"newbie" questions for all vw diesel experts / ent

[coolwatr]

Greetings everyone from a new user!

Recent spikes in energy costs have prompted me to start researching for the purchase of a used fuel miser vehicle for commuting.

So far,  based on my budgetary concessions, availability (in Canada) and known specs, I have found the following appealing to me:  1986-1993 VW Golf/Jetta 1.9L 5 speed Diesel or Turbodiesel,  1981-1984 VW Rabbit 5 speed Diesel/TurboDiesel.

Being a procrastinator and thorough decision maker, I am not the type to buy the first (or 2nd) car I test drive/inspect.  So here I am looking for some tips and information.

In particular,  I would like to know some detailed accounts of the following:

- Fuel economy (city/highway)  
- Cabin noise levels (pref in db, but crude comments also ok) at highway speeds (100kph/60mph),
- Bore/stroke, compression ratio, precise displacement
- Horsepower/torque (pls. provide RPM / peak cross ref if possible)
- Engine RPM at highway speeds -- approximations ok (100-120kph, 60-75mph)
- Feasability of conversion to Biodiesels, McDonalds/Burger King grease in particular
- General Reliability / Performance issues
- any General opinion / Experience

I would be deeply grateful for any input you guys can provide, and would return the favor in any reasonable way.

Thanks,
Boris

[farkman]

Welcome Boris

Well I'm no expert but I'll tell you what I know.

First off, let me congratulate you on wanting to get a more fuel efficient vehicle and for wanting to run it on WVO or biodiesel. I've also been looking into making biodiesel.

A2 (198?-1992) Golf's and Jetta's had either 1.6 or 1.6 turbo engines. A3 (1993-1996 or 1997) had the 1.9 turbo diesel. After 96 or 97 they went to TDI.

I myself have a 1994 Golf 1.9TD with 263,000+ km. I bought the car nearly two years ago with 230,000km. Fuel economy is very good considering it's 12 years old. Lowest fuel economy has been 33.6 mpg (thats in US gallons) with a lot of stop and go highway traffic.  My best tank has been 45.9 mpg (~5.1l/100km) about 85% highway/15% city in summer. Today I got 45.5mpg on winter fuel and tires driving 80% highway/ 20% city.

Cabin noise at 90-100km/h (the speeds I usually drive at) is pretty good considering that my car has a 2.5" exhaust without a muffler or resonator. The engine is only turning at 2300-2600rpm. Above 120km/h @ 3000rpm wind noise starts to become quite loud.

Bore is 79.5mm(3.19in), stroke is 95.5mm(3.4in). Compression is 22.5:1. 1896cc. This is from a Bentley manual.

Horsepower (not really exciting) is 75@4200rpm. Torque (the important figure) is 107@2400-3000rpm. These measurements are at the wheel and are stock numbers.

Either 1.6's or 1.9's can be made to run on biodiesel or WVO/SVO. Their injection pumps are very reliable. Although I'm not sure if the seals are okay to use with biodiesel. Fuel lines would probably need to be changed if you are going to use biodiesel. To run on WVO/SVO you would need to add a separate fuel tank to the car so you can start the car on regular diesel or biodiesel when it gets cold.

Reliabilty has been very good. Aside from general maintenance (oil changes every 15,000-20,0000km, oil filter change at 8,000-10,000km, air filter, fuel filter etc) there have been no major problems with the car.

Performance is pretty good as well. I estimate a 10-11 second 0-100km/h. Everyday driving is great with this car. Even though it diesn't make huge horsepower the torque is always right there when you need it.  I rarely even go above 3500rpm because the sweet spot of the engine is from 2200-3400rpm.

As you already know buying a car with over 200,000km is risky. As long as you know the car has been well maintained, you shouldn't have any real problems. I was lucky when I bought mine because the previous owner was a technician at Mercedes who came from Germany a few years ago.

The only thing to watch out for on these cars is rust. Mine is slowly being consumed by cancer.

Peter