Newbie with a ropey VR!

[Co-Pang-Yang 10]

Hi all.

 

So a couple of weeks ago I decided I wanted something fun to drive for the summer, first I found a Golf VR6 for sale at scrap value so thought I'd buy it and see if it was any good.

 

 

Turned out to have a cracked block so I broke it for spares and carried on looking

 

 

Then got a bit carried away on ebay and ended up with this:

 

 

Its a 1991 H VR6 with an indicated 74k on the clock.

But in true ebay style there was a fair few more bits wrong with it than advertized.

 

Coolant system pressurizes very quickly and mayo appears under the oil cap so I'm assuming that it needs the headgasket changing and maybe a skim.

Its had a wack at the front at somepoint and not be repaired very well. Both headlight plastic mounts are broken and the grill is loose. Also the bumper doesn't sit right and the spray job is pretty pants. There are also various dinks and scratches on the bodywork.

Previous owner got the car with no keys or alarm fob so they replaced the iginition barrel and ripped out the clifford alarm. So there is no key for the outside locks and the passenger door handle doesn't work from the outside.

Also the passenger front lights don't work (sidelight, dipped and full beam) also front fogs don't work.

Gearbox selector seems a bit vague

And finally the indicators and hazard lights don't work at all.

 

So its safe to say it has its faults lol.

There are some plus points though:

 

Black leather interior (abit damp) is in very good condition

The rear spoiler works as do the windows and mirrors

Good tread on the tyres

Engine still seems to pull well

Has a AMD chip

 

So really I'm after some advise on what to do next, should I fix it if so how much am I gonna need to budget on parts? Any of the above sound like common problems? How do I see if it has been chipped?

Will be doing all the work myself so don't need labour costs, just parts.

Just fancied it as a cheap bit of fun as I have an old Passat I use as my daily hack and a Land Rover Discovery thats kitted up for off roading.

 

I have a couple of bits left over from the Golf, namley a gearbox in very good nick so I would probably swap that over.

 

So thats it really, no other pictures yet as my Landy's oil pump decided to fail on the way to its MOT so I'm currently building up its soon to be fitted replacment engine. But once thats done I wanna get cracking with either fixing or breaking the Corrado.

 

My parts list so far consists of:

 

Headgasket (what one and what else should I get?)

Full locks set

Pair of headlight mounting brackets

Grill

Headunit

 

So any advice or information would be greatly appricated.

 

Cheers Chris

[James. 7]

Brave man. I tip my cap to you for taking such a task on.

Firstly you've got a non- original vr6. As vr's were only available from 92. So it may be worth while checking the whole engine bay out to make sure that it's been put together safely and correctly.

If you're replacing the head gasket then I'd replace the head bolts as well.

Lights may not have been connected up if the front bumpers been off at some point ?

Best of luck and keeps us up to speed.

PS, There's loads of help on past threads if you use the search function.

[Co-Pang-Yang 10]

Cheers for the info mate.

Had a look at the logbook and its was registered 21/01/1991 and lists the model as a Corrado 16v. :doh:

States the engine size as 2872cc so looks like the engine change was noted with the DVLA.

 

Tbh if its too much work I may just break it, always wanted a Corrado which is probably why I got this one on a whim but its also ment to be a cheap toy for the summer so not willing to through loads of money at it.

But if its just needs the headgasket and bolts to sort the engine (maybe a service too) a long with a bit of wiring for the MOT then that good enough for me for now.

Maybe at a later date I'll look to get the paintwork sorted but for now I'm trying to stick to a budget on £300 to get it running and MOT'd.

 

Noticed the rad sits at a weird angle and the holes on the slam panel don't line up with the mounts on it, was there a difference between the 16v and VR rads? Also previous owner has repaired a crack on the plastic housing on top of the rad with sealant the thats probably gonna need attention.

 

What should I expect to pay for a headgasket and bolts? Is it worth changing the water pump at the same time?

[James. 7]

http://www.vwspares.co.uk/corrado_gaskets.php

 

I tend to always go the VAG route when it comes to things like this, but here's an alternative. It may also be worth checking the oe parts prices as there may be little in it.

