Date:         6 Jun 1996 14:25:56 -0700
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@vanagon.com>
From:         "Harvey Chao" <Harvey_Chao@smtp.svl.trw.com>
Subject:      Re- more Q's on the TDI

                                         Subject:
                                         Re: more Q's on the TDI
                                         Time: 2:17 PM       Date:
6/6/96

In digest 980, SStones comment appeared about stopping  a diesel engine with a
ball peen hammer --"On Thu, 6 Jun 1996, brian verbeek wrote:

> Hi Martha,
>  
> > 1.  If I run out of diesel, what happens if I get stuck and put
> >     regular gas into the car?  Explosion?
> 
> You have to use diesel again and the air that entered the fuel system
> must be bled (sp?) out of it, just like a brake system, some cars
> have a handpump on the fuel filter to do that. Putting normal gas in a
> diesel will give a lot of power and will destroy the engine in a
> few minutes, the diesel has a very high compression ratio compared
> to a gas engine (2 to 3 times as high) it will constantltly detonate,
> pre-ignite etc, ytou may even find that the only thing that will stop
> a diesel running on gas is blocking the air inlet.

Do not use your bare hand for this job.
Smack the fuel pump with a ball peen hammer."

I have to appreciate that he was joking, but some of you non bunker burners
(or novice bunker burners) might take him seriously and I must  say that is a
sure way to risk having to buy a new injection pump for anywhere from $500-750
dollars depending if used/rebuilt or new.  

The injection pump has very tight internal tolerances around the internal
moving parts, and is in a reasonably soft metal body.  A hammer wack may
impart sufficient permenant distortion of the body housing to cause leaking
and or malfunction/jamming.  In fact, NEVER hose down a diesel engine to clean
it unless it is STONE COLD!.  Again, it gets back to imposing stress (in this
case thermal from cold water and a warm/hot injection pump) that can
dimensionally stress or warp the injector pump housing.

Harvey

  "AARRRGGHHHH!"