Shedding properly, 2004 Passat Estate 1.9 TDI
Discussion
Sunday evening.
What would you do? Watch whatever cack is on the telly, too early for "Netflix and chill" not that the Wife has any idea what that means so I guess it is a no-no, go to the pub or if you have a lit garage mess about with lumps of your car?
I thought it'd be nice to mess about with the car or lumps of it.
The front wings as taken off the car earlier on. I gave them a good clean and had a good look at them. Good news, almost completely rust free and what bits there were were only light and superficial. Wanting to keep them that way I set to work. The replacement wing by the way is a genuine VW one not a pattern part so i guess it must have been fitted very early on the cars life.
I spot sanded the few bits of surface rust off them, mainly on the return edge where it folds back under the wheelarch and then got the rattle cans out. Ordinarily I wouldn't attempt any spray painting when it is this cold and damp as it can lead to the paint 'blooming' but the areas were small it meant I could use the electric paint stripper as a drier for the paint.
After sanding the rust spots out, I lightly sanded the rest of the lip to act as key, then primed, base coated and two coats of laquer. It was a very quick process as I was drying it almost immediately with the heat gun and secondly the finish is not important.
I then masked off and applied a nice thick coat of my favourite black paint on the section where the wheelarch liner bear onto and could possibly rub and chaff the paint off. I plan another two thick coats of this. Much like Gandalf telling the Balrog that he shall not pass, I said to myself "these wings shall not rust" or that is the plan.
Quite how the car had avoided the rust issue on the wings in the first place is unexplained but I'm very pleased that it hadn't as I was expecting to have to do a lot more to the wings. A bonus. The foam rubber poofa block on the wing is not going back on I've decided. Don't confuse them with the other poofa blocks that will be going back on by the door shuts.
A post wouldn't be complete without pictures...
As clean as a whistle
As was this one.
Clean wing with now redundant poofa
An action shot of me somehow drying paint with the heat gun and taking a photo.
The wings cunningly hanging up from the garage roof on bungy chords
Nice gloopy thick coat of paint.
What would you do? Watch whatever cack is on the telly, too early for "Netflix and chill" not that the Wife has any idea what that means so I guess it is a no-no, go to the pub or if you have a lit garage mess about with lumps of your car?
I thought it'd be nice to mess about with the car or lumps of it.
The front wings as taken off the car earlier on. I gave them a good clean and had a good look at them. Good news, almost completely rust free and what bits there were were only light and superficial. Wanting to keep them that way I set to work. The replacement wing by the way is a genuine VW one not a pattern part so i guess it must have been fitted very early on the cars life.
I spot sanded the few bits of surface rust off them, mainly on the return edge where it folds back under the wheelarch and then got the rattle cans out. Ordinarily I wouldn't attempt any spray painting when it is this cold and damp as it can lead to the paint 'blooming' but the areas were small it meant I could use the electric paint stripper as a drier for the paint.
After sanding the rust spots out, I lightly sanded the rest of the lip to act as key, then primed, base coated and two coats of laquer. It was a very quick process as I was drying it almost immediately with the heat gun and secondly the finish is not important.
I then masked off and applied a nice thick coat of my favourite black paint on the section where the wheelarch liner bear onto and could possibly rub and chaff the paint off. I plan another two thick coats of this. Much like Gandalf telling the Balrog that he shall not pass, I said to myself "these wings shall not rust" or that is the plan.
Quite how the car had avoided the rust issue on the wings in the first place is unexplained but I'm very pleased that it hadn't as I was expecting to have to do a lot more to the wings. A bonus. The foam rubber poofa block on the wing is not going back on I've decided. Don't confuse them with the other poofa blocks that will be going back on by the door shuts.
A post wouldn't be complete without pictures...
As clean as a whistle
As was this one.
Clean wing with now redundant poofa
An action shot of me somehow drying paint with the heat gun and taking a photo.
