Stonejag

Wow, that's quite an impressive failure! You'd be on pretty solid legal ground to get ECP to pay for replacement parts, labour, consequential damage (wheel bearing) and recovery costs - if they look like they're going to refuse when you talk to them in person then just take them through the small claims track, it only costs £30. 'Not fit for the purpose for which it was sold' springs to mind... Stone

Don't forget to inspect the head side of the block for pitting - for no apparent reason the block has larger coolant channels than the head, so the head gets worn away by coolant cavitation where there's head material but no block material. If it's more than ~1mm deep then you probably want to get it welded up before skimming the head, otherwise you're relying on the head gasket to adjust for it, which may be asking a bit much of it. Mine was approx 3mm deep at its worst so badly needed doing! Welding up the head face and the coolant flange on the side (same problem) cost me £45, skimming both faces cost £40 (quoted £20 for just the block mating face, so don't do the thermostat flange side unless you need to, mine was really bad!) Vapour blasting is worth the outlay, it hardens the outer surfaces and makes them look fresher than the day they were cast! Just be sure to thoroughly clean all the glass grit out before you reinstall everything, you don't want it in your engine - I recommend using an airline, then vacuuming, then airlining again. Blasting it before it's machined is a good idea as the machining process loosens any remaining grit, I tilted mine after skimming and a load of sand and swarf fell out! Getting everything scrupulously clean beforehand is definitely worthwhile - if you install any studs or bolts and it feel gritty then back them out and clean it again. Vapour blasting: before After: You can see the pitting in this one, it was before I got it welded and skimmed. Now there are only a couple of tiny bubbles from where the weld wasn't perfect. You don't need solid lifters or uprated springs unless you're running silly power and/or have altered your ECU's rev limiter. For n/a you'll be fine with the stock items. Stone

Have you got a big triangular hole in your cylinder head next to / below the camshaft gears? If so you have an AAA head which should have a simplex upper. Don't think it really makes much difference tbh :)

They're available new from arz-tuning.de - €5 each. Stone

Would you split them? Only need the driver's one :) Cheers!

Yes, Classic Parts have the left one in stock in yellow only, and the right one in stock in clear only! :scratch: ARZ also only have yellow. They do have the fog inlets though...and they're cheaper than the inpro fogs, even including shipping from Germany. Think my mind's made up! Stone

Hi all, According to the dealership, both early and late foglights are now obsolete. Which would be fine if a little old lady hadn't reversed into my car earlier and cracked one! :( Venom sell the replacements by in.pro and also their own-brand style (which look identical) but I'm not a massive fan of the crystal look and I was really hoping someone did some OEM-style ones. If not I'll just bill her for some in.pros, or maybe swap them for the Cult Society inlets... Any other ideas? Cheers, Stone

It's 'Diavia' ;) Probably needs regassing by now - plus it complicates any engine work you have to do later, which may be why nobody's mad keen!

Billet covers for the front top mounts - the VW plastic part is obsolete now. And also not billet! ;)

That's gorgeous, wish it was available when I bought mine :lol: Stone

Nobody's mentioned the MAF yet, which is the other major cause of weird throttle response. Unplug it and see - the difference it makes to the running should be obvious, if not then replace. That or a vacuum leak would be my bet, try removing the throttle body elbow and see if it's cracked around the corrugated parts (if plastic). As above mine did this just before the crank sensor failed but it was more of a hunting revs thing than stalling. Stone

The large oil hole under the timing chain gears is only on the 2.8 (AAA) head - pretty sure they mix and match otherwise, but as above it has to have a matching set of bearing caps... If you can hold on for a couple of months I'll have an ABV head available - still running fine (it's in my daily) but I'm replacing it with a rebuilt one as I swap to 263 cams. Or there'll be plenty on here if you ask :) Stone

Steve's Corrado was really nice with this engine in :thumbleft: Shame you didn't get a chance to fix the rumble down low but it still sounded well!

