Club 80-90 Forums

A DJ this time and it won't take as long as some!

Bit of background: ex-syncro (genuine) VW factory recon (stamps on heads etc) but one head had been swapped since then, good oil pressure cold but on a run down to Devon it developed a knock... think T r a n s i t diesel over 2500 rpm and you get the picture! Drove around very gently for the weekend and then limped home to Surrey.
Engine out, drained and heads off to stop it festering, shoved it in the naughty corner.
I discovered that it had knocked out a big end (loads of dwell at TDC) but amazingly the crank pin looks OK and the conrod eye is still round! The bearing wasn't so pretty however, will dig out some pics.

So now it's time to sort it for some other wbx fan (will be in the for sales in due course)

Some interesting details: It's an early-type casing 2.1, identified by the lack of a diagonal web across the alternator mounting on the block, but because it's a syncro engine (numbering DJ 025###) this makes it post-86 and so has the later type bearings. I removed the flywheel to check and sure enough, multi-shim thrust bearing and a thin-wall bearing shell.

Happy days!

Spec will include: all-new main and big-end bearings, new rod bolts, hi-capacity 30mm oil pump, re-ringed pistons (if the barrels are OK. they look good) A good used flywheel with no cracks. Might well do this one as a short engine so the buyer can see that the studs are good & fit their own heads. I may also possibly build it with slightly reduced compression ratio to suit 95 RON, around 9.8:1 should be just doable by machining the pistons and without compromising reliability.

More later...

One very distreased big end bearing, down to the copper backing and a gnat's away from wrecking the crank:

The rod eye gauge is a diy quick-check, the rod will still need measuring with a bore gauge before signing off as ok.

Looking forward to learning a thing or two.

Here is the core:

Note the alt mounting without the diagonal rib, usually a sign of an early thick-shell engine (bearings NLA!) and the syncro labyrinth front pulley seal (also NLA)

NLA= no longer available?
if so what do you do for bearings?
Interested as I have an early engine I'm going to have a stab at

Correct. Brickwerks don't stock them. DF is a bit of a lost cause now imho. Better to get a complete DG installation from a breaker and lose all the early stuff.

My early engine I want to rebuild is a dg, getting confused now.
I thought there was just two types of engine case and bearings early and late.
df started then dg came in later but still with early case
I thought the dj came in with later case when the dg also changed but sounds more complicated then that.

Hmm, am also confused - I have rebuilt an 'early' case (pre '85), I thought that the only difference was the thrust bearing arrangement - i.e. pre '85 was single thrust, post '85 was three thrust.

Have also opened up a DF case which had the same bearings as my early DG (i.e. the single thrust). Bearings were readily available from VW Heritage (Mahle) in all the crank/case over/under sizes.

Have another early engine that I'm toying with rebuilding, so interested to know if there is another bearing arrangement so I know if its worth it!

Cheers,

Alex

There would have been some carry-over of early type cases for DG and DJ as the old stocks ran out, added to a degree of re-work on factory warranty & recon engines. Changeovers are always blurry, nothing gets wasted.

I should qualify that by saying that while the casing type may have been carried over, the early thick-wall bearings were not.
If your engine has the one-piece combined rear thrust then it has the early bearings.
I have read that these are NLA and best avoided as the cases cannot be easily (or reliably) converted to later thin-shell bearings.

I can see the second oil pressure switch, again I was led to believe only late engine cases had them, but i did read a coment recently of and engine that didn't conform as you say probably changeover years.
looking forward to some more pics

silverbullet wrote:I have read that these are NLA

Mahle (who I think are an okay brand, but could be wrong) still produce - available through VW Heritage and Cool Air for around £45 in a variety of oversize's.

Just Kampers also flog an unbranded set for £20 more, you have to love their optimism!

Looking forward to seeing the pictures!

Cheers,

Alex

I'm watching this thread with great interest as i have an early df built in 82 .any knowledge I pick is always a bonus .give me a Ford cross low or pinto and I'm happy but wbxr is a mystery !

mickeyflyn wrote:I'm watching this thread with great interest as i have an early df built in 82 .any knowledge I pick is always a bonus .give me a F0RD cross low or pinto and I'm happy but wbxr is a mystery !

He has said it's really a late engine with respect to the important bits like bearings.

itchyfeet wrote:

mickeyflyn wrote:I'm watching this thread with great interest as i have an early df built in 82 .any knowledge I pick is always a bonus .give me a F0RD cross low or pinto and I'm happy but wbxr is a mystery !

He has said it's really a late engine with respect to the important bits like bearings.

I realise that and I will in time prob have to get a new engine so any knowledge I gain is helpful for the future