The wings cunningly hanging up from the garage roof on bungy chords
Nice gloopy thick coat of paint.
S0 What said:
Trust me, when it comes to modern vehaicals patience is a skill ! and one you have in shedloads 
dont do yourself a disservice, you have skills, 50% of drivers couldn't even change a wheel !
True, there is too much "get a man in" these days. I don't know the reason but can think of a few. dont do yourself a disservice, you have skills, 50% of drivers couldn't even change a wheel !Photobucket for some reason changes the order of the photos so some of this may appear out of sequence.
I've almost got the front suspension built up and finished but came in for my 'tea'.
When using a wire brush in an angle grinder, sometimes this happens. Not too bad in the finger, having one in your lip stings a little bit.
Cleaned off the surface rust
And painted it
Also had a go at the crush damage on the sills. They will never be perfect but I can add back so form of protection.
Bashed back as good as I could get it and cleaned off the surface rust
The rear sills were easier, got them nice and straight
And then, you guessed it... paint
I've almost got the front suspension built up and finished but came in for my 'tea'.
When using a wire brush in an angle grinder, sometimes this happens. Not too bad in the finger, having one in your lip stings a little bit.
Cleaned off the surface rust
And painted it
Also had a go at the crush damage on the sills. They will never be perfect but I can add back so form of protection.
Bashed back as good as I could get it and cleaned off the surface rust
The rear sills were easier, got them nice and straight
And then, you guessed it... paint
Sometimes something happens that makes you think, 'oh dear' but in real life the words are stronger.
Remember the new front brake carriers, well I came to fit the first one. Sxxt the bolts don't got in. Sxxt, no wonder they were cheap. I got the drill out, the carrier in the vice took the photo below and started to drill and then off popped a washer, one of the ones I'd put on to prevent paint going on the mating face. Turns out that I'd painted them so well it wasn't obviously visible.
Emergency over!
Comparing the existing one with the new one which the holes are too small on....
The offending washers prized off!
What a plonker.
Remember the new front brake carriers, well I came to fit the first one. Sxxt the bolts don't got in. Sxxt, no wonder they were cheap. I got the drill out, the carrier in the vice took the photo below and started to drill and then off popped a washer, one of the ones I'd put on to prevent paint going on the mating face. Turns out that I'd painted them so well it wasn't obviously visible.
Emergency over!
Comparing the existing one with the new one which the holes are too small on....
The offending washers prized off!
What a plonker.
So here we go, the drivers front wheel
As it was at the start. With the wing off you get a view not normally seen.
Starting off the the upper arm pinchbolt. These rust solid in place and can cause a whole world of pain trying to remove. I've never had any bother with them. When I initially removed these from the I plusgassed them every day for a few weeks before hand, they were tight but came out. I've replaced them twice over as well since and always slather them in copper grease when they go back on. Strangely allmost all traces of it are gone each time they come back off.
Pop the upper arm balljoints out of the knuckle top
Trackrod end. Not the feeler gauges in there, this dimension needs to be preserved. That dimension and what it signifies and does could take up a thread on its own.
Caliper spring off
Then the caliper, two allen headed slider bolts on the back then you have to lever the caliper off the disc. Pic is the caliper unside down on an axle stand showing the slider bolt ends
Then the caliper carrier bracket and then the disc which just lifts off, well did on mine, others may be stuck with rust and need a whack. You can see the wear on the carrier here and where the pad end was sticking.
Into the engine bay to undo the carrier plate for the strut and tops arms, x3 bolts. One here
One here
And one here
Remove strut / shck lower bolt
Press down and take the shock, upper arms and carrier assembly complete. More later on that.
Pull the abs sensor out of its housing, I'd already cleaned it in this pic. Reason for removing is not to damage it when pulling the cv joint out of the hub and also so it is out the way when you tackle the driveshaft inner joint bolts.
ABS sensor safely tucked out the way.
As it was at the start. With the wing off you get a view not normally seen.
