Roger Blassberg

What tyres please? Best wishes RB

The sunroof motor came from a seller on ebay, the part number is as further back in this thread. It would appear that Andy-H has one surplus to requirements, so I won't confuse your negotiations with him over price............ Best wishes RB

OK, I have sorted it out. For information and to help others, the procedure is; Tilt sunroof fully using either motor or allen key Push up back edge of the inside part of the sunroof inner lining so that it is parallel with the tilted outer steel part, and at the same time slide the whole of the inner lining forwards until the two sections engage each other. Er, that's it !! (Unless of course you know that I have done it wrong.) Let's hope it doesn't leak or jam. Best wishes RB

I have now obtained and fitted the replacement motor. Somehow or other, during the procedure, the headlining (inner) section of the sunroof has become detached from the steel (outer) section so that it can be manually slid independently right back along the guide rails. But I can't work out how to re-attach it to the rest of the system as it won't slide right forward to close the aperture when the outer part is closed. The sunroof outer section operates perfectly well on both slide and tilt, opening and closing as expected, but does not take the inner section with it. Two questions; How do I reconnect the inner (headlining ) section to the rest of the mechanism? And, Does this mean that the sunroof is now not weatherproof as there is a (small) gap all around the outer section where it meets the main roof; The inner section, which I assume incorporates the water-catching tray, will not slide fully forward. Best wishes RB

Thanks to Andy and Mr. Ots. Best wishes RB

I need a replacement sunroof motor. The failed Rockwell unit is part no 535 959 731. I have offers of 2 alternatives; a) 1H0 959 731 b) 3A0 959 731 B They all look to be the same Rockwell unit (comparing the actual old unit to photos of the replacements). The question is, are they ACTUALLY all interchangeable? Please does anyone understand the intricacies of the part numbering system. All advice gratefully received. Best wishes RB

Three out of the four directional controls for the wing mirrors are not working (up, down and back). Is it a simple job to take the trim off and clean the contacts, and if so can someone lead me through it please? Or is it likely to be a case of a replacement unit? Best wishes RB

The sump will take it if you put a thick piece of wood between it and the jack. Best wishes RB

Do you have a fuel supply? If not, it just might be the crank position sensor cutting both fuel and sparks. It could also be the ignition switch , not the key. A cheap job, (and a simple one if you are a contortionist). Best wishes RB

Maybe your cam position sensor/trigger is failing intermittently. Best wishes RB

I would have thought that anything involving water would lead to a risk of corrosion (I assume that injectors are made of a ferrous metal of some sort, at least in part), whereas jewelry is made of gold, siver, platinum, etc., which does not corrode in water. My instinct is to use alcohol (methanol or isopropanol). Continuous exposure may lead to hardening of any rubber seals but a short exposure will probably be harmless. Obviously petrol is what the injectors are designed for but will probably contaminate the ultrasonic cleaner itself. Best wishes RB

Sounds like a distributor engine. Have you checked the distributor cap, innards, ignition timing? Best wishes RB

The only problem you may encounter is rounding out of the four socket-head retaining screws, as they go directly into the aluminium of the head and tend to corrode in slightly. Then you'll need to get a set of Irwin bolt extractors to undo it/them.. It's also much easier if you take off the plastic HT cable guide plastics. Otherwise it's just a case of getting all the cables connected back correctly. Best wishes RB

Rotor arm?

When you replaced the cam position sensor, did you also replace the trigger wheel on the camshaft? Are you sure that the CPS is working? The wiring in the loom that runs along the injectors and goes back to the CPS was in a bad way on mine until I repaired it, so that's worth a check. My concern is also that, in using so much fuel, you are washing the oil from the bores and diluting your oil generally. The MAF is not picked up by the VAGCOM so far as I know; a rough and ready check is to disconnect its electrics when the engine is running and listening for a noticeable drop in idle quality. To be honest, this does sound like lambda related trouble. Even if the sensor is ok, the wiring could be a bit ropey. Let us know how you progress. Best wishes RB

All timing gear changed at 203,000, guides, tensioners and chains. The upper tensioner blade was worn through, the top rivets were gone completely. I used the solid polymer replacement part. The guides were scored but complete and not broken. I did the job myself (with the aid of the article on this forum), over several months. The most difficult part was locating all the bell-housing bolts! All back together now and running very quietly; it had a bit of a rattle before the work but not too loud. Best wishes RB

Just for info, the first spare part I bought for my VR6 7 years ago was a genuine top-hose. £98 !!! Best wishes RB

I had exactly the same problem with the bolts, and the smallest Irwin will fit and remove them. They are an absolute "must" for your toolbox ; I have lost count of the problems they have solved. Best wishes RB

It could be worn tappets - they would really clatter for the first one or two seconds after an overnight stop. It might be a touch of piston slap. That usually goes away quite quickly too, once the pistons have warmed up a bit. Maybe it's the oil pump; when the oil is thick and cold it has to work hard. Once the oil has got warmer and thinner, it quietens down I assume that it's not timing chains/guides/tensioners - that won't go away when the engine warms up. Best wishes RB

I misread the title as "Replacing Ejector seats". I was expecting something a bit more exciting and vaguely James Bond-ish. :lol: Best wishes RB

Speaking from experience with an ABF 2 litre engine which is similar, the gasket gets hard and brittle with age, so get a new one which comes with the new semi-circular seals. The gasket is prone to leak if you over-tighten the holding down nuts, or tighten them un-evenly. Tighten them as you would a cylinder head, progressively and working from the middle outwards, and don't allow the gasket to become distorted or squeezed out It may also be the semi-circular seals leaking, the ones that block the openings where the camshaft bearings are line-bored. Make sure that they are a snug fit in their recesses before you put the gasket over the studs and take care to get the locating tabs absolutely spot on. Obviously, get all traces of the old gasket off the machined faces of the head and the cover before you put the new one on. The worst part of the job in my opinion is taking off the inlet manifold, especially the bolts around the bulkhead side but they are all well and truly tight being steel into aluminium. Ideally you should replace the gasket where the 2 halves of the manifold are joined and the throttle body/manifold joint as well if you split that one. With the manifold taken of, stuff kitchen roll paper into the openings of the stubs; you don't want to drop anything down there ! Best wishes RB

I support your views on the spark plugs; the standard NGKs give by far the best performance of any that I have used, and if you are burning a bit of oil they are cheap enough to replace on a regular basis. Sparkplugs.com, or somesuch, do them for about £3.50 each mailorder, and they pop through your letterbox the next morning. Best wishes RB ( all suspicions confirmed, now officially a Nutter)

I have it on reliable authority that there is indeed someone at VAG in Milton Keynes who monitors spare parts demand and adjusts prices accordingly. Sometimes you win, as I did when I bought my exchange cylinder head and the price mysteriously dropped by 40% week-on-week. But sometimes you lose. Anyway, good that you eventually got a bargain. Best wishes R%B

I would say that £1500 for all that work was a very competitive price indeed - you would expect to pay that for the head and chains job alone. Did you have a new clutch as well whilst the gearbox was off ? Best wishes RB

Good news. AND an ideal opportunity for my 1000th post (which, it has to be said, is a rather poor rate compared to some others........) Best wishes RB