Hi all, Have embarked on a 2L conversion after my Cabrio's head gasket failure / need for new clutch. Read the great info here and have decided to take the plunge in the hope that some of my questions, and the answers you guys provide may assist others with similar skill to myself, this is where I started; http://www.clubgti.com/showthread.php?90658-2L-8v-conversion-guide-pictures-now-back-online I have a reasonable, basic knowledge of engines and have in the past done clutch replacements, head gaskets on simpler engines (Hillman Hunter - that tells you how long ago!!) and do pretty much all maintenance on the car however this will be my first full engine rebuilt. Pretty nervous!! Have my AGG engine and am about to enter the unknown by stripping out the bottom end. Have started asking questions here and had (as always) great help and support; http://www.clubgti.com/showthread.php?261716-2L-Conversion-the-AGG-block Will be asking some silly questions, but trust you guys will go easy and guide me through this :-) Where am I at the moment, in summary; Car untouched at the moment, donor engine purchased from Stevens (http://www.stevensvwspares.com) which I'm in the process stripping down, engine came mostly bare - block, head, clutch, oil cooler, cam belt and all covers, nothing else. Have removed old head which will not be used, oil cooler, clutch, cam belt and covers etc and drained oil. Will be turning over today and removing the crank and pistons and will be seeking assistance re the wear and a decision about what I will be replacing by way of bearings etc (pic to follow later). More to follow . . .
OK, So here's the first challenge of the day, engine turned over, sump removed, oil pump out ohhh; Tip No1 - Ease off the surge baffle very carefully, the plastic is brittle (one of the clips broke away when I removed it with very little pressure). Started to remove the bearing cap bolts and realized I needed to remove the crankshaft sprocket, given I've got little to brace against what's the best method?? Plan a) is to wedge the crank with a piece of timber and get bar on it??
Tip No 2 - Build your own sonic cleaning tank Saw this on you tube, thought I'd give it a try. 4.99 plastic container, old bike inner tube, a sander and some Clarke's de greaser and a 99p scrubbing brush from Morrisons. The sump was covered in thick treacle like oil, wiped out the worst with a cloth, popped into, lid on, strapped the sander on with the inner tube and turned in on to the lowest setting, left it for an hour, finished off with the brush. Good results; Before; After;
That cleaner is looking like quite a clever idea. I am looking at buying a proper ultrasonic cleaner but this looks like a good idea for larger parts.
Not sure how good it will work on other parts (the sump is a painted item so not much adhesion for the muck). But for a few quid worth a try
Will an impact wrench shift it, have just got a compressor (10 bar 200l round 6.5 cfm) want one anyway?????
An impact wrench might shift it. I've tried and failed with a 24v battery one in the past. Once the bolt has been there 15+ years they tend to get 'comfortable'
I was going to suggest a impact gun, but guessed if you had one you would not be asking Yes it should shift it, but at 6.5cfm I would suggest you try running the impact gun without any regulator, so you will get the full benefit. Even if you don't get it off with the impact gun you may find that the impacts might well help you get it off with a breaker bar after that.
Has anyone tried a plug in to the mains 240v impact gun? They are wicked, mine is about 400NM and will undo anything, even centre hub nuts at ease. I used two old crank to flywheel bolts and a iron bar with an impact gun. I held engine in place using a workmate bench. Another way is make a bar up with two holes and screw it to the centre crank pully with someone holding the engine and the other with the long iron bar.
This is the one I have except it's orange in colour. http://www.clasohlson.com/uk/Cotech-Impact-Wrench/Pr183185000?gclid=CJCqiLrDmrYCFUbMtAodb2MAdg
Thanks Chris, going to invest in an 240v gun rather than air, for a similar price looks like around 100nm more punch. Did notice these product talk about you must use the impact wrench sockets only?? As my crank bolt is a lovely VW 12 point would prefer not to have to buy more . . . . . however would prefer it if my std socket didn't explode in my face also with 400+nm tearing through it!!!! ?????
Well just protect your eye's when using a non impact wrech socket and garden gloves for your hands then. I have a 24V impact cordless gun and also an air gun but the compressor makes so much noise it winds up the neighbours. The 240V impact gun I got from that website I posted on this thread came with four impact gun sockets which are black. The 240V gun is brilliant and whips off hub nuts in no time at all. I always have a long iron bar ratchet and torque wrech too. One thing to mention don't use the impact gun to undo your wheel nuts, the vibaration will chip off the lacquer on the wheels. I remember now when I took my crank pully off, my bottom end of engine was mounted on an engine stand that I bought off ebay for 40. It had 3 wheels on it so could take upto 750 LBS like this one. http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/ENGINE-ST...372?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item2c6d94a5ec Then I sold the engine stand to a mate. I also bought a cheap chinese engine crane off ebay for 150 that can take upto 2.5 tons and has worked well, used it for removing 3 engines, installing two new engines and a gearbox plus moving a garden shed!! That was a good investment and still got the engine crane. I would do your ground work on 240V impact guns, but the one I got was a gamble and is one of my best tools apart from my socket set and torgue wrench.
If you are only looking to use this impact gun for a few jobs, and don't giggle at this. But I would suggest trying one of these out. http://www.machinemart.co.uk/shop/product/details/cir13c-1-2in-impact-wrench-kit-12v yes it only has 170Nm but the hammer action is very effective, I have got one as I needed to get a crank pulley off on a boat a few years back so getting close to a compressor was tricky. I still have it and it has managed to shift some very reluctant bolts.
OK, stupid question No 1 - What's the correct rotation of the crank (would prefer to put 400+Nm of torque in the correct direction). Assuming it's rotating clockwise as I face pulley on the side of the block and I need to set the wrench to counter clockwise. PS If there's a rotation indication on there, my only excuse is that I'm at work at the moment . . . . PPS TSR2.1 didn't giggle honest! 170Nm from 12v is pretty impressive
From memory it is a standard counter clockwise thread on these. I could pop out to the garage and remove the bolt from the spare 16v unit under my bench but I too am still working
just buy some plastic gauge off e-bay less than a fiver and the tolerences are on elsawin that would be a great investment everything you need to rebuild the engine with detailed diagrams.
Tip No 3 - Forget an impact wrench, small block of 3" x 2" to brace the crank, a decent ring spanner and lump hammer - 60 410Nm impact wrench, nothing! 6 or 7 hearty whacks no problem :-)
