Eco or normal 1.6 turbo engine?

[zzyzx]

Am looking at the 1.6 Turbo engines, thanks to the info I have gotten from this site. I will be replacing a normal 1.6 engine with the turbo in my 82 diesel pickup.
Below is the info on the auction for one of the engines I am looking at. It is the engine with transmission. I have a good trans already... but, would it make sense to do this and drop in the whole package at once? Would going this way with this transmission give me higher usable highway speeds?

"This is a 1600 VW turbo Diesel Engine, transmission and starter. This is the ECO version which is rated at 65 HP at 4500 RPM and 90 ft. lbs. of torque at 2400-2600 RPM. The engine comes with the 5spd tranmission. The trans is 4S.  This is a very tall geared trans and works really good with this engine it has a 3.94 R & P, and a 0.75  5th gear. The trans comes with 90mm flanges it will work perfect for your rabbit, rabbit pcik up, jetta, and golf conversion. Get rid of that slow ass 1600 Natural aspirated or the gas hog and instll this fuel effecient ECO turbo Diesel engine. The engine was removed in Germany from a running  vehicle with 73,700 miles. The vehicle was rusted out and did not pass the German inspection program. Please note that if you install this engine in a Rabbit or Jetta built prior to 84 you will need to install your old engine mount to my engine."

[zzyzx]

Sorry, bumped the keyboard too soon. What is the ECO and is it OK or any kind of problem? Better to wait for one without the ECO designation?

[burn_your_money]

Eco is fine. It has a smaller turbo (faster spool up). It also basically has a NA pump on it. If you swap on a TD pump you will now essentially have a 1.6TD engine. The 4S is a TD tranny, not ECO so that is good. I would compare gear ratios and use whatever gearbox better suits your driving styles.

[zzyzx]

Compare gear ratios? 

Now I am really getting lost. What I know about gear ratios pretty much consists of a 411 rear end from the early GTO days in the 60's and that mainly from reading Hot Rod mag those many years ago. After that I get lost.

I just want a truck that runs and is trouble free. Maybe I should stick with a regular diesel engine and not try to drive highway speeds.

[8v-of-fury]

A 1.6 NON Turbo will do highway speeds very easily. I have a 1.6 in a jetta and I can easily keep up with the 130km/h 400 or 401 traffic. However a 1.6TD Will be able to do that much easier!

Gear ratios;

3.94 final   3.45    1.94    1.29    0.91    0.75

With that transmission you will have some fun on a TD Third gear will have great pulling power to get you up to highway speeds, fourth will have good power to pass people while doing highway speeds, and fifth will keep you cruising at 65mph at 2700 rpm. Which is a tad high, but will keep the engine in a happy torque zone for sure.

These gear ratios are a bit different then Muscle car (or RWD cars), as you don't have have trans ratios AND rear ends to figure out. A 3.94 is a good torquey final drive. Any diesel will give you many many many years of service with proper maintenance.

[burn_your_money]

www.scirocco.org/gears is a great site for comparing transmissions. Honestly though, whichever you go with will probably be just fine.

[Baron VonZeppelin]

3.94 ring and pinion, with 0.75 fifth gear ratio, equals a 2.95 final drive. Those are pretty good highway legs. Unlike a 4.11

GTO's rule the planet !

[zzyzx]

Highway speeds are generally 70-85 or so. Would be nice to have the VW pickup able to do this without any problems. I know the Rabbits and trucks I have had (all diesels) don't really like this type of highway speed, especially in the mountains.

[8v-of-fury]

a turbo will hold its own at 80 in your area with out much complaining. 80mph will put you at 3400rpm.. although not the best for mileage (I've still gotten ok mileage at 32-3300 cruising, like by ok i still mean way better than a gas engine ) it will leave you right on the sweet spot of the power-band for sure. Those mountains won't stand a chance.

[Baron VonZeppelin]

There are other tranny/differentials that will give in the area of 2.75 final drive. These cars/trucks were designed/built/outfitted when the national highway speed limit was 55.

I still most always cruise my VWDzls at 60'ish.

Beyond a TD engine and a 2.75-2.95 final drive ratio - you will also need an entire new/larger diameter exhaust. The NA pipes are tiny restrictive heat builders. Your brakes and suspension will need to be in top tune.

A half worn out (or more) Mk1 is not a safe smooth highway machine at all. 

[zzyzx]

Brakes are fine. GTI ventilated discs on the front. Just couldn't stand the brake fade in 10-30 mile downhill grades with switchbacks. Since updating to the better discs I have no brake fade problems at all. Put in a new master cylinder when I did that. Wheel bearings I check regularly after years of using Rabbits. Just like a nice cruiser with low end grunt for the back roads and pulling a few small things on the farm but would like a bit more top end on the highway. When you can look and see clear road 30-40 miles in the distance it is nice to be able to gobble up miles. If I am really worried about mileage I turn the engine off on those long straight sections like that. Nothing quite like rolling silent at 90+ for 10 miles and more of a straight grade through Nevada. Especially nice under the full moon.
The engine is my problem. Was fine for quite awhile and then two major problems. First a head gasket shredded, coming out the tailpipe. I put in a 1.6 from an Audi diesel and within a few hundred miles it starts overheating. Have tried radiator flushes, backflushing, straight hose through it and find no blockages. Have the thermostat in, out and in again. Runs awhile and then overheats. New water pump and still the same thing. No oil in the water and no water in the oil. But, the darned thing goes hot, hot, hot.

So, I am looking to drop in another engine and hope that solves it. At the same time I will put in a brand new radiator for the turbo engine and a new electric fan and relay. We'll see how it goes.

[zzyzx]

While I am at it, there is an electric fuel pump just outside the fuel tank. Added by the previous owner. Without it running the truck won't stay running, it starves out of fuel. I have drained the tank and checked for blockages and found none.

Any idea why it won't do more than idle, then accelerate a bit and die off if the electric pump isn't on?

[Quantum TD]

While I am at it, there is an electric fuel pump just outside the fuel tank. Added by the previous owner. Without it running the truck won't stay running, it starves out of fuel. I have drained the tank and checked for blockages and found none.

Any idea why it won't do more than idle, then accelerate a bit and die off if the electric pump isn't on?

Your injection pump is probably sucking air in from the input shaft (where the sprocket mounts to). That is usually why people install in-line pumps. I doubt that injection pump on an Audi (last year of thsoe was 1983 IIRC) was resealed in the past few years. The new ULSD fuel makes them leak. Sitting for long times makes them leak and/or suck air.

As for your overheating, have you checked the return line to the overflow tank? You should see a relatively steady stream of coolant returning into the reservoir at all times. If not, it means that the overflow hose is clogged, which could cause boil over. When you say overheat, do you mean boil over, or the gauge reads hot? If the gauge reads hot, it could be an electrical problem. The best thing is to have a non-contact laser thermometer on hand at all times and read the engine temp when the gauge runs hot. If it's over 250 F, then you're overheating