 

On a positive, the Passat looks nice enough !

 

Where abouts are you ?

[Co-Pang-Yang 10]

Yer I'll probably stick with VW parts for the head, seems a shame to knacker it up with cheap parts.

Cheers mate, took a 300 mile round trip to go get it but when yhe asking price is £100 you can't say no! Got full heated leather, electric front seats and cruise control. 196K on the clock and still does everything asked of it including towing my car trailer.

 

I'm in Colchester, Essex.

 

Found a couple of VW breakers local to me so gonna call them and see about getting some prices for other parts like the headlights.

[aide 0]

fair play if you bring this one back from the brink, £300 for an MOT may be a push though!

[Co-Pang-Yang 10]

Well I'll remain hopeful till I get some prices lol.

First thing is to try and sort the non-working headlamp and indicators. Everything else is pretty straightforward after that.

[Co-Pang-Yang 10]

Can anyone give me any suggestions as to what it would be worth with a re-built engine, new coilovers and MOT?

I'm assuming as it was a 16v the arches are differed to a standard VR?

[The_Dude 0]

Alright mate, fan of full moon parties by any chance? ;)

Well, despite the damage etc, I reckon you could probably get a grand if you sorted all the problems. The arches, bonnet, hubs, brakes, grill and interior are different from a normal VR. The VR has a wider track, (so wider arches) 5 stud hubs and larger 280 mm front brakes, unless it was all swapped over from the donor vehicle. The bonnet on the late cars has a bump instead of a dip to clear the engine (and again the arches are ever so slightly longer).

Major priority is finding out what damage has been done to engine.

If it was me, I'd clean and sell the seats as they're worth a fair bit more than you paid for the car and get a cloth interior. You'll then have some pennies left over for repairs.

[Co-Pang-Yang 10]

Thank for the info mate thats very helpful. Lol yer love the over night car repairs. Car does have 5 stud hubs and 280mm front brakes so thats a start.

Well I guess first thing is to whip the head off and have a look. Still have a spare head from the Golf so could get that skimmed, then order new headgasket and bolts.

Will try and sort out getting some more pictures up to give a clearer indication of what I have.

[Co-Pang-Yang 10]

Hello again.

 

Well my Landy's oil pump deciding to fail and wreck my engine on the way to the MOT last month caused issues and resulted in all my spare time being taking up with fixing that. Its finally on the road and orthough it still needs work it does allow me a bit of free time to start on the Corrado.

 

Still haven't got any proper daylight pics yet. Had a bit of time yesterday so started stripping it down:

 

 

Firstly I need to find out excatly what I have. It runs a Dizzy as aposed to the Golf engine which was coil pack. My original plan was to get the Golf's head skimmed maybe change the valves (any suggestions on what to have done?) then whip the Corrado's head off and fit the Golf. But now I'm assuming this won't work as one is coil and one is dizzy.

Been reading through some guides on changing the timing chain, should I bother? If so how much are the parts going to cost?

 

Gonna have a lot of questions so please try and bare with me, my mechnical skills are pretty basic (hense why I have a 20 year old Land Rover diesel lol)

 

Cheers Chris

[Co-Pang-Yang 10]

Took a couple more shots today:

 

No rot but plenty of scuffs and dents

 

16v rad?

 

Not nice

 

 

Fortuanlly this is in good nick

 

Not a fan of the grey dash though

 

Early bonnet

 

 

As far as I got with the engine, didn't realise that the cam sprokets have to come off to remove the chain. Gonna have to bring a bigger spanner with me to hold the cam in place whilst I undo the nut.

[Co-Pang-Yang 10]

Anyone got any suggestions on what to have done with the head if i'm having it skimmed and how much to expect to pay?

[VW_OwneR_85 1]

fair play m8, i brought a a cheapy a few months back, looking back i would of rather paid abit more for one thats in better condition but at the time i realy wanted one and i couldnt afford paying much more,got loads of little bits to sort out. if your playing with the chains you should invest in this cam locking tool,http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/VR6-Camshaft-Alignment-Engine-Repair-3268-Cam-Tool-VW-/170620273753?pt=UK_CarsParts_Vehicles_CarParts_SM&hash=item27b9c2c459

[Co-Pang-Yang 10]

Yer can see the advantage of buying to good one lol.

