Date:         Fri, 1 Oct 2010 22:23:51 -0700
Reply-To:     Don Hanson <dhanson928@GMAIL.COM>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Don Hanson <dhanson928@GMAIL.COM>
Subject:      Summary on inline gas motor upgrade project..Long post
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1

  I think I finished up swapping my older 1.8liter VW Golf/Jetta motor for a
newer more powerful 2.0 liter Jetta motor.  I posted some other reports and
referenced some Picassa pics as this project has progressed.  I won't go
over the whole project, but here are the essentials again, and how it seems
to be working out.

    I spent about $900 total.  $250 of that was clutch-related, an expense
that I would have incurred soon had I kept the 92 Jetta Golf 1.8 liter block
anyway.  So about $650 total, including the used Jetta motor I found for
$300 with 89k miles on it and all the accessory parts included.  Hopefully,
I will get much the $300 back selling all those pumps, brackets,
alternators, etc   I actually wasted some $ buying a "kit" to eliminate all
these extra belts...

  I found Techtonics Tuning, a well known Oregon VW sport tuning shop, who
sells parts to do just the swap I did....I spent about $200 with them for
bolts, gaskets and some specialty parts to adapt the "new" 2.0 liter block
to my 1.8liter head and all it's components.

  Swapping my 1.8 liter head onto the "new" block was desirable because the
2.0 liter head will not fit under an un-altered Vanagon decklid   Techtonics
Tuning were helpful with advice.  Their parts I used  (a bushing to allow my
old distributor to swap into the new block, a plate to block off the
crankcase breather) fit right.

 This wasn't a complex swap.  My 'old' motor was still running fine, but it
came to me with unknown mileage and I put about 50k miles on it myself, so
when a $300 complete relativly low mile-motor came along, I decided.."Why
not? If it doesn't work, I can always put everything back just like it
was"    I snapped pics all through the process to record where all the hoses
and belts and wires went, just in case.

  I "re-surfaced" the  head on my workbench.  Emery cloth and elbow grease.
I used a tri-metal headgasket and followed my old racecar engine builder's
way of torquing the head...do it up half way and let it sit for 12 hrs.
then do it up half way again..let it sit...then the final torque...It works
fine.

  Pulling the motor was pretty easy. Putting it back was...tedious, working
alone with 3 jacks...but it went.  Too bad I forgot the pilot bearing and
had to pull the transmission to fix that mistake.   Being a rookie when it
comes to Vanagon motors...I was looking for a big ole bearing..."Pilot
bearing...transmission...gotta be substantial, right?"  Little did I know it
was tiny and  hiding inside the old crankshaft in my old block, so I just
assumed that maybe my particular weird Franken-VW didn't use a pilot
bearing..So anyway, that caused the output shaft seal on the tranny to leak
and oil up the clutch...Hadda get another seal and replace the clutch, which
was not really holding my 'newfound' power anyway.

  I got the wrong clutch the first time out..Probably my fault.  So I had to
re-order, but in the mean time, I simply cleaned up my old one and
re-installed that, to make sure my oil seal repair worked and because I
wanted the practice of putting transmissions in Vanagons...(not really)
Drove around for a few days "like I had an egg under the gas pedal" to keep
the clutch from spinning.

  During the process, I found my front trans mount was shot, so that came
new and all my CV bolts are pretty bad, they are 'in the mail"

  It all works marvelously!  Plenty of power, no pinging on mid grade fuel,
smooth running.  I timed it 'by ear' so far.  I will work the timing back
until I hear some pinging then go just a bit back and that should work.  I
can now accelerate up a long grade in my 5th gear where I used to have to
sometimes shift back to fourth gear with the smaller motor...So the power is
more, by a significant amount...

  I am no pro mechanic.  I have done lots of suspension and stuff like that
but I know very little about timing, EFI, electrons and motors.  I can read
a torque wrench and follow the Bently and I am pretty handy with a wrench,
but short on real knowledge and experience with engines.....This project was
pretty much unbolt and rebolt though, after reading a bit on the VW Vortex
site and consulting with some on the list who have similar engines in their
vans...It was certainly worthwhile...and I did learn a lot...

  Not so hard as messing with one of the many Subaru/Vanagon possible
combos..I would guess..Certainly a lot cheaper way to get a strong running
Vanagon...

  Don Hanson