I need diesel advice

[bro2539]

i just bought my first diesel. it is a 1983 non turbo rabbit, 153,000 original miles. the car was parked since 1998. after about $300.00 and a couple of weeks worth of work it is now road worthy. my only problem is that it is hard to start first thing in the morning. my glow plug light goes off in about 5 seconds like it should. i have to pull the pump advance and turn the key on and crank about 7 or 8 seconds, then repeat this about 8 times before it will start. after that it starts great and runs great the whole day. also, im curious if there is anything i can do to get a little more power/speed out of it without a turbo or spending a lot of cash? taller tires? any exhaust recommendations, or will that even make a difference. i bought the car for the fuel efficiency, it averages 45mpg's and i dont want to jeapordize that. what do yall recommend? and what is the true life expectancy out of one of these engines? i keep hearing around 300,000.

[DieselsRcool]

Bro
You need to check out your glo-plug system. Sounds like this is your problem.

RE: more power. Fresh air intake and bigger exhaust, turn up the fuel a bit.

Keep reading and use the search function here and at http://www.vwdieselparts.com/forum/index.php?sid=e2e482aff25f77d5447456dd79003f49

[racer_x]

i just bought my first diesel. it is a 1983 non turbo rabbit, 153,000 original miles. the car was parked since 1998. after about $300.00 and a couple of weeks worth of work it is now road worthy. my only problem is that it is hard to start first thing in the morning. my glow plug light goes off in about 5 seconds like it should. i have to pull the pump advance and turn the key on and crank about 7 or 8 seconds, then repeat this about 8 times before it will start. after that it starts great and runs great the whole day.

Classic symptoms of failed glow plugs. Test them, or just replace all 4 glow plugs if you want to cure it for a few years.

also, im curious if there is anything i can do to get a little more power/speed out of it without a turbo or spending a lot of cash? taller tires? any exhaust recommendations, or will that even make a difference. i bought the car for the fuel efficiency, it averages 45mpg's and i dont want to jeapordize that. what do yall recommend? and what is the true life expectancy out of one of these engines? i keep hearing around 300,000.

A fresh air intake and K&N filter help a bit. I use a "cowl induction" setup on mine and get air from the "rain gutter" above the master cylinder. Adjustments to the injection pump also help power, but will reduce fuel economy some too. Taller tires are generally a bad idea (extra weight, effectively taller gearing). Shorter tires help accelleration but also reduce fuel economy slightly. Removing any unneeded weight and reducing the weight of anything you do need helps performance. Lighter wheels and tires is a good place to start. I've got  mine under 25 pounds per corner right now.

These cars usually start to fall apart badly between 300,000 and 400,000 miles. The engine can actually outlive that with good maintenance. One thing that helps preserve everything is keeping the engine/transmission mounts in good shape. I replace the passenger side engine mount when I do the timing belt and the other mounts at clutch replacement time. A failed mount will make the whole car vibrate and rattle and will loosen fasteners fatigue part that you wouldn't think would fatigue.

[bro2539]

what exhaust is the best to go with, without making my car sound like a weedeater. and what air intake system is recommended :?: