A 'sensible corrado' TDI conversion?

[reubenwilliams 0]

hey guys,

 

in a hair brained attempt to make the corrado a sensible student car for next years university hols. I'm thinking TDI conversion...

 

I know supercharged has one by the sounds of it, Mk 4 6 speed TDI 1.9 is where i'm thinking, 8)

 

basically, it'd cost me nearly 3k for a decent polo, so and then it'd be a polo. lovely, but not a nice change from the C.

 

So...

I'd love an idea of overall cost - bodywork mods to fit engine mounts or are they similar? difficulties and how happy you've been. I'm thinking we'll be able to find a good smashed rear ended golf somewhere to be a donor.

 

We'll be doing alot of the grunt work ourselves, stripping, wiring and other bits, only welding / fuel system bits would get pointed to the garage.

 

Anybody with any experience please write!

[Jim 1]

I can't tell you about costs, etc but I can tell you that a TDI in a Corrado is a really great drive - just ignore the folks who insist that a TDI can never replace a petrol motor! Every time I meet up with Supercharged, I really like the chance to take the TDI for a spin. Its excellent for town driving thanks to that wall of torque from the TDI engine and cruises excellent on the motorway. Really does suit the Corrado very well! :)

[reubenwilliams 0]

8) ! Thanks, I thought it was an awesome idea, glad it's now backed up! I hope supercharged could shed a bit of light on cost and some other issues, as being a skint student... well. you know, lol corrado ownership,

 

cheers Jim

[Jim 1]

Just noticed that you're a Warwick resident? Never seen your Corrado around. I only live in Old Milverton... :)

[reubenwilliams 0]

Yeah! im in Leamington for Warwick uni, starting September il be just off parade near the police station, but hopefully my C will stay in Milton Keynes stripped and ready for frequent trips down for the transplant...

 

I only had this one up for a month or so before end of term, back in MK now working over hols. There are a few nice looking C's around leam, all seem to be being driven by boy racer N*bs :( ! I'll keep an eye out for you. Il be the one pointing going 'look corrado' with a crowd of peeps looking confused, arts and biology students just dont get it...

[dinkus 10]

I've no idea at all on the specifics, but I'd imagine this is no harder to do than a 20vT install. You will need to run the VAG ECU tho, because I don't think there are any aftermarket ECUs for TDIs.

 

I'd also suggest fitting a decent stereo so you can drown out the diesel clatter :lol:

 

Seriously tho - they don't half shift and you'll get uber mpg too 8)

[Yandards 0]

Yup good conversion to do.

 

Supercharged will have a good idea about cost as I think he has the receipts for the work done, the lucky beggar bought the car with the swap already carried out.

 

The Tdi engine he has in it does really shift as the Corrado is lighter than the car the engine was designed for, I find the clutch a bit heavy as there is a missmatch between the master and slave cylinders using the existing Corrado pedal box. The gear lever also sits a bit high but I am sure all these things can be overcome with a little more work.

[reubenwilliams 0]

Cheers Dinkus :wink: , Audiscape Door pods on standby, focal speakers to join soon.

 

That is Jammy, already finished!!?, why hasnt someone already finished mine???

[Jim 1]

Yeah! im in Leamington for Warwick uniYeah! im in Leamington for Warwick uni

 

Ah - thats where I work ;) Let me know if you need help getting car bits or anything as I get discounts at the local dealerships etc :) PM me when you start up at the Uni :)

[Kevin Bacon 5]

The Tdi engine he has in it does really shift as the Corrado is lighter than the car the engine was designed for

 

That's a common misconception. Corrados are very heavy cars for their size and comparable to the FWD MK4's weight, give or take 20Kg or so. Ignore the handbook weights, they are way off.

 

As for Steve's TDI, I was impressed with how it drove, miles better than a MK4 TDI. It's not my first choice of engine conversion as the rev range is very narrow, but it's an effortless and economical steed none the less.

[reubenwilliams 0]

What a nice coincidence! I dont think I know your C? It's not the red one that parks outside Jack Martin? That was what made me sure I wanted Red!

 

What building are you in? I'm third year Eng? Discount parts sounds great! I'm sure I'll be in touch :thumbleft: ...

 

Cheers guys.

[Jim 1]

I don't park outside Jack Martin (though I suppose I may have done a few times in the past when I was playing tennis down there) - I work for IT Services (uh oh) but work and park over on Westwood. If you do see a Flash Red Corrado driving around through, be sure to give me a wave or something! :)

[reubenwilliams 0]

GGRRRHHH you and your dont download this, thats too big, you have virus, no internet for a month, naughty person lol, I shall keep an eye out for you, no worries...

[yeti 0]

Yeah! im in Leamington for Warwick uni, starting September il be just off parade near the police station, but hopefully my C will stay in Milton Keynes stripped and ready for frequent trips down for the transplant...

 

I only had this one up for a month or so before end of term, back in MK now working over hols. There are a few nice looking C's around leam, all seem to be being driven by boy racer N*bs :( ! I'll keep an eye out for you. Il be the one pointing going 'look corrado' with a crowd of peeps looking confused, arts and biology students just dont get it...

 

Sorry slightly offf topic but i cant remember seeing a red corrado ever in mk, have you just got it? i used to work over there for 3.5 years, granted i havent been to the mk meet for 2 months though! o how did you find taking your corrado up there, i took mine up once when i was seeing a girl up there earlier this year, great roads around the campus (particularly if you leave the main uni campus turn left and go about 2 miles from the uni just efore you get to the posh houses your at a cross roads with the mile long straight :lol: ) but the campus speed bumps are brutal!

 

either way another corrado in mk 8)

[rado-steve 0]

It would be an awesome conversion! The 130PD lump in my fabia is just as quick as the 1.8T in my C! The in Gear acceleration is brutal! It'll do 50-70 in 6th faster than a Porka Boxster!

 

You'll need a MK2 GTD fuel tank and fuel lines though and depending on which motor you went for ( The early 110 tdi lumps or the later PD units) I think a ball park figure of £2K-£3.5 would get it done! unless of course you did it yourself!

 

I have seen the 130-150PD motors (complete with 'box and loom) change hands for £1-1.5K though!

[reubenwilliams 0]

Mk3 Yeti,

 

I've only had it about 5 months now, I'm doing the J14 to city centre run every day now!

 

rado-steve, we would be doing most of it ourselves, only welding new engine mounts or anything like that would be a shop job! thats not an off putting price, quite a happy one actually... the thought is set. I've had quote for £700 engine w/out loom, seems bout right. the search continues - only time thats an issue, now 3rd year of uni approaches.

 

will keep you all informed, Thanks for your input.

[Storm Monkey 0]

The 1.9PD would be a cracking choise. Those things tune up very well indeed. Cant remember exactly. but there is a guy on http://www.Briskoda.net who has a fabia 1.9 pd running at about 250-260bhp, and criusing at 50ish mpg still. I think he goes under "Devonutopia". He has all sorts added, including LPG injection, serious gains are easily achievable with a simple remap!

 

Will be watching with interest.

 

Phil

[reubenwilliams 0]

Right, here is the plan so far. (I'm thinking 2 years to complete based on the fact it's my student loan covering it!)

 

Time for a new car - anyone with a decent Mk2 Driver 1.6 please contact me!

 

For sale soon. engine and interior from my C!

 

Strip completely over next few months for respray sometime late this year - fingers crossed the student loan can take that hit - Hopefully saving enough next summer for the engine / g.box / loom / ecu... and continue rebuild next summer maybe a year in industry is due to fund it!!

[G60ING 0]

its great swap. I drive mine everyday and love it. Hell today I had a guy in a Ford Mustang pull along side and give me the thumbs up. I've had so many people interested in my car that I've decided to build a 2nd corrado TDI. Here are the links to both of my TDI corrados build threads:

 

1990 DZSL Corrado Build Thread

1992 DZSL SLC Corrado Build Thread

[reubenwilliams 0]

Nice thread G60ING!

 

I did think a Mk3 engine would be easier than a 4. But i keep being recommended the mk4 PD... What sort of figures have you got from your mk3 TDI?

[G60ING 0]

The reason most are recomending the PD is because of the power potenial they have. If you take a 150hp pd tdi you can get realisticly well over 200whp and 350wtq.

 

The easiest swap is to do the mk3/b4 donor and have it done in a week's worth of work 60-100hours.

[Walesy 0]

What exactly is needed when doing a TDI conversion? i've seen a 130 PD engine and 6 speed box for sale - can anyone give me a list of EVERYTHING i need to whack it into a 16v or 8v rado? cheers

[G60ING 0]

What exactly is needed when doing a TDI conversion? i've seen a 130 PD engine and 6 speed box for sale - can anyone give me a list of EVERYTHING i need to whack it into a 16v or 8v rado? cheers

 

 

There is no definative list. There are many options on how to do various elements. I personally would recommend that you get everything(motor, tranmission, ECU, fuel filter, wiring harness, ABS, pedal cluster, fusebox, instrument cluster, fuel gauge sending unit, IC pipes, downpipe, Cat, shiftbox, rubber hoses, relays, Maf and so on from the donor. If you don't get the parts now you might regret it later if you have to buy it separatly.

[Walesy 0]

Cheers for the reply.

 

Here's a list of what's available:

 

PD130 engine taken from '03 Seat Ibiza - not sure on mileage, but its not very high at all.

All ancillaries (turbo, alternator etc..) all still fitted to engine.

6-Speed box, complete with cable gear linkage, selector and gear stick/knob and gaitor.

Clocks.

Upper steering column with ignition barrel and key.

ECU

Complete wiring loom (2 bags full!) with fuses, relays etc...

 

The guy i brought it off has fitted the fly-by-wire throttle pedal to a mk2 pedal box, which is included in the sale.

Also the Seat clutch pedal with the hydraulic pipes included.

 

So i'm assuming that won't be all I need?

[rado-steve 0]

Pretty sure you'll need fuel lines and tank! also the PD engines run a fuel heater aswell for cold days!