Another VW Golf Mk2 16v

Another VW Golf Mk2 16v

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drewwa

Original Poster:

395 posts

149 months

Friday 3rd July 2020
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We hit 500 miles! smile The 16v has been in for its oil change, nothing unusual in the oil at all which was encouraging and all the new suspension is in place after a bit of faffing about finding all the little bits that you need for the job, which aren't included in the parts. Got there in the end. smile

This weekend we're going to fettle a few minor bits and pieces, give her another check over and then open up that engine bit by bit! smile





Underneath looks nice and clean and rust free. Give it a good poke when it was up on the ramp, just one of the jacking points needs a bit of attention alongside the sill.



Cheers,

Drew.

drewwa

Original Poster:

395 posts

149 months

Sunday 5th July 2020
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So, recent higher rev run was both good and bad...

We took it out today, got it warmed up nicely and then started extending the revs. Engines absolutely loves it, harder note from 5k revs and then it starts going loopy from 5.5k. Took it up to 6.5k after a few exploratory revs and it seemed very happy...

Then we noticed a little bit of blue smoke. frown

We slowed down, cruised about a bit, smoke went away... no obvious issues, but decided to return to base. We were only a couple of miles from home.

As we did so, the oil light came on and the buzzer sounded. We instantly cut the engine and coasted to the side of the road. Popped the bonnet - nothing immediately amiss. Oil on dipstick seemed as expected.

Restarted the car and ... all ok. Gently drove home with no issues.

Popped the bonnet again and had a good poke around. Found oil around the base of the air filter... and after dismantling found quite a bit of oil in the filter itself (it's one of those washable ones) which appeared to have come from the breather pipe which has two other ends, one on the head and the other from the block. Removing that pipe showed some oil inside - definitely the route to the air box. Seems like the higher revs pulled some oil along this route.

Checked wiring for the buzzer and tested it on and off - all ok and sound, which seems to indicate we had a low oil pressure situation at some point.

Now wondering if the oil pump or gauze might be clogged. Anyone give us anything else to check?

Cheers,

Drew.

Edited by drewwa on Sunday 5th July 13:52

drewwa

Original Poster:

395 posts

149 months

Sunday 5th July 2020
quotequote all
Problem solved we think!

Looks like the oil was slightly overfilled - high revs drew the oil into the crank breather and then into air filter. Cleaned it all out and rechecked oil level - now slightly lower than half according to dipstick. Test drive to 4k rpms - fine, then 5, then 6 then finally red line. No smoke, no oil in air filter.

Working theory is that the sensors are ok, but the oil level being to high caused the crank to froth the oil in the sump, aerated oil holds no pressure so as that went around ... no oil pressure - explains why it was back to normal after being switched off. All seems good now. ??

We suspect the dipstick may not be right... under-reading the oil level.

Cheers,

Drew.

Edited by drewwa on Sunday 5th July 15:47

drewwa

Original Poster:

395 posts

149 months

Sunday 12th July 2020
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We are close to finishing the first round of the restoration. smile

Oil problem traced to a dip stick that wasn't seating properly - now fixed and a bit of excess oil drained out - problem gone. smile Car was slightly overfilled.

Refurbed BBS RAs (option for this year of car, but OEM) in place with 15" rubber.

Stock exhaust (Novus Line) onboard and as close to OEM suspension on as we could manage. Still riding a little high, but is settling in. Tracking adjusted and a few minor niggles dealt with.

Car now goes, stops and handles as it should, with the bonus of being civilised to drive as well.

Stuff still to do includes:

Tweaking the ISV or replacing, occasional weird idle fluctations.
Proper tune
Door hinge angle adjustment
Tidy interior paintwork and trim.

Getting close to how it would have looked back in 1988 though. smile









Cheers,

Drew.

Edited by drewwa on Sunday 12th July 13:24

drewwa

Original Poster:

395 posts

149 months

Monday 13th July 2020
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My son took 'Florence' (our 16v) to meet 'Hollie' - a friend's 16v today. A pretty pair! smile



Cheers,

Drew.

drewwa

Original Poster:

395 posts

149 months

Thursday 16th July 2020
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We're in Kent, so Warwick is a bit of a trek, but might be worth a road trip at some point.smile

Car seems very happy at present - piling on a few miles now. Smoke is gone - it was definitely the badly seated dipstick leading to slight overfilling.

