What's a fair price for supply+fit a 1.9 AAZ?

[davidpchaplin]

Dear all,

My T25 already has its DG engine out for compartment refurb & I'd like to put an AAZ in.

My mechanic (MR Restorations - Top class!) has a good AAZ in a Passat he's breaking. He's never done an AAZ conversion before & neither of us know what a fair price would be...

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

David

[Aidan]

budget on three days labour plus parts I'd reckon

[vw nerd]

You will need a lot of parts from a diesel T3 to make the switch, so do your homework before you put any money into an engine that won't bolt straight in.

[davidpchaplin]

[quote="vw nerd"]You will need a lot of parts from a diesel T3 to make the switch, so do your homework before you put any money into an engine that won't bolt straight in.[/quote]

Hi & thanks for the reply.

You've managed to un-nerve me slightly as this is the first time I've heard that I need 'a lot of parts from a diesel T3'.

I know that I'll need a deisel gearbox (preferably 5 speed), but from what I've gathered, the ancillaries from the donor Passat should cover whatever else needed.

If I'm wrong I'd really like to know what details you have.

Thanks again

David

[windysurfer]

Have a read of this
http://www.brick-yard.co.uk/VehicleSpec ... ds/aaz.htm

You will need quite a few bits from a JX 1.6td engine

[davidpchaplin]

[quote="windysurfer"]Have a read of this
[url]http://www.brick-yard.co.uk/VehicleSpec ... ds/aaz.htm[/url]

You will need quite a few bits from a JX 1.6td engine[/quote]

Dear Windysurfer,

Wow!

That's an eye-opener. Thanks for the link.

My mechanic is very very good at what he does, though, as I mentioned, he's never done a DG - AAZ conversion before. We'll go over this very carefully before we start in on it.

Thanks again for sharing your expertise,

David

[davidpchaplin]

Thanks for the info & your expertise, it's very much appreciated.

This project is looking more problematic all the time - I haven't had much response in the "Good Idea!" range. It obviously needs a lot of care.

If we go ahead I shall write a report on it & post it up for other members. Any other ideas or warnings would be welcomed also.

Thanks again,

David

[big red bus]

May be going off the point but have you considered Subaru and LPG. May be a little more expensive to start with but well worth it in the end.

[davidpchaplin]

[quote="big red bus"]May be going off the point but have you considered Subaru and LPG. May be a little more expensive to start with but well worth it in the end. [/quote]

I thank thee, Mr.Big Red Bus, for the suggestions.

I had thought of them, particularly the Subaru; it was a question as to which turned up 1st - the Legacy or the Passat - & the AAZ won out. Also, my mechanic is a big fan of the TD & wanted to do it.

So I've bought a v.good 1.9 TD that's been tested (no smoke) with all the engine compartment bits for £750. When I've finished paying for it I'll be in the market for a 5 speed deisel gearbox, then it's a go for the fitting, which should cost £750 + maybe 20% teething.

We've double checked all the warnings the forum has offered & my mechanic (Mike Roberts) can cope. He is among the best there is - definately NOT Sunday Morning Man.

Thanks again for the suggestion,

David

[vw nerd]

Have you started collecting the parts that vw used to fit the td into the T3 as std, steel engine bars/alloy engine mounts/bell housing/input shaft/gearbox front mount/water pipes on engine/brackets that weld to rear valance/exhaust mounting brackets/td exhaust for T3, I'm sure there are other parts needed on this list.
You may need to fabricate an engine mount for the engine block on the turbo side of the engine in you don't use a jx manifold and turbo??? Check that out!!
You don't need to use a diesel gearbox, but you do need the front mount and bell housing.
You can cut down the petrol input shaft to the same length as the diesel one as the spline is the same.
You may also want to consider what clutch is on the engine and whether the centre plate spline needs to be changed to suit the vw input shaft.
Best of luck with conversion, but as I said earlier, do your homework before you invest any money into the project. There are a lot of pit falls if you don't know what you are about to embark on.
Tim.

[davidpchaplin]

Dear Tim,

Thanks again - this is great info - I'll pass it onto Mike Roberts (who'll know what a spline is !). He's very experienced & able to fabricate whatever's needed (he's looking forward to the exhaust, but the evil grin tells me he's thinking about the noise it's going to make).

The trouble with using my petrol 4-speed gearbox will be paying for a decent quality bellhousing (KENNEDY
ENGINEERED PRODUCTS, 38830 17th St. East, Palmdale, California 93550 (http://www.kennedyeng.com/vw_por.htm" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;) - the best - charge £350 + ~£75 postage), then paying a gearbox specialist to have the ratios changed. I may as well spend £300-£350 on a 5-speed diesel - they seem to come up for sale regularly.

Thanks again,

David

[vw nerd]

The bell housing used on the vw t3 diesel can be used as a direct swap onto your petrol box. Expect to pay £50 for a diesel bell housing. The adaptor plate route is great if you want to use a gearbox with non removable bell housing such as porsche. If you want to fit a 5 speed dont forget to get all of the gear linkage and gear stick parts. To be honest there is no benefit in going for the 5 speed. Check out the gear box code which relate to gear ratios, then compare the final drive and top gear ratios. Not much in it as std and a lot of work you don't need to make for your self. Spend your money and time getting the engine in!
Tim.

[davidpchaplin]

[quote="vw nerd"] The bell housing used on the vw t3 diesel can be used as a direct swap onto your petrol box. Expect to pay £50 for a diesel bell housing. The adaptor plate route is great if you want to use a gearbox with non removable bell housing such as porsche. If you want to fit a 5 speed dont forget to get all of the gear linkage and gear stick parts. To be honest there is no benefit in going for the 5 speed. Check out the gear box code which relate to gear ratios, then compare the final drive and top gear ratios. Not much in it as std and a lot of work you don't need to make for your self. Spend your money and time getting the engine in!
Tim.[/quote]

Dear Tim,

Thanks for that, it's good info.

Best regards,

David

[vw nerd]

How is the project moving on.
Since I last posted on your thread, I have fitted an AAZ from a Golf into a petrol T3, So I now have first hand info on the subject and am able to supply any pictures that might help your install.

Regards Tim.

[vw nerd]

I built the aaz into a bus for a customer.
My own project which is work in progress is a1Z TDI conversion with a renault UN1 gearbox as used on my V6 turbo powered van.

Tim