Starting off the the upper arm pinchbolt. These rust solid in place and can cause a whole world of pain trying to remove. I've never had any bother with them. When I initially removed these from the I plusgassed them every day for a few weeks before hand, they were tight but came out. I've replaced them twice over as well since and always slather them in copper grease when they go back on. Strangely allmost all traces of it are gone each time they come back off.
Pop the upper arm balljoints out of the knuckle top
Trackrod end. Not the feeler gauges in there, this dimension needs to be preserved. That dimension and what it signifies and does could take up a thread on its own.
Caliper spring off
Then the caliper, two allen headed slider bolts on the back then you have to lever the caliper off the disc. Pic is the caliper unside down on an axle stand showing the slider bolt ends
Then the caliper carrier bracket and then the disc which just lifts off, well did on mine, others may be stuck with rust and need a whack. You can see the wear on the carrier here and where the pad end was sticking.
Into the engine bay to undo the carrier plate for the strut and tops arms, x3 bolts. One here
One here
And one here
Remove strut / shck lower bolt
Press down and take the shock, upper arms and carrier assembly complete. More later on that.
Pull the abs sensor out of its housing, I'd already cleaned it in this pic. Reason for removing is not to damage it when pulling the cv joint out of the hub and also so it is out the way when you tackle the driveshaft inner joint bolts.
ABS sensor safely tucked out the way.
My method of removing the driveshaft inner bolts. These are 10mm triple square "cheese heads". In the pic two bolts in the drive flange where the wheel bolts go with a breaker bar to prevent things turning. And then a 10" wobble extension bar, another 10" extension bar and a 5" extension bar, a total of 25" with the triple square bit on the end with another breaker bar on the other to do the undoing...
Looks bonkers but beats struggling under the car itself
How long...
There she blows. I had the break the joint between the 'flange' and the joint with a screwdriver lightly tapped by Mr Ballpien Hammer.
You can then pull the knuckle forward and withdraw the driveshaft from the car. Much easier than splitting the lower arms providing you pinch bolts are good.
Looks bonkers but beats struggling under the car itself
How long...
There she blows. I had the break the joint between the 'flange' and the joint with a screwdriver lightly tapped by Mr Ballpien Hammer.
You can then pull the knuckle forward and withdraw the driveshaft from the car. Much easier than splitting the lower arms providing you pinch bolts are good.
On the bench to have a look. Regardless of condition I was swapping the CV joint. The hadn't failed but it wouldn't be long until it did.
Split the clips
Cut the old boot off, new stanley blade for this job!
Mess, clean as much of this off as possible using the kitchen roll you stole from the kitchen before you start hittng it with the lump hammer.
Joint popped off the shaft after some whacking with Mr Lump Hammer (pictured). I had to give this one a good clout and wouldn't have really struggled if I didn't have a bench vice. For this reason alone it is worth taking the shaft off the car. I would never have been able to have hit it hard enough with the shaft still on the car and would have risked damage to the inner joint and or gearbox bearings.
Clean the shaft end, really clean it! Then trial fit the new joint with no circlip just to make sure everything is good before you apply grease into the new joint.
New CV joint kit
Concave thrust washer on, note direction, plastic sleeve
Deliberate mistake in previous shot. PUT THE BOOT ON FIRST, you plum!
That is better, this time with the boot and the new circlip.
New grease in the joint. Some say put half in the joint and half in the boot. I say put it all in the joint and let what will be work its way into the boot when in use. Also less messy to fit doing it my way.
I've said before and say it again, if you are doing this get some of there clip pliers. Also; TOP TIP, if you have never done this buy a few spare clips as you WILL ruin a few until you get the hang of it unless of course you are a super hero type.
As was on the passenger side shaft the inner joint boot was as new.
A moody sidelit shot of the gearbox drive flange.
Action shot - SHAFT SCREWED to FLANGE ... only finger tight.
Split the clips
Cut the old boot off, new stanley blade for this job!