Cheers,

Drew.

drewwa

Original Poster:

395 posts

149 months

Monday 9th November 2020
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Abandoned this thread a bit - apologies!

In between the gaps of lockdown we managed to get the Golf out and about a bit. Successfully run in and running well, it's classically "zingy" at the top end as all 16v engines should be. smile

We replaced the rear wheel bearings and then found the front ones were starting to grumble too. Given the car is running its original 239mm discs, we decided to break with "standard" for this one and are assembling the parts to convert to the later 256mm setup (needs different hubs). Top tip here - the Seat Ibiza has these hubs as standard and these don't attract the "scene tax" quite so badly.

However, we've also picked up an oil leak somewhere along the line, so that needs investigating too. With winter almost upon us it's time to put the car away for a bit, assemble a few parts and wait for spring. She'll be back, but for now she's earned a rest. smile

Almost a year to the day since "Florence" joined the fleet.



Cheers,

Drew.

Edited by drewwa on Wednesday 24th March 10:19

drewwa

Original Poster:

395 posts

149 months

Monday 9th November 2020
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Tommie38 said:
I thought 256mm was standard.

Regardless, if doing hubs, why not go 280mm, if your wheels can accommodate.
Early 16vs like mine have the 239mm discs, they were swapped to 256mm at the end of 1988. Mine was built just before the cutover. I want the option to run the original 14" bottlecap alloys as well, 280mm is too big for those. smile

Cheers,

Drew.

Edited by drewwa on Monday 9th November 15:11

drewwa

Original Poster:

395 posts

149 months

Tuesday 10th November 2020
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Gallons Per Mile said:
Looking great as always, Drew! Looking at yours makes me pine for another one of my own...
Is your storage container heated or insulated at all? Surely it would get quite damp in there over winter?
It is ventilated and we take the cars out every so often anyway. I always put some of the moisture absorbing crystals inside the car. Keeps quite snug - my mx5 has been in there for the last two years with no issues - that's now in my garage at home - because "track car" prep over the winter. smile

Cheers,

Drew.



Edited by drewwa on Tuesday 10th November 19:01

drewwa

Original Poster:

395 posts

149 months

Wednesday 24th March 2021
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Spring is beginning to ...er.... spring I suppose and thoughts are turning back to the old classics in the garage.

Been assembling a few bits and pieces.

I have a bunch of new rubber gaiters to replace old worn stuff.
I have a new speedo cable, because the old one was rattling like mad.
I've got a sunroof deflector and risers (expensive, but good condition) to go on which should fix the sunroof itself.
Managed (eventually!) to source the right parts to upgrade the brakes from the standard 239mm on these early 16vs to the later 256mm spec.

This is not merely a swap because the 239mm setup has the caliper integrated into the hub assembly, which is what limits the size of the discs you can use. The 256mm (and bigger) setup has the caliper installed on a carrier, which then bolts to the hub. The two systems are completely incompatible.

Genuine 16v 256mm hubs,carriers and calipers are quite rare now and attract a bit of a "scene tax", but there are quite a few "compatible" version from different VAG cars from the 90s into the 00s.

However... these are not all quite the same, there are variations on the bearing sizes, the carriers and the calipers. As a result it's taken me quite some time to get compatible bits together mostly by trial and error based on what I could find!

I've ended up with Passat B4 hubs, with 8v spec wheel bearings, Girling calipers and carriers from a Seat Ibiza.

Here they are, ready to replace the current set up.



Quite looking forward to getting those on the car and seeing what difference it makes. The standard 239mm brakes were pretty woeful and certainly not enough for a 139 bhp hot hatch.

A few weeks before we get that done, but a bit of progress. smile

Cheers,

Drew.

Edited by drewwa on Wednesday 24th March 10:22

drewwa

Original Poster:

395 posts

149 months

Sunday 11th April 2021
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A few minor bits and pieces tidied up. smile

The sunroof mechanism was a complete mess when I got the car (sliding mechanism was jamming) and the deflector plate which reduces wind noise was conspicuous by its absence.

I managed to find a replacement reflector and test fitted it to the car. All seemed good.



