Club 80-90 Forums

Hi everyone, I have a 1989 JX 1.6TD which is smoking a lot. I basically need to add a litre of oil for each fuel tank. Despite it drives nicely and keeps 60mph on the motorway, the smoke is a problem.

So, what to do? Fix it or swap engines? I've read about people swapping to VW Golf 1.9TD engines, but at what cost? I'm quite happy with the performance and fuel consumption of my 1.6TD, so not looking for improvements, just about solving the problem in the cheapest way and maybe getting some improvements.

So, I'm basically asking for opinions and ideas. If was you, what would you do?

I live in Stoke-on-Trent (Midlands).

Check your turbo and intake pipes. Some years ago mine was smoking and drinking oil. Another turbo fixed it.
Also I ran it with a straight through exhaust for a while and gave the same symptoms. I think the turbo needs back pressure to seal. Blocked breathers can also cause similar symptoms. And probabley loads of other stuff to check before declaring engine dead. A full compression test would be the best indicator.

I actually replaced recently the feed pipe that provides oil to the turbo. The old one broke and started to leak. Maybe it is my turbo...

However, thinking about it, I'll spend £500 more or less to replace the turbo. How much would cost an engine conversion?