Mess, clean as much of this off as possible using the kitchen roll you stole from the kitchen before you start hittng it with the lump hammer.
Joint popped off the shaft after some whacking with Mr Lump Hammer (pictured). I had to give this one a good clout and wouldn't have really struggled if I didn't have a bench vice. For this reason alone it is worth taking the shaft off the car. I would never have been able to have hit it hard enough with the shaft still on the car and would have risked damage to the inner joint and or gearbox bearings.
Clean the shaft end, really clean it! Then trial fit the new joint with no circlip just to make sure everything is good before you apply grease into the new joint.
New CV joint kit
Concave thrust washer on, note direction, plastic sleeve
Deliberate mistake in previous shot. PUT THE BOOT ON FIRST, you plum!
That is better, this time with the boot and the new circlip.
New grease in the joint. Some say put half in the joint and half in the boot. I say put it all in the joint and let what will be work its way into the boot when in use. Also less messy to fit doing it my way.
I've said before and say it again, if you are doing this get some of there clip pliers. Also; TOP TIP, if you have never done this buy a few spare clips as you WILL ruin a few until you get the hang of it unless of course you are a super hero type.
As was on the passenger side shaft the inner joint boot was as new.
A moody sidelit shot of the gearbox drive flange.
Action shot - SHAFT SCREWED to FLANGE ... only finger tight.
Back the to upper arms and strut
Old strut
The spring was getting crusty, another year or two like this, this would have snapped.
Two 13mm nuts secure the strut to the carrier. Everything looks messy but this is mainly waxoyl from last time I had this off, no need to clean it.
Man maths time. This dimension should be 47mm for standard ride height. I guessed it would need to be 40mm for the revised ride height. I was going to go for 42mm but thought sod it and went for 40mm.
Back on the car, new strut on
An random shot of the completed passenger side. As I've said with the wing off, you get a full view not often seen of the full mutlilink suspension.
Back to the drivers side. Strut in, driveshaft in
Old strut
The spring was getting crusty, another year or two like this, this would have snapped.
Two 13mm nuts secure the strut to the carrier. Everything looks messy but this is mainly waxoyl from last time I had this off, no need to clean it.
Man maths time. This dimension should be 47mm for standard ride height. I guessed it would need to be 40mm for the revised ride height. I was going to go for 42mm but thought sod it and went for 40mm.
Back on the car, new strut on
An random shot of the completed passenger side. As I've said with the wing off, you get a full view not often seen of the full mutlilink suspension.
Back to the drivers side. Strut in, driveshaft in
I've got it all back together and have fitted the bumper back on for now as I wanted to check the panel fit when the wings went back on. I'm really pleased with the condition of the car underneath. The fact that the wings didn't any sign of the usual rot was a massive bonus. Assembling everything back to together waxoyl was used and should see the car in fine fettle for a long time yet.
Waxy goodness
Very pleased with the front wing condition and now with added protection, the strip of thick black paint slopped on.
The sill covers also got a splodging
As did the edges of the wings
All done. Arch liners back on, sill covers on
All that is left suspension wise is yo get the car over the pit and loosen then re-tighten the lower arm bush bolt to suit the revised spring height. I also need to refit the lower engine covers and the rear beam cover.
Just to show it is like any normal car, the indercovers are a bit battered and very dirty.
Sorted.
Waxy goodness
Very pleased with the front wing condition and now with added protection, the strip of thick black paint slopped on.
The sill covers also got a splodging
As did the edges of the wings
All done. Arch liners back on, sill covers on
All that is left suspension wise is yo get the car over the pit and loosen then re-tighten the lower arm bush bolt to suit the revised spring height. I also need to refit the lower engine covers and the rear beam cover.
Just to show it is like any normal car, the indercovers are a bit battered and very dirty.
Sorted.