Dismantled the sliding rails that allow the sunroof to move smoothly. These were caked in dirt and grime. With a bit of elbow grease they were cleaned up and working again. As a bonus, the sunroof now opened and closed properly. smile



The main supporting mechanism for the sunroof is at the front and a pain to remove, so I cleaned it up in situ ready for respray.



4 Coats of gloss black metal paint later and the deflector mounted back in with the small side lifters working...





One fixed sunroof! smile Leveling mechanism at the back is unfortunately broken on one side, so going to have to have a think about how to fix that. But another thing ticked off the resto list. smile

Cheers,

Drew.

drewwa

Original Poster:

395 posts

149 months

Friday 16th April 2021
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And a bit more stuff done today. Target is to get the Golf back on the road for May and the (hopefully opening) show scene.

Today took off all the intake gubbins to give it a good clean out. It was filthy. Managed to find a replacement lower airbox unit for the car to replace the modified one fitted. It was a Pipercross induction kit before - which made a nice induction noise... but it was a noise! Hoping the car will be a bit more civilised with the original airbox in place.

Whilst I was doing that I cleaned all the plastic components. They were filthy inside. I also discovered that the cam cover bolts were only finger tight (and one was properly loose) not sure what happened there!



Next up was tracing the oil leak in the engine bay. I initially feared we had some sort of leak between the engine and the gearbox, but the bell housing was very greasy on top, and a look around showed that the dizzy was mucky underneath as well. Going to degrease the engine there and replace the green rubber o-ring in the dizzy to see if that cures it. Fingers crossed!



With all the intake stuff off, now it was time to fit a part that's been hanging around for a while waiting to go on. The top cambelt cover. This was a proper faff - no wonder you see so many 16v GTIs without these fitted. Getting it to line up and bolt in place is really tricky. Got there in the end though. Might try and source the right oil cap... this one is way too modern! No Cat on this car!



Parts on order for the moment!

Cheers,

Drew.

drewwa

Original Poster:

395 posts

149 months

Saturday 17th April 2021
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It will have to go then! smile

Cheers,

Drew.

drewwa

Original Poster:

395 posts

149 months

Sunday 18th April 2021
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Whilst waiting for parts to arrive I turned my attention to the "in car entertainment". This is period too, the original Blaupunkt Windsor SQR 38 (which even comes with the manual in the car's paperwork). For the audiophiles... it is 4 x 6 watts RMS. ie not much! smile An intermittent power feed was tracked to the original glass fuse having corroded with age - replacements on their way.

Speakers have been replaced with new Alpines which fit in the factory slots (original speakers were present but the paper material had rotted).



Spent quite a lot of time tidying this up and cleaning it. Head alignment and the capstans/head were a bit of mess and out of alignment, but are now back to a decent setup. Fortunately not too much in the way of old capacitors to worry about (which can be a real headache on 70s/80s stereo equipment).

In went the Fischer cassette box and it looks very happy tucked away in there. This was partly for the cassette storage, but mostly because there must have been one there before as there were quite a lot of interior scratches in the cubbyhole where the previous one had been. This covers those entirely. smile





Lighting on the dash is also working properly after a bit of wire tracing (it was flickering occasionally - tracked to a cracked wire). 7,200 rpm rev limit.... smile



Little steps, but the old Blaupunkt is exactly right for the car... and if you rose-tint your memory a bit, squint and wind your mind back to the 80s it doesn't sound too bad. smile

I recorded some 80s music onto 5 cassettes using my vintage Revox/Sony rig in the house. Quite fun making a mix tape after all these years!



Cheers,

Drew.


Edited by drewwa on Sunday 18th April 17:00

drewwa

Original Poster:

395 posts

149 months

Monday 19th April 2021
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I did consider the new Blaupunkt. It's the Bremen SQR 46, which looks like the old units but has a much more powerful amp (4x50 watt) and SD card, USB and DAB in place of the cassette. Nice feature is being able to tune the colour of the HU to your dashboard.

But it's about £400, which is a lot for a stereo I won't use very much.



Cheers,

Drew.

drewwa

Original Poster:

395 posts

149 months

Wednesday 21st April 2021
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A few small but rewarding jobs today, funny how these little things can be the most satisfying.



Replaced the door switches with new items, the old ones were completely knackered. Surprised to discover that there is a "courtesy light delay" feature in the car. The light stays on for about 5 seconds after you close both doors. Neat.

