davidwort

could be just the valve in the pump, worth a go removing it (it's under the pressure hose union, unscrew hose then unscrew valve, two pieces and a spring), cleaning the gauze filter inside and filling with fresh PS fluid.

good value but not much room in the back as a family car.

support the engine, either from above or with a jack and block of wood from below, 2 of the 3 engine bracket bolts are also the starter ones. I'd have thought a turning engine would throw the starter gear back into the starter away from the flywheel.

Just for info as I've swapped a later tower into my old AGC code 02A 16v box. Early corrado (1.8 16v and G60) and passat have no shift weight and a shorter tower, the cables are mounted with a side by side bracket with 2 mounting points on top of the gearbox. Later Corrados and Passats move to a different tower, add a shift weight to the shift cable end and have a one-over-the-other bracket to mount the cables. Strangely VW moved from a 15mm bearing and selector shaft to a 16mm one in around 1994, so the appropriate end cap/bearing in the bottom of the box is required (just two bolts hold it in from underneath) The shift towers are mounted with sealant to the top of the box and once the two 13mm bolts are removed need a thump to loosen the tower sometimes. The later tower has less play but adds the flimsy plastic connector for the selector cable (side to side movement of gealever) which has seen several replacement(superceeded) parts but all break up with time, leaving you with just 3rd and 4th gears! Rather oddly the 91 passat tower in the bottom pic also has a 16mm shaft bearing, this may be due to a box being changed on an earlier car though as ETKA only lists this from 94 on. Having used both (on the same box), the worst is the original circa1990 shift tower with no weight, adding a weight helps, but the best shift is with the later style tower.

various places do the golf mk2 16v set, 5 of the 7 you can use on any 16v engine, look in the VW mags for dealers that retail samcos IRO 120 quid a set, cheaper than buying all 5 from VAG.

that would be because of the popular manual to auto conversion for the VR, there's probably hundreds of them running around now. You mean auto to manual conversion :) no, sorry, I was trying to be funny in explaining why he'd seen so many autos for sale... I'll get my coat...

that would be because of the popular manual to auto conversion for the VR, there's probably hundreds of them running around now.

again, it's a little more complex with GSF, I've always had SKF bearings from them and they have been fine for years, at least with VAG you know it's best quality, although interestingly they change suppliers over the years and some bits are not as good as factory from them, it's a rare occurence though.

b interesting to know, we need a list of 9A problems and fixes, they seem to be elusive sometimes.

golfs and corrados with the K-jet system always have a lovely burble at idle.

it really depends on where the parts are sourced, some are OEM suppliers, some OK and some really quite inferior, on suspension components most of the OEM bits are better quality, generally I've had good experiences with FEBI parts. Some bits like rear engine mounts (16v) have been utter crap from GSF and the drop links were visibly thinner and looked poorly made in comparison.

it's not like they've got anywhere to go anyway :) Not had a glued one on mine since 1996, total overkill TBH. Mind you, every bolt on my Corrado seems to work loose, so just about everything else has threadlock on it!

it's a fiddle to route the new hose in, and you really need to get under the car as well as on top of the engine but you don't need to take the rack out, it's just a union at either end - follow the pipe to the rack you'll see the connection. The passat would be roughly the same age, no later than P plate though, and be careful it's not got air-con as the pipes take a different route. the G60 pipes are different too, to avoid the extra plumbing they have, possibly avoid autos too. Otherwise I'm pretty sure any 8v or 16v passat would do- mine wasn't specified and the ones I've seen since then all look the same, F plate to P plate. The most important thing is a banjo connection at the rack end and a threaded connection to the pump, not banjo at the pump end.

look at 2-3 hrs labour for a garage to do the rack, anything from 120 quid upwards I'd suggest. with the leaking hose, this is the pressure hose to the rack, get one from a passat, they're basically the same and better protected so often in much better nick second hand, I got one from VolksApart for about 25 quid a few years back, very expensive new from VW.