Pennyroyal Tea said:
Shedding is what shedding does. Whatever, this thread is far more entertaining than it really ought to be, and the car is a credit to you 
I know it is a bit mad spending so much time effort and cash on an old car but I've had the old hector for coming up on five years now and love it. Their reputation precedes them in terms of reliability and most of the work I'm doing isn't strictly needed but if I'm shedding it I still want new(er) car peace of mind.bearman68 said:
Worth getting it mapped though. On these era cars the EGR issues become untenable and block the turbo. Mapping it now will save the turbo in later life.
I've no interest in going faster (how un-piston headed of me) but am interested in the reliability benefits. helix402 said:
Super project. I would of recommend some of the newer rust proofing waxes over Waxoil, such as Bilt Hamber and even the old Dinitrol.
I've had that can of waxoyl about twenty odd years and it has served me well thus far. I think it will be fine for the big lumpy bits I've used it on so far on this project. I may look into the more modern stuff as I want to internally spray the rear arches and / possibly the sills , doors etc. How well do they spray compared to waxoyl, which to be honest was a nightmare last time I tried it.Next phase is the cambelt and all of its associated gubbings.
I last did this back early 2012 and did just the basic belt, tensioner, deflection pulley and water pump change. The car has covered about 40,000 miles in that time and so it is time to replace. I also relaced the aux belt and aux belt tensioner last time but re-used the A/C belt and tensioner.
This is especially so as the car has recently developed a bit of a squeak when it is cold. I've just been out and started it up cold after over a week of it being sat while I did the suspension work.
I have assembled the necessary bits and bobs. I'm doing everything!
Cambelt kit. I went again for a Gates kit. I really like them as they normally as in this case come with a genuine Litens tensioner.
With this kit came a water pump as well. Yes, it is a plastic impeller and yes I prefer them as any failure on the waterpump is less likely to lock the belt and cause engine failure.
Auxiliary belts and both tensioners.
Genuine INA alternator pulley, a new tool to extract it, and the viscose fan bearing.
A tool just as essential as spanners and sockets, a laptop with a VCDS / Vagcom cable.
I also checked the syncro angle for the camshaft timing before the belt change. I set this to 0.0 four years ago when I last did this. 40k and four years later it is at 1.1
I'm currently in two minds as to get out there and get stuck in. Both of the kids are flaked out with some flu like lerg which no doubt I willl also get. The question is and as i'll be doing this over a few days is whether to start it at all. If I get the lerg I won't much fancy doing anything to the car. I had set aside and planned some 'off the road' time for it but this will extend that. I also have a few meetings to travel to next week.
I last did this back early 2012 and did just the basic belt, tensioner, deflection pulley and water pump change. The car has covered about 40,000 miles in that time and so it is time to replace. I also relaced the aux belt and aux belt tensioner last time but re-used the A/C belt and tensioner.
This is especially so as the car has recently developed a bit of a squeak when it is cold. I've just been out and started it up cold after over a week of it being sat while I did the suspension work.
I have assembled the necessary bits and bobs. I'm doing everything!
Cambelt kit. I went again for a Gates kit. I really like them as they normally as in this case come with a genuine Litens tensioner.
With this kit came a water pump as well. Yes, it is a plastic impeller and yes I prefer them as any failure on the waterpump is less likely to lock the belt and cause engine failure.
Auxiliary belts and both tensioners.
Genuine INA alternator pulley, a new tool to extract it, and the viscose fan bearing.
A tool just as essential as spanners and sockets, a laptop with a VCDS / Vagcom cable.
I also checked the syncro angle for the camshaft timing before the belt change. I set this to 0.0 four years ago when I last did this. 40k and four years later it is at 1.1
I'm currently in two minds as to get out there and get stuck in. Both of the kids are flaked out with some flu like lerg which no doubt I willl also get. The question is and as i'll be doing this over a few days is whether to start it at all. If I get the lerg I won't much fancy doing anything to the car. I had set aside and planned some 'off the road' time for it but this will extend that. I also have a few meetings to travel to next week.
I decided to crack on....