Also replaced the electric window buttons as both were weak and failing. That's an easy one!



Also replaced the fan. This is also a very easy job, it basically just rotates out and you have to swap over the resister pack - fortunately mine was ok (original fan bearings were gone). Now I have almost silent air. smile



In unrelated Mk2 news, my son's CL is progressing well. He's put 1.5 degree negative camber on his trackday prepped car and lowered it 80mm along with chassis and strut braces, uprated brakes and engine mods. Makes for an interesting comparison with the standard height 16v.



For my car, just the speedo cable and the brakes/hubs to swap and she'll be ready for the road! smile

Cheers,

Drew.

Edited by drewwa on Wednesday 21st April 17:41


Edited by drewwa on Wednesday 21st April 17:42

drewwa

Original Poster:

395 posts

149 months

Thursday 22nd April 2021
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Replaced the speedo cable today.

That was just a lot of swearing!

Cheers,

Drew.

drewwa

Original Poster:

395 posts

149 months

Monday 3rd May 2021
quotequote all
And the Golf is back on the road!

Finally got around to finishing the 256mm brake conversion.

Off with the old...



New ball joints...



Shiny new hubs and bearings...



Carriers, Calipers and Pads!



Now to drive it around a bit and see what else might need fixing! wink

Cheers,

Drew.

drewwa

Original Poster:

395 posts

149 months

Monday 3rd May 2021
quotequote all
A quick trip for some fuel and all ok so far. Bit rattly, bit buzzy, but oldskool and all pointing in the right direction. Brakes are a considerable improvement. Speedo is still a bit ticky, but better than before. Performance is flat at the moment, but we haven't sorted the timing or set it up properly post the dizzy removal/replace, so a bit of work to do there.

But it runs and moves under its own steam and doesn't leak! Woohoo. smile

Mini Golf meet at Tescos with my son in his track ready 1.6 (which is now considerably quicker!) smile



Cheers,

Drew.

Edited by drewwa on Monday 3rd May 14:22

drewwa

Original Poster:

395 posts

149 months

Monday 10th May 2021
quotequote all
A bit more work over the last weekend.

Passenger side door window mechanism decided to die... in the down position. frown

Fortunately the car lives in a garage, but it was a bit of a pain!



I've bought the regulator for the drivers side too, as that's bound to go at some point, and I need to source a new membrane of some kind to weatherproof it all again. But that can wait for a bit. After quite a bit of fiddling, poking and swearing, the new regulator was plumbed in and working.

Thanks to advice above (cheers!) static timing was set to 8 degrees, that combined with bedding in the brakes resulted in the car being noticeably peppier. It's still the slowest, least torquey thing I own, but it's beginning to feel like an oldskool GTI. smile

One thing we did have happen was on one run we came back to find oil had surged up the sump breather hose again. Fortunately I had disconnected it from the airbox, so it didn't splurge oil onto the new filter, but was concerning.

We checked the oil level again (fine) and cleaned it up. A few cautious runs up to only 6k revealed no problems at all. There was no smoke from the car either under acceleration or under trailing throttle. Compression is good.

Whilst investigations are ongoing I've installed a catch can between the airbox and the sump breather to catch any oil that traverses this route. The 16v is an odd design in that it vents the breather directly into the air filter. A review on google seems to suggest this "oil surge" is quite common (a few articles refer to oil ending up in the airbox from the factory!). There's also no cam breather like there is on the 20v engine and the ordinary 8v - seems a bit strange!



I installed with the original hose and a supplementary one, mounting the can to the slam panel, keeping it as OEM looking as possible.



Anyway. With the catch can in place, a few exploratory runs were done again, increasing the revs each time until we hit 7k (discovering that the rev limiter works - ahem) and inspecting the catch can to see if any oil was appearing. So far... none. Which is also a bit odd... so not quite sure why we had a splurge at one point.

Strategy for now is to drive it around a bit more and keep it all moving, as it's been standing around quite a bit and needs using. Perhaps there was a bit of a pressure buildup/blocked pipe somewhere that has now shifted. Might do another oil change before too long.

Apart from that, running with no issues! No oil leaks from the engine now, which is nice!

Cheers,

Drew.

Edited by drewwa on Monday 10th May 16:07