Like the topic says. I have a 92 TD Jetta. There are a few things I was looking for help with. The major problem I have is that the car is nearly impossible to start during the winter. It has a block heater but even with the heater plugged in on many days it still refuses to start. The starter has been rebuilt. Glow plugs are fine. Injector pump rebuilt and the car is timed properly. In a few weeks my father and I are going to hone the cylinders and replace the rings. Hopefully get back some lost compression. Any other ideas? Suggestions?
Also, the car smokes very badly at full throttle and also seems sluggish. Yesterday I removed the air filter and did a rather hard run around the block. The car seemed 100% better. I'm wondering why the engine can't breath properly even with the correct filter. Would doing that swiss-cheese mod on the airbox help at all? Any other ideas?
Finally, lately the turbo has been louder. The wine or whistle sound is very easily heard I'm wondering if perhaps I have a bearing gone, or if the turbo should just be that loud.
Anyway... I'm new to this forum but I'm on the vortex a lot. I've been using the search feature and it sure seems like there are a lot of people on here that know the td engine very well. I'm looking for answers to this stuff, in archived entries, but if anyone feels like giving me hand and posting a few replies it would be fantastic. Thanks.
Like the topic says. I have a 92 TD Jetta. There are a few things I was looking for help with. The major problem I have is that the car is nearly impossible to start during the winter. It has a block heater but even with the heater plugged in on many days it still refuses to start. The starter has been rebuilt. Glow plugs are fine.
That last statement isn't consistent with your description of the problem. Check the entire glow plug system (glow plugs, glow plug fuse, glow plug relay). Something is probably wrong in the glow plug system.
Injector pump rebuilt and the car is timed properly. In a few weeks my father and I are going to hone the cylinders and replace the rings. Hopefully get back some lost compression. Any other ideas? Suggestions?
If compression is low, that can also make for hard starts when cold. If everything really is good with the glow plugs, then check compression and fix any problems you find there. Never do a "wet" compression test on a diesel by putting motor oil (AKA "fuel") in the cylinder. The resulting explosion will blow out your compression tester and possibly injure you.
Also, the car smokes very badly at full throttle and also seems sluggish. Yesterday I removed the air filter and did a rather hard run around the block. The car seemed 100% better. I'm wondering why the engine can't breath properly even with the correct filter. Would doing that swiss-cheese mod on the airbox help at all? Any other ideas?
If the brand of filter you are using lists the same filter for the turbodiesel as it does for the normally asthmatic diesel, try a different brand, or better yet try a Genuine VW filter for the turbo diesel engine. The genuine VW filters have more filter media for the turbo diesel engines (giving better air flow).
If you want even better flow, go with some kind of larger air ducting to the airbox. On my normally asthmatic diesel, I put a piec of 3" thin wall PVC in place of the snorkel, and I ran some 3" flexible hose to a fitting I made to mount to the "rain gutter" for a "cowl induction" setup. Get more air from outside like that. Don't just cut holes to let hot air in from under the hood. With yours, you would probably be better running a 3" flexible hose up behind the grill somewhere in front of the radiator, or through a hole in the fenderwell and into the fender area. There's relatively cool high pressure air in the fenderwell, and in front of the radiator.
I'll let others address the other questions.