dr_mat

It's not about quantity, it's about quality... ;) Most people don't rate the cat bypass pipe too highly. The throttle body has a bigger impact, but do bear in mind this is a 1992 2-valve per cylinder engine. 2.9 litres (2861cc actually) it may be, and with 24 valves it might well have produced 210-220 bhp, but bear in mind the time of it's production.. Of course you can always slap on a big valve head, throttle body, Schrick manifold and some tasty cams and get around 230-240 bhp.. Or just go the turbo/super charger route for 270-300+ bhp, depending on budget... The only limit is the depth of your wallet, really...

VW considered that the timing chains would last the lifetime of the engine, and so they would, probably, if it weren't for the tensioner wearing out. They were supposed to be maintenance free.. Hence no specified interval.

You should assume that if they haven't been done they will *probably* need doing very soon, but it really depends how the car has been driven for it's lifetime. The only positive answer is listen to it - if there's a nasty clattering they need doing. If there isn't a nasty clattering it might start in 6 months or 2 years, so it's then up to you if you feel like spending the money now or later... Most VW garages don't even notice if the timing chains are knackered. My local "specialist" failed to notice despite me saying several times "seems a bit clattery to me".. He missed an opportunity to make some cash there! :)

Price New (1996) 2.0 8v: £ 16523 2.0 16v: £ 18674 2.9 VR6: £ 20070 2.9 STORM: £ 22673 Auto boxes cost about an extra £1k. Can't get the price for previous years, but assume approximate inflation rate changes... In other words, a SHED LOAD of cash!!

Most likely you screwed up the temperature sensors when you fiddled around with the thermostat housing.

"half"? You mean half way up the scale? That being around 85 degrees? The Aux pump isn't really necessary for normal loads in normal ambient air temperatures. It's main purpose is to provide run-on water circulation after you switch the engine off. It's better to fix it for that alone than to worry about it while you're driving along..

Sounds more like a misfire.. Does it do it worse when the engine's cold or hot? Does it run better on part throttle?

Aux tensioner is on the right hand side of the car, but then, it depends which way you're looking at it.. For clarification the timing chains are on the left/passenger/gearbox side...

Looks like you're gonna have to bite the bullet and take a look if there's a spark.. Might be worth pulling/reseating some of the ECU relays too.

Quite possibly. The squeak is more likely to be the aux water pump though, maybe it's bearings are running close to the bone..?

The starter circuit is controlled by the ignition key. If the ECU is immobilised, the starter will still crank, but there will be no fuel and no spark. Some alarm fitters tap into this circuit as an additional immobilising line though. Very new cars switch the starter motor through the ECU (via a chunky relay), but nothing as old as the Corrado does that. (Hell the Corrado doesn't even use relays for the headlights, where it really should!)

It's more that measuring block that will tell you if the key has been authorised. That's for late VRs at least, where they still have the immobiliser ECU and reader coil near the ignition switch...

What about the "immobiliser" tab in VAG-COM? There should be a read-out of faults, and also a measuring block that says "key authorised to start?". You have, presumably, tried another key....

You can dump the temp readings out using VAGCOM. If the sensor is broken, it'll be obvious from those.

IIRC they're about £35 + VAT each from the dealer. I asked once and decided to camp on ebay instead... Not sure about the lens thing - my VR doesn't have a noticeable lens effect on either side (usually the driver's if it's going to have one). If you can get an aftermarket glass *with* lens effect do it, they're a great way to get rid of the enormous blind spot...

* Contribution removed for value reasons.

Um yeah, the "one long, one short" manifold view of the VGI/VSR isn't strictly true. It's more "one thin, one fat", but both same length... But the effect is the same.

Your reply is the only one so far...

Sounds like the ECU is confused. Or faulty.. Probably some sensor is telling the ECU to put more air in at idle, so it's opening the ISV further. May be the lambda? Dunno, but worth looking at the lambda wiring.

Usually this is just a way of turning stolen bankers drafts into real punter's money, oh and to steal a car, too.. That's why they give you a banker's draft for MORE than the cost of the car, then get you to pay them the difference from your own account, AND hand over your car. I've never heard of anyone getting actual money from these stolen drafts. And no, you can't ring the bank and cancel cheques months after, but if your account is suspended for some reason, the cheques you've written in the last six months can be pulled back by YOUR bank in an effort to reclaim their money, if they think you've not got the funds to cover them.

Well yeah, but the banks can recall the funds at any time for the following YEAR, pretty much. So your bank may accept the cheque, and the funds appear in your account, but the money will be pulled back a few weeks later (particularly if it's a cheque from overseas). The main reason people fall for this scam is because they're greedy.

Erm.. or a VW one!!! I don't recall anyone ever having any trouble, like, EVER with a genuine part... Not as expensive as you'd think. Use the search, luke..

There is a sticky thread with the full recall details somewhere...

You might have to look at the seals around the water pump too, if you're getting water thrown around off the aux belt..

"young driver excess" also applies to theft because young drivers are more likely to leave the car in a less safe area, or dump it outside a nightclub in the centre of birmingham on double yellers.. Can't get out of the excess for a different type of claim - it's pretty water tight I'm afraid. You may be able to claim some compensation from your broker, however, if they didn't alert you to this on the phone and you paid before you saw the full policy details. But that would be something you'd have to chase through the small claims court, and would be completely unconnected with the insurance claim process. Plus you would have had 14 days after starting the policy (and getting the full details) during which you could cancel it without financial penalty if it wasn't what you were expecting, so you really have to read through the stuff they send you carefully.