For those that think I'm mad, I am but I find it quite theraputic taking photos and then talking about them. It is a bit like going through old family photos but instead looking at oily bits of metal.
So...
To undertake such a task you need a fairly comprehensive tool kit including a set of torx bits, a socket set or two in 1/2 and 3/8 and even 1/4 drive with various extension bars, breaker bars and even wobble bars. A good set of spanners including 15mm, 16mm and 18mm which a lot of basic spanner set miss out. Also a set of allen keys.
An essential part of doing this job, like any cambelt change job is to have the correct locking tools so as to enable you to time up and lock the engine in the correct position. Years ago a blob of tipex sufficed but not these days despite what some bloke down the pub says. You must use proper locking tools. For VAG these are generally quite cheap, which is nice.
Also before you begin, plan the job and make sure you have everything to hand as far as possible. If you are doing this on your daily driver plan for having to use alternative transport in case things go wrong, they often do.
As for time, I can do this in a day without breaking a sweat but I'm going to take much longer this time as I will be properly cleaning everything and refurbishing some parts.
The first job is to take off the engine undershields which I won't go into. If you cannot take care of that you should be attempting a cambelt change!
Take the front grille off, one torx bolt each end
Pull this tab and lift the grill upwards
You can take the grille off now or later. I hate the silly little clip for the bonnet release so leave it until I have to remove it. I work round it for the most part. Four torx bolts along the bottom of the grille for the top bumper fixings.
There are also four torx screws under each wheelarch which hold the back of the bumper to the wheelarch liner. Once the screws are out wiggle the bumper off at the wings and pull forward. Don't drop it a scratch it!
Next is the plastic bracket behind the grill, five torx bolts, two at each end and one in the middle.
Bracket off
Headlight off now, not essential but I do. Four torx bolts for each one. Two on top, easy, two difficult ones, one of which is under the rubber cover on the slam panel
Keep your bits and bobs in an orderly fashion. There is so much to take off you will forget where things go otherwise.
Pull the rubber off around the engine
And remove the plenum cover
Next separate the bonnet pull cable, lever open this thing
And pull the cable apart, like so...
Lock panel fixings now. The lock panel is the whole front end panel that the headlights fix to, the radiators are mounted to and of course where the bonnet lock is located
Remove the various shrouds, philips screws hold these on
Unplug the horns! One each side
Remove the wing bracket to lock panel screws and on the passenger side the washer bottle screw
The actaul bumper crash bar now. This is held on by big torx bolts and also two tiny 10mm nuts. Undo them the nuts
Then the big torx screws. These can be very tight and can round off causing a proper nightmare. I had this last time where I ended up having to drill one out. Make sure the torx bit is firmly in position, even tap it in lightly with a hammer. Use a breaker bar if needs be to crack them loose. At this point the front end will come away.
You have two choices;
1, Take one torx bolt out each side, then install some studding (threaded rod) so as to support the lock panel when it is pulled forward to create room to do the belt change. Most garages will do the belt change with the lock carrier pulled forward like this.
or
2, Carry on and take the whole front end off. This is about an extra half hours work but for a DIY'er pays dividends in so far as you can actually properly see the belt area and get up close and personal with it. You can also inspect the radiator which will be likely be rotten and leaking coolant anyway.
So....
Undo the big torx bolts
Unplug the A/C pressure switch, not really necessary but safer to do so in case it gets snagged
Take the crash bar off. At this point the front end will be "flopping" about
Another shroud
Shroud coming off
And low and behold a rusty radiator header tank. I really wasn't expecting to see this as that rad was new four years when I last did the belt
Undo these 10mm bolts, two each end, remove the brackets and lift the A/C radiator up out of the mounting brackets on the water radiator..
And swing the A/C out to the side. Gently does it, it is delicate. It makes a lovely trip hazard.
Drain your coolant, then undo the coolant hose clips, you need to pry then undone.