Pics of the inpro fogs + headlights? Second dibs on the driver's wing if it falls through, please. Nick

I went for new wishbones with the bushes already fitted, at £37 a side it's cheaper than labour to fit new ones...

There aren't any 'original rubber ends', those ones come with the Power Rohr. Either you have a (later) plastic inlet elbow with corrugations around the corners and a flat spot to allow a jubilee clip to fit around it, or you have an early inlet elbow which are rubber throughout. 76mm is about right, I believe it's actually specified as 3". So long as it fits over the MAF and throttle body there's no need to get too hung up on it! Stone

Might be worth slipping a few notes to the body shop and seeing if they'll do the whole car at the same time. By the time they've got the compressor fired up, ordered paint, masked etc there probably won't be a massive difference in price..!

Another +1 for VWP, they've been consistently excellent for me and are really helpful on the phone. Grab a reel of their loom tape while you're ordering from them, it's really good! Stone

It's even better with a decat. The fact that I consistently average 27mpg but the car's capable of 36 should tell you something!

If the clips on the window switches are still alright then I'll have them. Mine are a bit loose... Cheers Stone ---------- Post added at 10:24 PM ---------- Previous post was at 10:22 PM ---------- If the clips on the window switches are still alright then I'll have them. Mine are a bit loose... Cheers Stone

The two guys running the place are dealership-trained and used to race Golf VR6s, I trust them :) Thanks for the tips, I'll see what they reckon when I talk to them in the morning. Stone

Fortunately the AA will be paying! Might get the fuel pump done at the same time since the recovery guy said it was tired :norty: Where would swarf be / be coming from - somewhere in the sump? If so it might explain my recent high oil temperatures if it's been catching in the oil pump screen... Stone

By coincidence I got them to recover me yesterday when my crank sensor went! :lol: Bit hacked off as they got a local contractor to tow me off the motorway into a 'safe place' (Tesco car park...) and then abandoned me for 3h as I wasn't urgent any more...but they did turn up in the end. Car low-loaded to my trusty garage, parents rescued me from Tesco and then gave me a lift home / to the car hire place, where my rubbish 1.2l Corsa was already waiting...all on the AA's tab, and they'll be covering the repair too. Not so bad really, could have been a lot worse! Stone

Chatted briefly to Vince at Stealth about my plans: "Don't bother with the six-branch" "Already got it, it's a Dubpower one..." "Oh, those are fine, but the eBay specials all crack if you miss a spot with the heatwrap" Closest to an endorsement you're likely to get, I reckon ;) Waiting for payday to get it ceramic coated but it looks a lot more solid than the eBay ones - nice thick tube and rock-solid welds, plus the right number of holes in the flange at the bottom! Fingers crossed anyway :) Stone

Tried to get down south to visit my folks this weekend but the car won't let me! Drove fine for an hour or so and then conked out completely. Symptoms are sudden onset of very unstable engine RPM - the gauge is all over the place, swinging wildly up and down by 1500-2000 revs. This is accompanied by violent bucking and loud backfires. Seems to go away briefly with pressure on the gas, but immediately kicks in again on overrun - it's impossible to drive as every time you let off the gas it starts bucking again. Then it stalled, which shouldn't be possible in an auto! Pulled over and checked the obvious, nothing evidently wrong so I restarted it and got it to the nearest services. Gave the throttle pot and MAF connectors a squirt of WD40 and checked the PCV hose for oil sludge - nothing. Started fine so I continued on, only to find it went again when it warmed up and I had to get recovered :( Suggestions from the recovery guy after warming it up and having the symptoms reappear - crankshaft sensor, EGR valve (don't think OBD1 cars had those though?) and fuel pump - any ideas? I've been having hot-start trouble for a while and I've had the revs oscillate a little before when coming off the throttle - nearly undetectable though, nowhere near as dramatic! I'd been having quite a good run without anything major dying, too :( All suggestions welcome! Stone