Kevin Bacon

That's a really nice job and all the shut lines still look good. Did they replace the door and rear quarter then? Cheers Kev

I must admit, my VR6 has never broken down or ever felt like it would. It'll happily drive to Lands End and back. Overall it is a very reliable engine...BUT...some of it's electronics fail quite often, meaning you have an engine that isn't 100% right. The MAF (Mass Air Flow) sensor and cam position sensor are two very common ones to fail, but the first is £150-£200 and the second is £20! If you're planning on 18K a year, a 16V is probably a wiser choice financially, but if you really want extra power and more refinement over your GTI, then the VR6 is the one to go for. Perhaps going for a £4000 VR6 and leaving the extra grand in the bank for an 'Emergency' fund might be a good idea :lol: Kev

I haven't discussed it with Bosch yet as I need to check the ECU wiring first, just to make sure it isn't that before I make an a*** of myself. The error I've seen a few times is G70 - Mass Air Flow sensor - Short to Ground - INTERMITTANT. Comes back if cleared from memory :cry: I'm pretty sure the wiring is OK as the old MAF never recorded that and that was a month or two ago. Ho hum....all part of C ownership I guess! Kev

MAF sensor I'll wager! Damn things! There is a discussion currently on VW Vortex where some chap has discovered that the cheap 2.0 MAFs (Beetles etc) are in fact very similar to the OBD1 VR6 MAF and will work, with perhaps a couple of small changes. I'll see what I can find out but if not that, £150 exchange or £200 new :x Kev

Looks like a custom one and not a particularly nice one either. The Golf 4Motion wheels suit the car though. Kev

Yeah it was a great day! Shame I had to much to do back home otherwise I'd have stayed a while longer. I learnt one thing yesterday - VR6s are VERY tempremental! 2 faulty MAFs and a Faulty Cam position sensor blighted 3 of the car's (mine included) figures but I'm pretty chuffed my car still managed 192hp with a dodgy MAF! Bosch shall be getting that back as it's a new one, grrrrr :evil: Thanks to funky for setting it up! Kev

You might have to make the font yourself. Can paint packages like Adobe save files as ttf? Kev

LOL....you can't shoot me as "my wings are like a shield of steel" (Batfink!) Kev

Is it worth creating creating a knowledge base of what parts have been superceded and which are now obsolete? Would spare us the lengthy stand at the parts counter watching the assistant scratching his head for 20 minutes! Kev

Manual would be faster point to point but in everyday driving, the Auto would feel just as quick. Kev

Could the wiring to injector no 5 be at fault? It could be the ECU I supposes as the injection is sequential on the VR6, so maybe the controller for that injector has died. Not sure where you can get a s/hand one from though. There is a big round wiring connector on the head, try removing that and checking all the connectors are sound. To remove it you unclip the forward facing clip and then twist (quite firmly) toward you and then it'll pop off. I would also call Vince at Stealth Racing as he knows the VR6 engine like the back of his hand. Kev

Sorry mate I wasn't trying to snub your tip, which is an excellent one I've not heard before, and do write into the Golf with that one :lol: I was also trying to add another element to the discussion but having re-read my post, I came across a bit arrogant, oops! Kev

The idle valve is the Bosch metal tube next to the distributor. Replace the idle speed screw rubber seal as these often perish and cause air leaks. The isv over-rides that screw anyway but idle speed needs to be set to 1000rpm with the isv disconnected. If it's an 1800 16V, get someone to set the base CO to 2.0% and it'll drive and idle a lot better. Kev

E30 BMW 325i engines also use the same idle valve. These type of ISV rarely go wrong. The reason 2.9s don't idle well is a more fundamental one which I have yet to ascertain. One thing I have done though is replace the ISV damper pot with the later metal lined one. Earlier V6s just have a normal plastic one with no heat shield. I have found the newer damper pot reflects heat and therefore helps with the idle. Part no - 021 133 429 A I have also found my engine idles a lot smoother with BP Ultimate. Kev

When the engine is cold and hot, stick your ear around the right hand rear side of the head and listen for a grinding/rattling noise. If there is a very loud noise that fits that description, your tensioners are probably in need of replacement. The good news on those and the Head gasket is VW have uprated both. The tensioners are now solid plastic and not plastic lined metal strips as before, and the HG is now stainless steel. The stainless gaskets are literally bomb proof. I used a 2.016V SS gasket on my 1.8 16V Turbo engine. Kev

You'll probably find the incremental acceleration times are faster because slush boxes have awesome kick-down, especially when allied to a big, torquey engine. My old 325i BMW auto would mince a manual in kick-down. Just be careful with the box, don't over do it when pulling away as you'll bend the torque converter's blades and you really don't want to know how much a new torque converter costs. Kev

Looking at the rear engine mount, you'll see a 4 wire multiplug. That is your 02 sensor connector. Get a voltmeter with pointy probes. Get the car up to temp, with the engine running, poke the meter's red probe into the white wire (so that it penetrates the sheathing) and put the black probe to earth. The voltage should constantly fluctuate between 0.1 and 1V. If stays still at 0.5V or there abouts, the sensor is dead. If the ECU receives no signal or a signal that's out of range, it'll load the emergency map which is very rich to prevent the engine pinking itself to death. The excess fuel will wash the bores and destroy the cat, so do it soon if you suspect the sensor is dead. Kev

Main pump sounds like it's dying. Had the same problem with an old 16v. Kec

Unlikely as the car only rolled off the production line a short while ago! The TT engine with DSG gearbox is the one to get :lol: Kev

Stil Auto Sigmas. Kev

And I suppose the other question is will the superceded blades fit on the older arms?! I'm getting a little fed up with VW, everytime I ring them for a part it's either obsolete or superceded with something that may or may not be the same, grrr! Kev

Yep it should be hot, just like the water radiator. Did you check the other hose to see if that was wet with oil aswell? You might have a duff one with an internal blockage or something. Kev

Yeah that's the cheapest way to get a 6db 1 way X-over. A naff old ferrite cored winding. Bin it and use the Amp's active filtering. By the way, you should use an amp MORE powerful than the speaker's RMS rating, not the other way round, otherwise you'll induce speaker destroying clipping. Kev

Having 3 Superchargers is just showing off :lol: On one of those 'Garages from hell' type programs, some poor punter got charged for 4 x spark plugs for their diesel engine. What was even more worrying was the punter didn't know any better :? Kev

Ah, thanks for the elightenment, Otto it is then! Kev