1.6IDI Not Fully Rotating/Not Starting

[fatmobile]

 They do make a rubber oil pan gasket,.. from a gasser 2.0 block maybe 93-99.
  valve cover gasket from the same engine too.

 Yep, you tried everything else I can think of. Might be time to pull the head.
 It'll be interesting to find out what's going on.

[ORCoaster]

Owning a VW is always a continuing adventure.  Keep us apprised and don't forget pictures.  We love pics.

[RabbitJockey]

here is the pan gasket i'd get. usually if you look up a pan gasket for an aaz car you will get this one. FCP euro has it cheaper but there website isn't working right now

https://www.urotuning.com/products/oil-pan-gasket-w-baffle-pre-1999-4-cyl-037115220b?currency=USD&variant=8392294989879&utm_medium=cpc&utm_source=google&utm_campaign=Google%20Shopping&stkn=334b6bf4d9c9&gad_source=1&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIrI_25ODkhAMVXVxHAR3mTQL7EAQYAyABEgL8W_D_BwE

[Mohatanous]

Update:

After removing the head, it appears that nothing is broken or bent! I will link a Google Drive link at the bottom of this post with images of my findings.


What I found was a good amount of gunk that was carbon-y crap built up that physically prevented the piston in cylinder 1 from completing a full rotation. After head removal, the bottom end moves freely with no issues. The valves in the head appear to be fine and all still move, so I don't think there was any catastrophic failure of two objects trying to occupy the same space at the same time.


It appears that the head gasket was blown around cylinder 1, was leaking, and then perhaps the car sat for a time and the gunk built up to that point. I'm not sure, but I know that the cooling system is in terrible condition. What it seems to me is that nobody ever used distilled water in the system and the deposits and gunk inside show that. My prediction, and it is only that, is that over time the gunk buildup made the engine run hotter than it should, popped the head gasket, the person parked it, and just left that information out when I bought it. It would definitely explain why they sold it to me for such a low price. What could have also happened is perhaps a heat exchanger in the WVO system leaked some crap into the cooling system and caused the issues. Either way, I don't see any signs of anything that can't be saved, so I'm a bit relieved. The bore on the cylinders are not scored, so that's good.


My plan is to go through this thing while I have it all apart and put it back together properly and with as many upgrades in terms of reliability as I can. I'm not looking to find performance gains and make tons of power or anything, I knew what these engines were capable of when I bought it and I'm not crazy. I know they're pretty bulletproof and reliable as long as they're treated well, and that's what I'd like to do. I plan on completely replacing every part of the cooling system and flushing everything thoroughly. While I have it all apart, what else should I do? I don't know if the injection pump leaks, but I don't know if I should mess with it before seeing if it does or not. I have a friend that is excellent at doing head work, and I plan on having him look at the head, cleaning it up, and making sure it's flowing as best as it can before I go putting it back on. I also have another friend that has a short block in case I need it, so that's great.


I also do plan on trying a WVO system again some day. I have a friend that owns a restaurant that said that I could take some waste oil once a week, and I think that would be pretty neat. I have lots of friends, which is helpful.


I look forward to responses, once again appreciate everything that any contributors have said thus far, and if I am incorrect in my plan or should do things differently, please let me know. Thank you all!


https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1Ov7h4FqBKjtB_mPMnzr1qOJV4M_LhD9j?usp=sharing

[ORCoaster]

Good to know all of this. 

I ran WVO in a Rabbit for a while and then the price of diesel went so low it didn't pay to run it.  I think it would now.  I also ran two hot plates for the oil warming up.  One right before the IP and the other just before all the filters.  I didn't like the temperature drop I had going with the Racor filter.  I had individual temp sensors on the inlet and filter areas.  They were pretty cool blue looking things that ran on 12 vdc.

Thanks for keeping us up to date.  Enjoy the cleaning and rebuilding.  Next stop, Getting it to run. 

[fatmobile]

  I always like to check the I-shaft bearings.
 They can't be changed without dropping the engine but they will cause low oil pressure if they are bad.
 The timing belt should be changed and that would be a good time to pull the I-shaft out and take a look.

 The oil pan gasket linked above might be a little overkill for an old NA Rabbit.
 But it's nice to see they are cheaper than they used to be. They were quite expensive for awhile.
 I think they have to fit on over the oil pump, then the pan gets put on. Been awhile since I installed one of them.

[RustyCaddy]

As far as baffled oil pan gaskets this might be another alternative that appears to be in stock but don't know about the quality:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/124316760833

[RabbitJockey]

definitely overkill for that engine, but theyre not very expensive and theyre easier to install and remove. I have seen people claim performance and mpg benefits, which i am sure there are benefits but i doubt it is something you'd be able to easily notice among all the other factors that affect those 2 things.

[Mohatanous]

Update:

I haven't had a lot of time to work on my car lately, but my head guy found that there were two cracks in the head between the valves on cylinder's 1 and 4. I'm going to have the head fixed and then pressure tested to ensure that it will be usable, so by the time I get it back it will basically be a brand new head.

Should I do piston rings since I'm getting the head redone to this degree? If so, anywhere specific to get good rings? Thanks in advance!

[RabbitJockey]

those cracks are usually normal.

I'd consider the condition of the engine as a factor on whether or not i'd do rings. they're cheap to do while you're in there though.

[fatmobile]

 Right, those cracks are normal.
 Surprised you only found them on 1 and 4.
Get a machinist that knows VWs.
 Don't let him surface it. Find out what "fix it" means.

[ORCoaster]

I used the glass plate and very fine, like 400 grit paper with oil, and got my head to come into tolerance.  So I think as long as you are careful with the precups on a machine you would be OK.  True or Not True?   

[fatmobile]

My concern is if you surface it flat, the cam will rock when it's installed.
It will be pushing down very hard on the center journals as it runs.

[Mohatanous]

Brief update:

I have not had any further work done on the head due to my friend unfortunately having a stroke. At this time we don't know if he will be alright or not, so that just plain sucks.

In the mean time I've started cleaning the block out of buildup and replacing the heater core. One other thing I have to tackle is the bearing on the steering shaft inside the car. That seems like a fun task!

[fatmobile]

  Is the pickup AC or not?
 There is an easy way to change the heater core in an AC car.