84' Jetta dies @ idle, smokes excessively

[Coloradostroker]

Hello,
 My first post and my first VW.I just got a 84' Jetta 1.6 diesel that dies @ idle and smokes excessively it won't pass emissions. My first thought is fuel pump or timing. Any thoughts and directions of where to start ?
 Thanks

[chrissev]

Hello,
 My first post and my first VW.I just got a 84' Jetta 1.6 diesel that dies @ idle and smokes excessively it won't pass emissions. My first thought is fuel pump or timing. Any thoughts and directions of where to start ?
 Thanks

how many kms on it?  Check all the usual things like restricted fuel filter, bad timing, restricted air filter.  You might also want to check the compression.  Just before my engine was rebuilt it ceased to start reliably and when it did start it wouldn't run.  I checked the compression and found that one cylinder had none at all and the other three had less than half what they should have had.  The rebuild cured this problem.