since this topic is still on the front page...
I thought about it and did more homework, and thought some more. I now recognize the way to keep the motor from melting,
no turbo.
the 1.6 diesel is a very good design and simple. I am going to rebuild one of mine, it needs it after a quarter million miles. I am building a 45 mpg vacation car, go places I could never go before because I could not afford fuel. I already have 2 acn 020 transmissions. I do my car shopping backwards, pick the motor I like first and find a car to go around it. I really like the 1.6 now I need a rabbit to go with it.
Um, I think, H/MiniMod/ProductionPickup. Went around 125-130mph. Give or take. With the 1.8 and 2.0 engines it was much faster. Tunnel ram carbed intake (old school Porsche guy, my old shop boss from when I worked in the shop in college) - a 2 barrel IDF, and a 3 barrel Weber IDA on a 4 cyl. Yeah, funky, but it worked. I didn't think it would. He has been doing Geo Metro 1000cc 3 cyls since then. Did help a diesel rabbit truck get up to speed on the salt
My Jetta has 360k km on it and sees 25 psi every day. The biggest enemy is hills. That's when the heat builds. Just watch it and keep the temps out of meltdown range and you should be fine.
theres some diesel truck drag racing club around here that frequents the local drag strip.
one guy with a dodge cummins is claiming over 80psi of boost. he claims to have a stock bottom end too, but i sure would like to see what he did to that top end!
one of my friends is in that club. hes got a 4 wheel drive ford diesel dualy with some slick as snot banks turbo kit and a bunch of other upgrades. he can light up all 6 of his wheels all at the same time and leave a 6 wheeled burnout.
kinda makes my little 1.6D seem insignificant.
Would it be possible to use some kind of steel ring inserts as part of a head gasket. It's ringing a bell from sometime back in the 70's or 80's wrt something I did... :?
i got to thinking about this and a diesel block with a gasoline head would make one heck of a nice motor for running on propane. for ignition, you could probably pull out the vacuum pump and install a gasser dizzy in its place.