81 Rabbit been driving great lately then last Sunday at upshifts it would tend to run way up and on until I grabbed the next gear and brought it back down. If I accelerate slowly I can get to the next gear without the high rev problem. I haven't checked for oil consumption but I didn't think a 1.6 had the classic runaway problem you hear about. Who has the answer to the question? Why does my car now have a high rev problem at shift points.
Let me know what ya think, DAS
First would be the obvious, is all the linkage working freely and returning to idle properly.. Second would be, has the fuel screw or anything with the pump been messed with?
Your '81 would not have come with the baffle under the valve cover, unless someone installed one at some point, which is possible, runaway could be a posability....
It's not runaway if it stops when you turn off the key.
Another possiblity is poor injector spray.
Fuel left over after the burn,.. white smoke.
Check for fuel leaks. I'd replace any original rubber hose. My truck did that for the longest time until I fixed all the the rubber hose. Then it went away.
I just had similar problem when I put an injector in that had wrong spacer so wrong pressure. ran ratty/missing at idle, then would clear up when accelerating, but didn't want to idle down. was smoking more also, so excess fuel staying in system.
I had the same issue this weekend and it was luckily a simple fix in my particular case. The return springs on top of the fuel pump had some surface rust after a recent engine bay cleaning and were binding a bit. A few drops of engine oil and everything was good to go.
Thanks for the Ideas guys. Linkage is not the problem it is as smooth as silk. Injector spray may be the problem or just tired injectors period. 114,000 miles on them and I don't know if they have ever been replaced. Thinking that for 30 each I may just swap them out next weekend as I go past the shop on the commute home (four hours one way). Car was getting 43-48 mpg over the last several fillups. But you are right that the idle is the problem in that it is kind of rough and the diesel clank is a lot more noticeable.
Raining a bunch right now so I can't really get out there and do much. When it does shine I am helping my son get his turbo Dodge Ram, Cummins engine running. That beast must weigh more than the entire VW Rabbit.
I did pull one of the shims out of advance area and swapped to a silver from red spring. May put the thick one back and remove the thin. It does run real well at 65-70 mph. If the mileage steadily goes down I will be looking at new injectors. I do not have a way to test the compression or pop the injectors so I am kind of stuck here.
Keep up the good suggestions. DAS