Contemplating a diesel in my 85..

[type53 at gmail.com (Drew Mac)]

On 12/17/06, Rex Johnston <wolf_walker69@yahoo.com> wrote:
>
> I did some pondering and reading the few people's
> sites online that have done it.


There are sites online for stuff like this?  Go figure... :)


The radiator looks like it'll do, no turbo so it
> shouldn't be *that* hard to cool.  Same size in the
> rocco as in my Caddy, and the one in the rocco is
> aluminum.


A stock 525mm rad in good condition will be fine for the normally aspirated
(or asthmatic) diesel.

The wiring isn't an issue, I can handle that.
>
> The cold start handle I read would work with a euro
> carb choke handle.


>From my website "A little research in the parts fiche revealed that some
European carburetted Sciroccos came with manual chokes, and the cable and
knob were identical to those used on the A2 diesels.  I mounted the A2
diesel cold start cable in this location, and it looks factory, because it's
using factory parts."  You'll have better luck finding an A2 diesel cold
start cable and knob than you will finding one from a Swedish carb'd
Scirocco... :)



>
> Figured I'd use my 7a trans that's in the caddy, came
> from an early 80's 8v Jetta gasser, does it accept
> 100mm flanges?  Can I put 100mm flanges on it?


A 7A will accept 100mm flanges.



> Exhaust, is the dual downpipe mani from a gasser worth
> the trouble?  Or just a non-crappy downpipe for the
> stock diesel mani?


Depends on the manifold from the caddy.  Many A1 diesels had a 4-2-1 style
manifold with the swivel joint, the flow on this manifold is close enough to
the 4-2 dual port manifold as not to be worth the effort of swapping.  If
you have a 4-1 toilet bowl, undertake the swap.


I think I can use the stock fuel lines and mount the
> filter on the drivers side strut tower, I think.  I've
> read it will pull through the stock in-tank pump
> alright, but is there any reason I can't retain it
> operating and the plastic fuel tank thingy next to the
> tank(that I just replaced), seems a little more
> simple, and the tank has a little screen in it too.


If you're serious about the swap, cut the lines where they enter the engine
compartment and redirect (using 5/16 id fuel rated hose)  and locate the
filter on the passenger's strut tower.  Drawing fuel further than you need
to is needless, and it will help prevent the fuel from absorbing heat from
the engine compartment, which will rob you of power and economy.  If you
live in a climate that doesn't see temps below zero degrees celsius, then
locate the filter outside of the engine compartment (mine's in the
passenger's fenderwell) to avoid heat soak of the filter.
At the tank end you will want to run the feed and return directly to the
lines to the front of the car - bypass (and remove) all components of the
CIS system that are outside of the tank.  You can use 5/16 ID fuel rated
hose and band clamps to splice the tank connections straight to the hard
lines that run to the front of the car.  Be sure to disconnect the power to
the transfer pump (you may wish to leave a switch in place, it can be handy
for priming the system if you've changed a filter or removed injector lines,
but prolonged use may overrun the return line restriction in the pump and
cause the pump seals to leak.)  You want to keep the plumbing as simple as
possible.  The plastic prefilter is not required, and is a potential source
for wax or ice buildup if you are in colder climates.



> What am I missing?  Looks like a weekend job more or


It took me about 5 days to do my initial turbo diesel swap, which included
installing an A2 engine wiring harness, and wiring changes to support the
cluster (with factory diesel tach) and glow plugs.  This did include some
motor work and I seem to recall that I did some additional work on the car
while the motor was out, including swapping the steering rack.

Good luck,

Drew

-- 
84 Wolfsburg Ed. Scirocco GTD mit ?berVerteilerpumpe
http://scirocco.cs.uoguelph.ca/gtd
77 Scirocco project - Boom Boom Boom...
99 A3 Jetta GL TDI (hers) 02 Jetta GLS TDI (Bloatware)
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