1.9td aaz? engine staring problem

[badersbus]

Hi Everyone,
Fairly new to the forum , but i have a problem which i hope some one can help with. Recently bought a 1992 1.9td aaz engine mk11 golf van for my son. The plan is to swap the engine etc into his 1989 1.6NA caddy truck. Before i ripped the unit out of the golf i wanted to see if it would start ok , as it was a non runner when purchased ( seller told me he had it running before  :roll: ), the engine churns over but gives no sign of firing since i got it home.
I have removed all glow plugs , put them to 12v , they all glow up within 4-5 seconds. Fuse on glow plugs is ok , tested 12v to busbar across them. I have cracked the injector pipes off while turning over , diesel seems to be present on all injectors , but still will not fire.
I have also removed fuel cut off selonoid plunger , replaced body to ensure fuel is getting through , still no fire  :evil:
The only thing is with the van is that the previous owner has removed the dashboard because he needed it for another project ,and i only wanted the engine , gearbox etc, is there anything on the missing dash that will stop this thing running.
Any help would be appreciated
CHEERS Kirk  

[jimfoo]

All you need is fuel, glowplugs, compression and timing. If one is not present, it won't start.

[burn_your_money]

yes check the timing, pay close attention to the crank nose, it may be damaged. Does it sound like it has compression when you are turning it over?

[badersbus]

Thanks for the replies guys .
It does have compression i think, as when i removed the glow plugs , i wanted to see if the were working when connected to the busbar , so i switch the ign on a bit to far and the engine turned over a bit , with plenty of woooofm out of the glow plug holes.
I am not a diesel mechanic , body repairs are my bag  :lol:  , is there a simple way of checking the timing that i could do myself. Also it does not look like anything has been messed with around the pump , no new spanner marks on bolt heads etc
I dunno , frustarating the hell out of me
Cheers Kirk

[jimfoo]

You need a diesel compression gauge to tell the compression. No other way around it. You also need diesel timing tools to check the timing. No other way around that.
I would make  sure the glowplugs are getting 12v when installed in the engine as you could just have a bad fuse or relay. Is there anything coming out of the tailpipe as you crank it over. You should probably have something coming out, and if not, you may not be getting fuel.

[Vincent Waldon]

Here's some pictures and thoughts on what's involved to check/adjust the timing... a bit of special gear is required:

http://vincewaldon.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=24&Itemid=28

I'd advise checking it or having it checked as your next step, before you waste a bunch of effort on less-common issues.

[burn_your_money]

You can check most of the timing without any tools, just put the crank at TDC (according to the flywheel) and the cam at TDC according to the notch in it (see Vince's link)

If they are off there is a good chance it's your crank pulley crapping out on you but not guaranteed