2.1 DJ ongoing problems

[Tim D]

Hi,
My van has a fairly low mileage Vege engine which has done just over 10,000 miles. The engine has always overheated from when I bought the van and it blew a headgasket some months back for some unknown reason but probably an air pocket. A local garage diagnosed the headgasket problem and stripped the heads off then said they didn't want the job so I towed it home then reluctantly rebuilt it with a new gasket kit. The engine now starts and runs superbly however I'm not sure yet whether the gasket fix has worked as its blowing loads of blue smoke so I haven't run it for long. When its started it blows greyish white smoke then it turns blue as the engine gets hotter and also if I up the revs. I've adjusted the timing and reset the valves as per the Haynes manual so I don't know whats up with it. I've lost heart with this van now and if I can't get it running right soon then its going as it is. Does anyone have any ideas what the problem might be?

Many thanks
Tim.

[kevtherev]

overheated? be more specific please.

blue smoke is oil.. that means rings if you've cooked it

[Tim D]

Hi,
It always gave high readings on the temp gauge (about 3 quarters across) and I replaced the gauge and sensor and still the same and then one day it blew a hose going along the motorway so I pulled over immediately. I replaced the hose, refilled it and bled the system but then it blew water out of the expansion cap (new cap) after driving just a couple of miles so again I pulled over immediately, limped home and then took it in to the garage; when it arrived at the garage it wasn't blowing any smoke whatsoever.

Tim.

[kevtherev]

was the thermostat changed?

[VWCamperfan]

It's possible you have some unburnt oil in the exhaust system. May have got in there when it was at the garage.
I can't say for sure but if the engine sounds ok ie. no rattles, knocks etc. then it may be an idea to take it out for a fairly long run and see if it clears. Obviously (and I know you will!) keep an eye on the temperature and take some water and oil with you just in case you need to top up at anytime.

[Tim D]

Thanks for the replies. I changed the thermostat some time ago when I was trying to work out why the temp gauge was reading so high all the time and when I took it into the garage I got them to flush the rad and check for leaks etc.
Its a good idea to give it a run and I could do a circular route around the village so never going too far from home and take water and oil with me, I'll let you know what happens.

cheers
Tim

[kevtherev]

where did you get the header cap from?

[Ian Hulley]

where did you get the header cap from?

^^^ Yep, I have 2 useless ones from GSF, 1 old one that failed and 1 brand new one that was faulty over the counter.

Ian.

[Tim D]

Hi,
thanks for the reply.
the header cap came from GSF! I'ver still got the old one and there was probably nowt wrong with it so I'll chuck that back on. The headgasket had definately blown as there were scorch marks across it and the green liner seal had burnt through adjacent to the scorching. As for the blue smoke I haven't a clue whats up now and I think its time to just sell the van as it is, apart from the engine its a decent van and crank, bearings etc should be in good nick as the engine's only done 10'000 so for someone who can do a decent rebuild it could be a easy project however I haven't got the time at present. It will be appearing in the classifieds shortly!

cheers
Tim

[Ian Hulley]

Don't talk kin wet, you KNOW you don't want to do that really ... you've just fell out of love with the old girl. We've all been there ... well those of us who actually use their vans for transport or camping ... not the parked and polished lot who just use their vans as a "cock" extension at VW shows. Wind ya neck in, get saving and replace the motor with a known good pre-loved DJ from a breaker OR save up more and get a recon from Elite.

Ian.

[Tim D]

Thanks for the pep talk Ian, I haven't placed any ads yet!
I've had another look at the engine, I took the rocker covers off and on the cylinders 3,4 side there was a build up of oil which leaked out and made a mess on the drive (will remember to put something underneath next time!) and this seemed to continue trickling out. I checked the rocker assembly and I could move the rocker arm (cylinder 3 - inside one) and there doesn't seem to be a spacer between it and the bearing case and the sprung spacer on the other side which sits between two spacers is broken. Will this cause any problems or is this likely to have been caused by a bigger problem i.e. bent valve?

cheers
Tim.

[Ian Hulley]

A bent valve won't cause oil pressure issues .... compression issues yes. Sounds like you've bought someone else's nightmare and you may need to save faster than I first thought.

Ian