It's not an easy job as the subframe really needs to be dropped, much easier if it's done on a full garage ramp rather than the drive at home. Expect to pay IRO 150 quid for a recon rack or around 40-50 for a second hand one, replace the complete tie rods while you're at it as it's a difficult job with the rack in the car. The main differences between the models is pre 92 cars have 36 splines on the input shaft from the UJ at the bottom of the steering column, if you wanted to use a later rack you'd need to get hold of a 22 spline UJ from a later car.

VW themselves may have some data, seeing as they can identify your car (chasssis and engine details) via just the registation mark. They obtain address details for recalls from the DVLA so I'd imagine they would have most of the info we would want on ntheir own databases, it's not like the data we want is personal info anyway. Perhaps the CCGB would help giving some weight in providing a more 'official' request to VW?

If you trawl about the web there are some K-jet and KE-jet diagnosic guides, have you narrowed it down to fuel and not ignition then? If it's temperature related then it's likely to be sensors for the ECU, lambda, temp etc. A fair few checks need to be made including fuel pressures and delivery via the metering unit, vacuum hoses, sensors ans switches fault code reading etc. The 9A should run in 'average settings' if you pull the plugs on the metering unit, sort of 'get you home mode' if it'spurely dodgy senders that are causing the problem, does the air plate move smoothly with slight even resitance and no 'sticky' spots? Do you have the little gauze filter in the fuel supply union on the metering head?

that 'famous' pic is for a US spec 16v I believe (PL?) so the 9A may be different. The 1.8 has 3 of the small black topped sensors and the thermo-timeswitch I don't think the 9A has 3 of the small sensors.

get a new cable in there, best solution, they wear badly as they have to turn 180 degrees under the bonnet.

I've still never actually seen a carbed 16v develop that sort of power, whenever they've been at a rolling road day there's always some excuse why they're only delivering half the power they should be. K-jet is: a) pretty reliable b) needs little adjustment for a more tuned engine c) delivers good power and despite what people think good economy d) is good for 200bhp provided you've got the engine to achieve that carbs are: a) expensive to buy (and will probably increase your insurance if you declare them) b) hard to find someone who can set them up (re-jetting for engine work etc.) c) drink fuel d) never seem to live up to the promises e) prone to icing in damp/cold conditions

if you compare the mk4 badges to that of the mk1 golf it's amazing how the badge has changed, its got thicker, more solid looking, curvier across the face, more three dimensional and generally more up-to-date. A similar change has happened to many well known brands, the series of Shell oils 'shells' for instance, they've changed step by step every decade or two. Can't see VW making a massive change to a logo with such 'recall' with the general public. Perhaps they could ''regionalise' the logo, change the UK version from VW to PC (Peoples Car), if cost cutting is so important, how about just a 'V', and audi could cut down their rings to say just two - 'OO' Ok, p'raps not...

Should you buy a 17 yr old car, no, not if you are expecting it to be trouble free. On balance I'd say owning a Corrado more than makes up the effort of running and maintaining a 17 yr old car! Was a bit pissed when my starter stuck in the petrol station yesterday though :lol:

re-used stretch bolts? From what I can see the bolts are f-ing hefty things and all they have to do is hold a keyed pulley in place to drive a few belts, it's not like they're hub nuts, granted they drive the charger in a G60, but the problems seem pretty common on NA 4cyl cars. The main problem seems to be them coming loose after being incorrectly fitted.

:shock: :lol: That's pretty funny (providing it doesn't cost you much to fix) reminds me of a couple of mates who bought ex-racing school British Leyland MG Montegos from Silverstone racing circuit, first day they had them they pulled up and the front brake calipers fell off, the racing school had swapped back the original brakes for the racing ones they'd had on whilst in use at the school, no one ever admitted t odoing the job though!

splutters his coffee over the keyboard :shock: