Stupid Newbie Questions- I'm gonna have a lot!!!

Vincent Waldon · Post by **Vincent Waldon** » Sat Apr 14, 2007 8:52 pm

That's a nice looking bunny up on ramps.

It looks like a jug of Castrol GTX sitting in front of it. If so, at least here in Canada, it's *not* a diesel-rated oil (no "C" designations, only "S") which means it is not formulated to look after the soot in a diesel engine.

The general belief is that soot in your oil is like sandpaper to your bearings unless the oil is especially formulated to deal with it... when you get the manual you'll see they specifically call out CC-rated oil (or CD-rated oil for turbos: high heat and 100,000 RPM mean your oil better be working for ya).

Or maybe my eyes aren't what they used to be... !!!!!

Vince

busguy71 · Post by **busguy71** » Sat Apr 14, 2007 11:19 pm

Its Castrol Diesel oil 15W40. Thank you all for the electical info. I HATE NAPA!!!! that temp sensor and thermostat are going back tomorrow!!!.

I'll get the alligator clips out tomorrow and do some testing based on the info you guys gave me. wish me luck! (I may start a fire....)

Vincent Waldon · Post by **Vincent Waldon** » Sat Apr 14, 2007 11:32 pm

See... my eyes *are* going...

busguy71 · Post by **busguy71** » Sun Apr 15, 2007 8:19 am

well, its a rainy nasty day in CT so I wont be workin on the car today. I have one more question though. The steering feels very clunky, like the rack has a square gear in it. I didnt see any adjustment on the rack, so should I consider it junk? It looks like a big pain to change it out....

tylernt · Post by **tylernt** » Sun Apr 15, 2007 11:19 am

Yes there is an adjustment bolt. However a more common problem is the bearing in the steering column. If the steering wheel can tilt up and down like you have tilt steering, this is could be your issue.

If the steering column bearing is fine, you can adjust the rack tension with the instructions on pg 34 of Suspension and Steering in the Bentley I know you have on order.

Basically you loosen the locknut in the center of a diamond-shaped plate on the backside of the rack and then turn a small hex adjusting screw. Book says it's possible to do this with the rack installed in the car but it looks like the screw is between the rack and the body so it could be tight quarters.

tylernt · Post by **tylernt** » Sun Apr 15, 2007 11:26 am

Whoa I just noticed your sig about the diesel motorcycle... I want one too! I'm told that there are some diesel motorcycles in India, maybe you could import an engine from one of those. Be sure to keep us posted on your plans and progress!

busguy71 · Post by **busguy71** » Sun Apr 15, 2007 12:23 pm

tylernt wrote:Whoa I just noticed your sig about the diesel motorcycle... I want one too! I'm told that there are some diesel motorcycles in India, maybe you could import an engine from one of those. Be sure to keep us posted on your plans and progress!

yeah I'd like to do a vw diesel with a dasher automatic and chain drive off the CV. I'm just starting a new job now so maybe my wacky fantasies will start to come true

tylernt · Post by **tylernt** » Sun Apr 15, 2007 1:58 pm

Wait, wait, a motorcycle with an automobile engine and transmission? Egads that would be one heavy bike!!

busguy71 · Post by **busguy71** » Sun Apr 15, 2007 2:37 pm

tylernt wrote:Wait, wait, a motorcycle with an automobile engine and transmission? Egads that would be one heavy bike!!

not really, how much does a vw drivetrain weight? I'd say 500 lbs? And a Harley bagger is up close to 850lbs I'd guess...it wont be as heavy as a Boss Hoss anyway!

tylernt · Post by **tylernt** » Sun Apr 15, 2007 6:50 pm

I guess you have a point there... it would still help to get ahold of a 3-cylinder TDI though. Pretty spendy here in the States, but then, a custom motorcycle is likely to be expensive anyway.

goofy golf · Post by **goofy golf** » Mon Apr 16, 2007 2:43 am

There was a guy at bike nite one thursday a couple summers ago. He had a harley fat boy with a hatz G40 two cylinder air cooled diesel engine in it. He lives about an hour north of me and did all the work at the albion state prison where he works as a auto body instructor or something.

He did a fantastic job the way he did it, and used the harley tranny too, it sounded kinda like a tractor when he pulled out. He claimed although it wouldnt excellerate like the twin cam engine he removed, the top speed would be around 90mph and get 100 mpg.

Another good source for a diesel bike are the enfields motorcycles from the UK.

Do a search under diesel motorcycle, lots of great reading and lots of pic's....

busguy71 · Post by **busguy71** » Mon Apr 16, 2007 7:50 am

I saw him either on a webpage or in a magazine a while back. cool project!

busguy71 · Post by **busguy71** » Mon Apr 16, 2007 10:47 am

More on the electrical: I grounded the coolant temp sender and the gauge had no reading. I disconnected the wire and grounded the wire, and no reading. The only thing that gets it to move at all is when you jump it to + (and the fuel gauge also climbs).

I suspect this car has some electrical gremlins. The fuse box appears melted in some spots. Dash backlighting wasnt working...then it came on by itself behind the clock. The oil light doesnt come on at all, I looked behind the gauge cluster and couldnt quite figure out which lightbulbs were which... Wipers didnt work, then they did, now they dont.

At least it runs! I'm doing the timing belt tomorrow as a preventative measure. Thats all for now.

tylernt · Post by **tylernt** » Mon Apr 16, 2007 11:00 am

Well the first things to check are the ground straps from the transmission and body to the battery. Take the connections off and brighten them with sandpaper, and make sure the wire hidden under the insulation isn't corroded. There are also ground wires on the shock towers, brighten those too. Though if your starter cranks over pretty fast, then this probably isn't the issue.

Another common problem is the windshield leaks onto the fusebox and causes all sorts of problems. You might be able to take it out and dry it out but if it got wet, chances are it's corroded inside and needs replaced (after you fix the leak, of course

).

redruff · Post by **redruff** » Mon Apr 16, 2007 8:52 pm

My 86 Golf has that blue white wire as the temp sender. It looks very similiar.
Can't tell too much from the picture but, the wire looks a little goofy in the connector. Make sure it is in the the holder correctly. It should be crimped into the metal insert inside that connector. Mine breaks off and comes out nearly every time I'm monkeying around there. It it comes out and shorts it will send your gauge to the full right and scare the crap out of ya.

Those weird intermittent electrical issues are often due to a bad ground somewhere..usually corroded connector somewhere.