vdub
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Re: 1978 Rabbit Project.. Suns out Guns out

Post by 82vdub »

You've clearly been reading the forums (bottle feeding), so that's a good start. The vid's sounds like fuel starvation, and this could be one of the reasons why you have white smoke from the exhaust. Poor combustion/fuel leads to white smoke.

I would get a can or two of diesel purge and put the return line into the can and run that straight through the IP. The inlet vanes are probably stuck from sitting for so long. This may free it up. Not sure if this will help, but maybe try melting some parafin wax (candle wax) into diesel fuel and see if that helps lube up the IP as well. A concentrated mix, but not concentrated enough where it solidifies inside the IP. Not sure where that point is, if it exists.

Also, if you haven't checked the timing belt, do that before you run it for too long. Get a Bentley manual, as you'll need it to service this bugger and it will save you lots of $ over the years of owning the car.

Great start, keep up the good work.
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vdubbin0
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Re: 1978 Rabbit Project.. Suns out Guns out

Post by vdubbin0 »

I already have a Bentley so I'm set there :wink:

This is my 4th rabbit but first diesel.. So I'm learning as I go on this one haha

I will try the diesel purge & I'm borrowing a friends small compressor to see if I have a bunch of crap in the lines..
Bottle feeding seems to work best running the car for the most part a lot better than from the filter line.

I plan on checking the timing belt also, last resort was to pull the IP and do a new belt at that time.
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Re: 1978 Rabbit Project.. Suns out Guns out

Post by 82vdub »

Probably the reason why the bottle feed works better than the chassis fuel supply is that you have it elevated to feed fuel to the IP, while the vanes probably can't suck the fuel through the filter and chassis enough to have it run good.

You may also want to pull the pickup tube in the tank and make sure that the pickup screen is clear and not full of gunk.
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vdubbin0
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Re: 1978 Rabbit Project.. Suns out Guns out

Post by vdubbin0 »

That would make sense then, I'll have to check that filter then also.
I was hoping I wouldn't have to rebuild the pump yet but sounds like I might have to and clean it good.
bscutt
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Re: 1978 Rabbit Project.. Suns out Guns out

Post by bscutt »

I had a similar problem with my '79 which sat for 11 years. Too much crud in the tank to get it clean and I tried multiple times to purge, clean, vacuum stuff out using a filtered electric fuel pump setup, all to no avail and lots of frustration. Finally replaced the tank which solved the problem. As for seat backs the German made seat backs were stuffed with horse hair (called that, not sure if it really was from a horse) which dried and crushed over decades. I pulled out my seatc and took the upholstery off the seat backs and rebuilt it with various layers of foam from packing boxes at work. Sounds crude but it worked well with careful placement of a couple of different density and thickness foam pieces. Also had to make new wires that hold the metal rods in place - used piano wire for that. Ended up with very comfortable seats after that and it was only a couple of hours to do each seat.
Bob

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vdubbin0
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Re: 1978 Rabbit Project.. Suns out Guns out

Post by vdubbin0 »

Ok I should dig into my tank then and see how nasty it looks on the inside,
I was going to also try to use some junkyard foam or something to rebuild my seats.
Fatmobile
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Re: 1978 Rabbit Project.. Suns out Guns out

Post by Fatmobile »

I might have some seatback foam that is the right size/shape that I'd sell you fairly cheap.
Nice looking little old tan 2-door.
I think it's the vane pump too.
Clear lines to and from the pump should show if/when fuel is flowing well.
Also check for wetness around the pump's mainshaft and see if the mainshaft moves side-to-side.
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vdubbin0
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Re: 1978 Rabbit Project.. Suns out Guns out

Post by vdubbin0 »

Fatmobile wrote:I might have some seatback foam that is the right size/shape that I'd sell you fairly cheap.
Nice looking little old tan 2-door.
I think it's the vane pump too.
Clear lines to and from the pump should show if/when fuel is flowing well.
Also check for wetness around the pump's mainshaft and see if the mainshaft moves side-to-side.

Hey I'm interested in that seat foam!

I will check out the main shaft also, didn't get a chance to mess with the car today at all.
This weekend for sure! Gonna hit up the local motorcycle shop and get some clear fuel line or hit up ACE hardware to see if they have something.
surfcam
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Re: 1978 Rabbit Project.. Suns out Guns out

Post by surfcam »

I didn't realize the fabric pulls off the seats so easily until just recently. Until I was in a VW specialty shop with a friend when I witnessed a mechanic pull the fabric off then proceed to weld up the broken seat. Maybe if I had known I would have fixed some of my many broken and worn out seats. But instead I headed off to Pick-and-pull and bought used ones which aren't that much money. I go for the three way seats. They have that extra lever on the left that can tilt the whole seat back and forth. I find they can make a big difference on long trips. Every three or four hour I tilt the seat to a new angle. I don't know if my bloods pooling or what but it relieves something. Maybe these seats can't be had of bunny's I haven't had one for about 33 year so don't really know.
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vdubbin0
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Re: 1978 Rabbit Project.. Suns out Guns out

Post by vdubbin0 »

This past week or so i haven't made to much progress... I ended up getting my old 16v rabbit back (Gasser content sorry)
So i was working on cleaning out the garage a little so i could store it in my garage for now because it needs fixed.
Imageimage by PaulLehman, on Flickr

and to show off the bay a friend and i built
Imageimage by PaulLehman, on Flickr

and how the garage looks with all the cars in it... haha
Imageimage by PaulLehman, on Flickr


Ok onto the diesel... the IP wont pump up fuel or pump it out, so it's not working at all unless i pre-fill the IP, bottle feed it
using gravity or squeezing fuel into it.. So i'm going to pull the pump and call around to see if i can get the IP looked at or
try to find a decent replacement that works (i don't want to have to buy a new one if i don't have to) to see if i can get this old girl running. The feed and return lines are clear... I blew air into the return line and fuel came out of the feed line no problem, then came out of the return line haha.
82vdub
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Re: 1978 Rabbit Project.. Suns out Guns out

Post by 82vdub »

The vid's of the engine running sounded like the engine should be good to go if you get the IP issues resolved. The IP's stick after they sit for a few years and that (and maybe a belt or two and some hoses etc) should be all it needs to run well. If you can run a compression check of the engine, this will tell you whether the internals are somewhat decent or not to give a better indication.
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vdubbin0
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Re: 1978 Rabbit Project.. Suns out Guns out

Post by vdubbin0 »

Yeah if I'm pulling the IP, I wanna put a new timing belt on it. Then I know for sure it's good to go. :)
vdubbin0
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Re: 1978 Rabbit Project.. Suns out Guns out

Post by vdubbin0 »

Progress!

Received my rebuild IP from VWDieselParts.com yesterday and threw it on last night & then timed it (Set it to .088")
Ended up priming and bleeding the fuel system today and it runs!

I have a hard line that is leaking, a few of the injector return lines & the larger return line. I ordered
a new hard line and return lines to replace them.

I'm just glad that the car is running decent on its own now.. I'm sure i can dial it in a little better.

The new hotness!
Imageimage by PaulLehman, on Flickr

I didn't take any photos of the hard line leaking (it is leaking at the pump connection)
but the other leaks...
Imageimage by PaulLehman, on Flickr

Imageimage by PaulLehman, on Flickr


I'll update more after i replace the lines.
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