Should have done this earlier, but undo the two 10mm bolts holding the power steering fluid cooler, unclip the outside coolant temp sensor and swing them out the way much you did with the A/C rad.
Pull the lock carrier forward a bit then undo the wiring connectors by the power steering fluid tank for the fan etc and then lift the lock carrier off the car
And there we are, a naked front end ready to do the belt change on. It took me about 90 minutes to get this far without any issues and with me knowing how to do it. If it is your first time, double that to three hours.
For those that think I'm mad, I am but I find it quite theraputic taking photos and then talking about them. It is a bit like going through old family photos but instead looking at oily bits of metal.
So...
To undertake such a task you need a fairly comprehensive tool kit including a set of torx bits, a socket set or two in 1/2 and 3/8 and even 1/4 drive with various extension bars, breaker bars and even wobble bars. A good set of spanners including 15mm, 16mm and 18mm which a lot of basic spanner set miss out. Also a set of allen keys.
An essential part of doing this job, like any cambelt change job is to have the correct locking tools so as to enable you to time up and lock the engine in the correct position. Years ago a blob of tipex sufficed but not these days despite what some bloke down the pub says. You must use proper locking tools. For VAG these are generally quite cheap, which is nice.
Also before you begin, plan the job and make sure you have everything to hand as far as possible. If you are doing this on your daily driver plan for having to use alternative transport in case things go wrong, they often do.
As for time, I can do this in a day without breaking a sweat but I'm going to take much longer this time as I will be properly cleaning everything and refurbishing some parts.
The first job is to take off the engine undershields which I won't go into. If you cannot take care of that you should be attempting a cambelt change!
Take the front grille off, one torx bolt each end
Pull this tab and lift the grill upwards
You can take the grille off now or later. I hate the silly little clip for the bonnet release so leave it until I have to remove it. I work round it for the most part. Four torx bolts along the bottom of the grille for the top bumper fixings.
There are also four torx screws under each wheelarch which hold the back of the bumper to the wheelarch liner. Once the screws are out wiggle the bumper off at the wings and pull forward. Don't drop it a scratch it!
Next is the plastic bracket behind the grill, five torx bolts, two at each end and one in the middle.
Bracket off
Headlight off now, not essential but I do. Four torx bolts for each one. Two on top, easy, two difficult ones, one of which is under the rubber cover on the slam panel
Keep your bits and bobs in an orderly fashion. There is so much to take off you will forget where things go otherwise.
Pull the rubber off around the engine
And remove the plenum cover
Next separate the bonnet pull cable, lever open this thing
And pull the cable apart, like so...
Lock panel fixings now. The lock panel is the whole front end panel that the headlights fix to, the radiators are mounted to and of course where the bonnet lock is located
Remove the various shrouds, philips screws hold these on
Unplug the horns! One each side
Remove the wing bracket to lock panel screws and on the passenger side the washer bottle screw
The actaul bumper crash bar now. This is held on by big torx bolts and also two tiny 10mm nuts. Undo them the nuts
Then the big torx screws. These can be very tight and can round off causing a proper nightmare. I had this last time where I ended up having to drill one out. Make sure the torx bit is firmly in position, even tap it in lightly with a hammer. Use a breaker bar if needs be to crack them loose. At this point the front end will come away.
You have two choices;
1, Take one torx bolt out each side, then install some studding (threaded rod) so as to support the lock panel when it is pulled forward to create room to do the belt change. Most garages will do the belt change with the lock carrier pulled forward like this.
or
2, Carry on and take the whole front end off. This is about an extra half hours work but for a DIY'er pays dividends in so far as you can actually properly see the belt area and get up close and personal with it. You can also inspect the radiator which will be likely be rotten and leaking coolant anyway.
So....
Undo the big torx bolts
Unplug the A/C pressure switch, not really necessary but safer to do so in case it gets snagged
Take the crash bar off. At this point the front end will be "flopping" about
Another shroud
Shroud coming off
And low and behold a rusty radiator header tank. I really wasn't expecting to see this as that rad was new four years when I last did the belt
Undo these 10mm bolts, two each end, remove the brackets and lift the A/C radiator up out of the mounting brackets on the water radiator..
