Date: Wed, 17 Apr 1996 22:57:56 +0000
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@vanagon.com>
From: Charlie Callahan <charliec42@ilinkgn.net>
Subject: "Shakey State'd" Engine De-gunking
A basic question about engine cleaning:
As me '85 is making the death knell noises (Rings,
bearings possible) And I don't want to kill it, I am
doing slow surgery on it. Working on the outside and
taking as much off as rational w/o pulling the engine..
Anyways, my happy discovery on pulling the valve cover
is a sludge pit that makes a mess of its own as I carve
out sloshes of this crap by hand and toxic fingernail..
the dreaded quacker state syndrome. Ugh! I contrast this
to that $50 bug with the textbook clean head..
I figure this thing's been running it's own valve timing
for awhile, depending on accumilation of this stuff in
there.. I saw one small,tiny trickle of fresh oil amid
this sludge..
So: given this telltale sign, Should I expect:
that this sludge is everywhere in the engine (oil ports)
likely clogging that convenient oil screen, I heard..
and just about everything, or does it accumilate
especailly here?
What's a safe solvent to try and at least soften this
gunk as I progress inwards? I've heard kerosene in the
oil, I'm not too keen on that; what I have been doing is
wd-40'ing the general area of sludge and scooping..
..and try to ignore my neighbor down the street driving
the syncro I could have got for $1200 more.. At least
he's still going.. :) or the other extreme, the '79 bus
that was rust-free but needed fresh mechanicals-$300.
Those were my choices, but I got this. Same day I get
the formal title, the motor goes terminal klacky.. oh
well, it was a fun 500 miles.. :)
..a bit of an effort to get to the next 500.. :(
Another q:
I have a few holes in the floor of me aircooled; I have
fixed the leaks that caused the holes :) but still
have the holes. Will my two-sided duck tape fix (one on
top, one below) be adequate until I can fix it right
(months, years(?)), or am I creating a potential
moisture-trapped duck-tape sized rust farm?
Making time the best I can wind,
Charlie "air-fooled" Callahan
P.S. Folks buggering about vw's new engine choices:
On
http://www.beetle.de/E/Facts.htm
the nifty new beetle web site,
" At customer request, it is conceivable that
other engine transmission units could be fitted. "
There's a dangerous idea...
|