Ended up making a locking tool so got that covered. Next job I have to do is to remove one of the cam sprokets so I can get the chain off. Just hope I don't brake anything.

[VW_OwneR_85 1]

since buying my corrado ive learnt buy cheap buy twice,you pay for what you get, if it aint broke dont fix it!,lol its kinda true tho, i brought replacemant wishbones with audi tt/r32 bushs, replaced the drivers side along with new ball joints and disc,all went ok,then the other day i had a bash at the passenger side {should be easier as the engine sump isnt in the way of the wishbone bolt} and the wishbone bolt snapped in half!!! so i now have to either drill the remaining bolt out or get another sub frame :( bareing in mind that i dont have a permanant place to work on my car,

[Co-Pang-Yang 10]

I'll just have to see how mines goes. Plan on re-building the engine as should get my money back on a good engine anyway. If the rest of the car turns out to be too much of a problem than I'll just break it for spares.

[aide 0]

as a guide i paid £125 quid to have a head cleaned, skimmed, new valve guides pressed in, valve seats reground and valves refaced. i provided the new valve guides to the engineering shop, they were about £35 for 12.

 

the dizzy and coil pack heads are the same, just a blanking rubber needed where the distributor shank goes.

 

you'll never undo the cam gears from the cam in situ, just loosen the cams and untension the top tensioner and unhook the chain that way.

 

and plenty of us buy projects, good work and keep the faith :)

[Co-Pang-Yang 10]

Thanks very much for the info mate, I'll start phoning round some local engine builders and see what prices I can get.Don't suppose you still have the link to where you got the new valve guides from do you?

Ok handy to know that I can use the Golfs coil pack head then. And thanks I'll have a go at removing the cam next week instead and then I will be able to see whats what in the engine.

Ha ha I will try, would much prefer to put it on the road and use it as a fun summer toy!

[aide 0]

i got the guides from GSF, they're 38mm from memory.

[Co-Pang-Yang 10]

Thanks mate, I'll do a bit of research.

Would love to do some tuning whilst its in bits but gotta remember its ment to be a cheap runaround lol!

[Co-Pang-Yang 10]

as a guide i paid £125 quid to have a head cleaned, skimmed, new valve guides pressed in, valve seats reground and valves refaced. i provided the new valve guides to the engineering shop, they were about £35 for 12.

 

Done well with your price mate. Best quote I have is £150 for skim, seats re-ground and valves re-faced. Plus £11 each to supply and fit new valve guides.

[aide 0]

yeh seems i did, i was surprised at the time it wasn't more, but then Northern Ireland would be cheaper than the UK for some things.

[Co-Pang-Yang 10]

Ah true I suppose. Having a chat with the engineer he said they get a lot of older VW engines in and usually the valve guides are fine or at worse just the exhaust side need changing. I noticed a little play in the exhaust side and none on the inlet side.

There gonna check them for me and let me know what they would recomend.

Would love to get it ported and polished at the same time but reckon we're talking at least another £200 and I'm too skint for that lol.

 

---------- Post added at 09:27 AM ---------- Previous post was at 09:25 AM ----------

 

Stripped the Golf head down yesterday ready to take to the machine shop:

 

 

Valves look straight but will have them checked to make sure and lifters don't appear to be warn so thats good.

 

---------- Post added at 10:28 AM ---------- Previous post was at 09:27 AM ----------

 

Also should a VR6 fan be single or twin?

[aide 0]

yeh same there was a lot more play in my exhaust side, but at cold they'll feel more wobbly because the stem of the exhaust valve is something like .02mm thinner to allow for greater expansion.

 

ref p&p ingfrom what i've heard bigger valves is where the real benefit is, so just figured i'll save for some force feeding instead as big valve heads are serious money :)

 

vr6 should be twin fan, one motor drive the other belt.

 

you ought to get one of the mods to relocate this thread into the members gallery, i think they auto delete from this folder if there's inactivity.