Ran down the road...suddenly noise and it was dead...

[vdubspeed]

So I just swapped a 1.5D into my 84 GTI.

Took it to advance auto to grab a few things and then tried a full throttle run. Top speed was 70.

Turned on the electric pump I use to prime the system to see if it would go any faster.

Shifted into 5th at about 65mph and not long after that...I heard a metal rattling noise and it shut down. I turned the key off as fast as I heard the noise because it didn't sound good.

Got it home, pulled the valvecover and the engine, cam and pump were all still in TDC. No belt broke. Everything looks good.

When trying to start now it will just crank and crank and crank. I hear the fuel solenoid energizing when power is applied. A small shot of ether just makes it ping(I know i know)

No compression test but it sounds strong...just wont fire. I even let the glowplugs go for a while and no go.

Also I have squirting fuel at the injectors while cranking.

I'm lost. I swapped this thing in because I loved it's simplicity but now it's getting a little....

Thanks,

Jason

[RabbitJockey]

you got me.  if its all timed up and you have fuel at the injectors it should start.  maybe pull the oil pan and see what it looks like,  whats your crank sprocket look like?  1.5s had the ***ty wooddruff key ones that like to get all wobbly and shear off.

[vdubspeed]

well...good and bad news.

good news first. I walked away from the car at about 4pm. At 10pm I tried to crank it and bam...it started but needed help. After triple checking the TDC locations, I adjusted the pump timing and had to crank up the fuel to keep it idling smooth(like 2 full rotations). Feels like it's dragging but it was revving up good and idling nice. I also checked oil pressure and it had tons of it. But it was smoking pretty bad. white always and then would go black when I revved it.

I let it run for about 10 minutes and let the fan cycle on and off.

I then shut it down to finish up everything and when I went to recrank it...no start.

It was only off for 5 minutes TOPS. It sounded like it wanted to catch but would never do it.

So atleast it's running again.

[rallydiesel]

How much psi was your feed pump putting out? A feed pump can increase your advance.

[burn_your_money]

Try a voltage drop test. Also, bleed the injection lines by cracking them open at the injectors while cranking.

[Rabbit on Roids]

did you retard your timing? are you running a 1.5 pump? they require quite a bit more advance than a normal 1.6 pump..

[vdubspeed]

Running a 1.6 pump set at .95mm.

okay...purchased a compression tester but won't have time to do that today.

More news though. It seems starting cold is no problem for it. Starting hot is impossible from the starter.

BUT...when it starts cold it runs real rough and I have to keep it at half throttle for about 30 secs till I can softly let it down to idle. It idles REAL rough and I'm hearing a ton of noise coming from the clutch area. The car shifted fine but this noise is hideous.

I really think something is dragging the motor.

Lots more research to do. Just glad it runs.

Also the pump was a 4-7psi pump from Mr. Gasket.

[burn_your_money]

You may need a diesel specific gas cap as they are vented while gas ones are not.

Try running it off a jerry can straight to the pump and see how it fairs.

[Rabbit on Roids]

clutch may have broken a spring, or a bolt may have come out..

[Dakotakid]

x2.
Sounds like clutch or pressure plate problem.
Just how "abusive" were you on your full throttle run?

[RabbitJockey]

yeah but i don't think a clutch would keep it from starting, and when it did start it would make all kinds of funky noise.

[vdubspeed]

I'll make a video soon.

[dts67]

Hi bud, have you tried as said above running diesel from a nice clean jar straight to the pump therefore bypassing the tank/unit/fuel filer and lines? The pressure of the lift pump may have caused an air leak, this would cause the running and starting symptoms you describe.

[Rabbit on Roids]

usually a diesel with problems will not start when cold, but will start great once its warm, this is a weird problem..

now that i think about it, almost seems fuel related.. maybe the pump loses prime? sucks air?

[Dakotakid]

Original poster states that there is a "ton" of noise coming from the clutch area.
Also states the noise is hideous.