Date:         Sun, 25 Oct 2015 08:18:17 -0700
Reply-To:     Jim Arnott <jrasite@EONI.COM>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Jim Arnott <jrasite@EONI.COM>
Subject:      Re: I-4 conversion general info
In-Reply-To:  <2097774527.2313071.1445774556870.JavaMail.yahoo@mail.yahoo.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8

Rob, Stephen et al;

I’ve done it. ’84 Adventurewagen with a ’97 Jetta ABA motor.  Absolutely love it.  It’s been a couple years now and it still puts a smile on my face when I press the loud pedal. It’s nice to be able to pass easily on the two lane highways around eastern Oregon. It’s nice to be able to go over passes at 60-70 MPH. (Redline for the motor is further to the right than the Vanagon tach goes. (I hit the rev limiter in 2nd once. At about 50.)) Fuel economy improved about 3 mpg.

What Stephen says is correct.

Off the top of my head:
’83 (or later) carrier bars & engine mounts
Diesel bell housing & shield, starter, input shaft, clutch & flywheel
Oil pan & pump (with pickup)
’83 or later dipstick & tube
Windage tray (stock Jetta from FLAPS)
VR6 waterpump pulley
Jetta coolant bottle
A friend at the FLAPS to let you pick through the hose collection for the right ones
A good radiator shop to build the connectors for hoses attaching to hoses
Metal engine cover
Engine management system (EMS) of your choice. (I used the Jetta’s Motronic system)
Miscellaneous bracketry and tubing to deal with ancillaries.
’98 Ford Focus air cleaner (paper element readily available)
$500 worth of good hotrod muffler shop with resident artist that can follow instructions
A couple of good friends to put it all together for you. (Thanks again Matthew & Jason)

You can also swap out the crossflow head for a counterflow and keep it all below the deck. Doing so allows the use of the Digifant EMS and makes it an easier swap all around. It also raises the compression ratio a point or so (I’m told) but with the right EMS, you’ll have a knock sensor so it’s not really a concern. That’s not what I did.  You want to do that, talk to Don Hanson or Robert Keizer.

Pictures from start to finish here: https://picasaweb.google.com/104201992525683280598/FollyABAInstall

Jim


> On Oct 25, 2015, at 5:02 AM, Stephen Grisanti <bike2vcu@YAHOO.COM> wrote:
> 
> I'm curious about this also and have read that you want to find diesel parts for the conversion, preferably from an '83 for the different carrier bars than the '82 uses.  Bellhousing, carrier bars, oil pan designed to be used with the 50 degree install angle of the engine, oil pump to be used with that pan, and I believe also the input shaft from a diesel trans.  Others will chime in with more and better info.  I've seen the used parts packages offered on Samba classifieds for about $500. I found a complete '82 diesel van for that price but it was half-buried, so I passed.  You could probably find a Kennedy adaptor plate and cobble the rest. 
> Neil in BC runs a Yahoo group on I-4 conversions but there is not much traffic on it. This is alleged to be the most cost effective engine swap in addition to keeping the van "all VW."
> Good luck and keep us posted on your progress.  
> Stephen 
> 
> 
>     On Sunday, October 25, 2015 1:58 AM, Rob <vwrobb@GMAIL.COM> wrote:
> 
> 
> I'm looking for some general information on putting a gasoline VW I-4
> into a Vanagon.  I'm not asking the right questions at the samba search...
> 
> What do I need to do the conversion?
> 
> Right now I'm just curious...
> 
> Rob
> vwrobb@gmail.com

Everything should be made as simple as possible, but not simpler.
-- Albert Einstein