Kevin Bacon

Might get my dremel out then! I gas flowed a 16V throttle body once to good effect. Made bugger all difference to the performance though but the experience was invaluable. Always use a donor body, and not your own in case of bodges. Kev

Well done and welcome to the group. I'll keep an eye out for you as I work in Norwich. Kev

15K, what a flippin joke. Two things put me off instantly and guages what sort of owner he is:- Spax springs (yuk) and EBC green stuff pads (even worse). It pains me to see a nice car destroyed in this manner. He's obviosuly asking that much to recoup some of the outlay for that ghastly front end work. I'd sooner buy a tatty original car in need of work than that hideous lump of metal that was once a great car. Kev

BMWs have external ni-cd battery packs to store service and speedo data, so VWs must have something similar? I can't think how else the speedo can hold charge when the main battery is disconnected. Worth looking into..... Kev

Would anyone with a VR6 consider the following symptoms indicative of a MAF sensor operating out of range i.e. knackered? :- 1. Heavily increased fuel consumption 2. Slight jerkiness and unresponsiveness between 1500 and 2000 rpm 3. Slightly down on power at high rpm and coarse running to go with it. Engine is standard and has had within the last month:- new air filter, new fuel pump filter, new plugs, new leads, new coilpack, new engine speed sensor and a new cam position sensor. I've checked the O2 sensor and it's giving between 0.1 and 0.8V which is slightly down but within tolerance. Can't think of anything else it can be. Cheers Kev

Have a look here:- http://www.hiflowheads.co.uk Very reasonably priced although I have no idea of their workmanship or reputation. Most decent tuners charge around £800+VAT inc fitting for a good job, best to shop around. I can vouch for Stealth heads though. Graham there, an ex-Bentley engine builder apparently, builds all their engines and the workmanship is awesome. If you have the tools to press in new guides, then there's no reason why you can't do it yourself but personally I'd have one done professionally with a 3 angle valve cut and perhaps fit it myself, saving around £300 in labour and VAT. Cheers Kev

Only use VAG panels. The steel quality of pattern panels is not up to the same standard, as I found out to my cost with a MK1 Golf restoration I did some years ago. Kev

God knows mate! I just used two drivers arms, a passenger blade and a driver's blade. Works brilliantly and have no premature wear issues to report. Kev

Looks like you have a gearbox flange seal out. Does the oil smell of peanuts? Kev

Is there any point flowing the 2.9 throttle body? I thought the smaller 2.8 body was worth flowing, or just fitting a 2.9 body? I've looked at the 2.9 body and there doesn't seem like there's much of a lip to remove. Stealth seem to agree with me on that but I am always accepting of corrections/disagreements You have a lot of torque from your mods though Mike :D Kev

Spot-on Mike. The Corrado is an excellent handler out of the box. Absolutley. The best setup by far for everyday useability and handling on demand. H&R 'sport' or 'OE Sport' are not your regular bone shakers. I'm getting 4 x Koni TAs fitted in August along with new wishbone bushes. The stock springs are staying put as they are spot on in my opinion and I value the ground clearance and suspension travel. Kev

Sorry, I must have missed it but what is Umbrello? Kev

I agree with Mike on the standard discs etc, although I find pagid fast road pads are better than VAG pads. I've got pagid grooved discs and fast road pads on mine at the moment. I wouldn't say there is a marked improvement over plain OE discs but they do a good enough job for my needs. What is the benefit of 288 MK3 brakes? Bigger caliper pistons? I wouldn't have thought an extra 8mm of leverage would make much difference? I'd ideally like the Brembo/4 motion disc combo but bigger wheels are needed. I did enquire with Speedline directly about 16 and 17" wheels the same design as the OE 15s, but they don't make them anymore, except the magnesium version, which has not been tested and approved for road use :cry: Kev

Is it blue smoke you've got? Does it smell of burnt oil? If it only does it when you pull away after a lengthy idle or when booting after a period of over-run, it's just valve stems and seals as the cylinders are in a state of vacuum in those conditions and suck oil through the stems. If you've got oil smoke when accelerating....bore wear :( You did say some time ago you've always had problems with number 1 spark plug being oil fouled and smelling rich etc, so I think it's a head job for you my man! Very unusual that as Vince reckons number 6 is always the first cylinder to go! Let us know how you get on with that. How many miles has the engine done? Kev

VW ones aren't so poo actually, my VR runs better with a paper filter than it does with a K&N! Sorry to disagree but that is the worst thing you can do to a 16V. It just sucks in hot air and alernator dust off the engine. VW spend ages optimising the airboxes for quiet running and performance, so drilling holes in it just undoes all that good work. Just my thoughts.....and experience! Kev

Not really. Whilst the theory of feeding the engine with cold air makes the air/fuel mix more dense is true, the effects of 'ram' air are negligable on a road car. If you put a trumpet on the front of the car and channel it into the air box, you get a 0.5psi pressure increase in the air box at 100mph. The engine won't notice this. In F1 where the air scoop is above the driver's head and the car averages 180mph, then yes there is a small benefit. It's just a marketing ploy to make you part with your cash. Suspension and brakes first, most definitely. These enable you to do more with the power you've got and sets a new reference point when calculating your power upgrades. Kev

Don't take a compression test as gospel, it's just a rough indicator. Seek a second opinion. Oil tends to fill the gap between piston ring and bore anyway, so a traditional spark plug guage is not the most reliable way of telling. If it's still producing 192bhp, I personally wouldn't worry about it too much. Kev

You've got 147 and 161psi respectively. I would guess your car isn't idling well due to number 1 cylinder being down. That's odd as it's normall cyl no 6 that goes first on the VR. Might just need a head job to reseal the valves. The exhaust valves on the VR are known to crack with age. Could be that, may not be, only one way to be sure! Your compressions are within tolerance though. Kev

Should be around 170..... Cheers Kev

OK mate, thanks for the info. I've been a stealth customer for about 4 years and can vouch for their service. The trouble with chipping mine is Vince doesn't think there will be an improvement to be had as mine already develops 200 bhp and 193lb/ft as standard but I do have an odd flatspot at 2K which I'd like ironing out. I'll have a chat with him about it.... Cheers Kev

It's not agricultural in R32 form :twisted: Kev

From a dealer... Most expensive single item - £370 for 1 Corrado G60 wheel (BBS). Cheapest...6p for a rear badge clip. Kev

I think the central locking is activated by the microswitches in the door lock, therefore pushing the interior knob won't have any effect. Just a thought.... Kev

Sure....The VR6 is, like any other engine, dependant on the air/fuel ratio being correct to both perform well and idle well. If it's wrong, it won't idle smoothly, simple as that. As a qualified motor engineer, I thought you'd know that basic principal. Incorrect a/f ratio can be attributed to many things but I assure you, VR6s so and should idle dead smooth. Kev

How much was the piggy-back chip from Stealth? I'm going up there in August so might enquire about it! Cheers Kev