Hey guys, potential n00b here

[Infinitrium]

I'm looking at getting myself a 1993 Jetta 1.6 TD. It's a Canadian car, BTW. My old 96 Pontiac Sunfire is showing signs of headgasket trouble, plus the 5 speed transmission likes to pop out of reverse. I don't think it's worth putting any money into.  The ad for the car reads:

excelent powertrain,got new floor put in new brakecylinders in rear and new shoes and new brakepads in front ,needs some frontend bushings and heatercore replaced, selling cheap,make an offer.

The guy tells me it's been sitting for a few years (yikes!) but he says he starts it up every so often and lets it run til its all warmed up.  I've never been in a diesel VW let alone driven one, so I have to ask. Are they reliable? How are they for fuel economy? Are they really as slow as everyone likes to say? Is it worth it?

[rallydiesel]

Sounds like it would be as much work as your Sunfire. Having to have the floors replaced is never good. This must be in southern Ontario. I have heard the heater core is a pain to replace and bushings would have to be pressed out at a machine shop.

The diesel engine is very reliable. A TD will not be any slower than your Sunfire. The fuel economy will be better than your previous car. If you do your own mechanical work than I would say do it but if not you should probably get a newer gasser.

[burn_your_money]

93s never came with 1.6s in north america. It would be a 1.9. If it is in fact a 1993 and it does have the 1.9 AAZ engine in it you need to check the crank pulley for any play or wobbling. It's a well known issue for them to break loose and destroy the engine.

If it is the 1.6TD it's probably the most bulletproof engine ever built, in stock form anyways.

Post your location, maybe you are close to someone on the boards and they can give it a look over with you.

The heatercore is a full day's job for a first timer, as long as you are hands on and have a diagram or two you can do it yourself.

Floor replacement is not uncommon on mk3s, expecially if it was made in Mexico. I wouldn't be too concerned with it if they did it right. If it is pop riveted in place and tarred over (and it's a big patch) I'd be a bit more concerned

[jtanguay]

changing over to diesel from a gasser sunfire is a pretty big step.

things you will need to change is your driving style.  remember that it is a turbo engine and that it requires special attention.  special oils, driving easy until the motor has some heat in it, and also letting the motor cool down after a really hard run.

the winter starting can also be a bit of a bugger...  big batteries, block heaters, etc...  if the motor has good compression, it would be worth it.

for hg issue you might want to try an ez fix like http://www.steelseal.com.
but the tranny issue... hmmm doesn't sound good, but sunfire tranny's should be dirt cheap! (so many wrecks  :lol: )

what is the guy selling it for???

[Patrick]

How much and where is it? Maybe someone here can vet the car for you (or themselves!)

[Infinitrium]

I went up and looked it over today. It doesn't look too bad at all. There's a hole on the left front fender about the size of a golfball and the left rocker panel needs touching up. The owner said the floor was all TIG welded in place by the body shop right across the road. The engine runs great, that cold start handle thing is gonna take some getting used to. No smoke at all when it started up and I was surprised that the exhaust didn't stink at all. The gearshift was a bit hard to move, I guess it's a bit sticky but it freed up by the time I got back from my little test drive. The clutch pedal is really light and the clutch itself seems to be good. Shifting into reverse is really going to take some geting used to, press down, left from first and up. The interior is in good shape, all electrical things work although the dial for the fan needs a thump before it works. It's going to need the left front caliper replaced (it's sticky), parking brake cable, passenger door mirror and a foglight and a small bit of bodywork. Not too bad at all.


PS: Is this 1.9 the TDI engine?

[burn_your_money]

PS: Is this 1.9 the TDI engine?

No it isn't. It's an IDI just like the old diesels.

Next time you are looking at the car take notice of the crank pulley, if it's wobbling and you do buy it have it towed to a shop and get the crank machined to accept the TDI crank. Expect to pay $600 for that fix. If you don't fix it it will fail and then you'll need a new engine

[Infinitrium]

Are the crank pulleys known for failure? If the pulley doesn't wobble, will it in the future (like GM headgaskets)?

[Infinitrium]

I brought the car home today. It's got brake problems, the left front caliper has a stuck piston and I don't think the other one is much good either. They're only about 25 bucks used so I think I'll go that route. I think there's a bad wheel bearing too on the right front wheel. It really runs nice, sure feels like more than 75 horses under the hood. I filled up as I was bringing the car home and I filled up again when I got home. 95 miles and it took 1.7 gallons to fill back up. That's about 55 miles per gallon! Unfortunately the crank pulley does seem to have a bit of a wobble though.

[burn_your_money]

Unfortunately the crank pulley does seem to have a bit of a wobble though.

You will want to get that fixed ASAP
Congrats on the purchase. Do you have any pictures?

[Infinitrium]

You will want to get that fixed ASAP
Congrats on the purchase. Do you have any pictures?

Duly noted. How hard of a fix is it? Do I just take off the pulley and balancer and replace them and the related fittings?

[burn_your_money]

If the crankshaft nose is in good shape then yes, if it isn't look at getting it machined to fit the later TDI crank pulleys.
You may also want to look at upgrading to the clutched alt pulley. It puts less stress on the crank