And swing the A/C out to the side. Gently does it, it is delicate. It makes a lovely trip hazard.
Drain your coolant, then undo the coolant hose clips, you need to pry then undone.
Should have done this earlier, but undo the two 10mm bolts holding the power steering fluid cooler, unclip the outside coolant temp sensor and swing them out the way much you did with the A/C rad.
Pull the lock carrier forward a bit then undo the wiring connectors by the power steering fluid tank for the fan etc and then lift the lock carrier off the car
And there we are, a naked front end ready to do the belt change on. It took me about 90 minutes to get this far without any issues and with me knowing how to do it. If it is your first time, double that to three hours.
I took the front thingy ma bob thing off which acts as a locator for the front engine mount / stabilser and cunningly as a pipe for the boosted intake air from the turbo to the intercooler.
I did this as it was scabby rusty and likely in a few years to perforate which would mean the engine would loose boost.
The lock carrier and the thingy thing with the intercooler on the "Workmate"
Gungy gungsville. Do you like the nive little red hat I've put on the turbo inlet?
Had a bit of a mission getting the hoses off the thingy thing
The snub nose front engine mount. It was in very good condition but I'm ungrading it to the more beffy version off the V6 TDI
Some people call these Sponge Bob's ring piece.
And then I cleaned up the thingy thing, this took as long as it did to get the front end off the car. It took an age first getting the gunge off then cleaning the rust off as best I could.
And then, you guessed it. I painted it ! Three coats for this thingy thing !
I did this as it was scabby rusty and likely in a few years to perforate which would mean the engine would loose boost.
The lock carrier and the thingy thing with the intercooler on the "Workmate"
Gungy gungsville. Do you like the nive little red hat I've put on the turbo inlet?
Had a bit of a mission getting the hoses off the thingy thing
The snub nose front engine mount. It was in very good condition but I'm ungrading it to the more beffy version off the V6 TDI
Some people call these Sponge Bob's ring piece.
And then I cleaned up the thingy thing, this took as long as it did to get the front end off the car. It took an age first getting the gunge off then cleaning the rust off as best I could.
And then, you guessed it. I painted it ! Three coats for this thingy thing !
Cupramax said:
Its great to see someone doing things properly, theres so much bodgery and patching things up to get them working going on everywhere in the world, if i cant do something 100% properly i wont do it, bodging drives my OCD absolutely off the scale. Just nice to see someone gaining pleasure from fixing things up.
Yes, there is a lot of bodgery done by bandits.There is always the nagging doubt and question, especially on a car like this, "Is it worth it?" and that is where man maths helps....
I'm sure I've mentioned it somewhere above but I get a car allowance and luckily for me there are no age restrictions as to what you drive. So I'm choosing to keep this car running.
The only way to be sure about a car is to spend a lot of money on a new(er) one. I don't want to do that.
Whilst I've spent a fair old amount getting this one sorted, it will be exactly that, sorted and almost worry free for at least another five years hopefully. Every indication exists that the engine, if looked after should be capalbe of doing 300,000 miles which would take me another 15 years to do at my current annual milage. So taking care of the other stuff makes sense to me.
In perspective, what I've spent would equate to only three months of lease / pcp payments on a new car or about a years worth of depreciation on a three year old ex-lease / ex-company car bought at car giant or the like.
The bonus also is that I get a huge amount of personal satisfaction in doing all this.
olly22n said:
All I'm thinking about is buying a passat and sending it to you with a list.
And a blank cheque.They are lovely old buses. They'll never set the world alight but are cheap and go on and on and on. Most of what I'm doing is OTT / OCD !
I'm getting a bit tired actually and want it done now. I've actually got today and tomorrow off as holiday to push it along a bit.
MOT booked for next Tuesday.
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