----- Original Message -----
Sent: Thursday, June 10, 1999 =
2:46
PM
Subject: Re: Engine Swap - what =
about
TDI?
Dear Douglas,
I am "in the middle" of doing my =
TDi
conversion but have to temporarily stop due to moving to a new house, =
an
impending heart operation (yikes!), and an unresponsive, over-booked =
mechanic.
Looks like it will have to wait 'till September unless my mechanic =
(who will
remain un-named) gets a fire under his ass to start making some
progress.
As far as acceleration goes, I own a Passat TDi and I =
assure
you, you would never know from a performance point-of-view that you =
were
driving a diesel. In short, a great engine. BUT, while I would =
whole-heartedly
recommend this engine swap in a 2-wheel drive Vanagon with a 5-speed, =
I would
not recommend this conversion for installation in a Syncro, especially =
here in
America (which is the vehicle that I have). This is for a variety of =
technical
reasons that I will give later.
In spite of my reservations =
(for
others) of using this engine swap in Syncros, I feel strongly this is =
the
perfect solution for my trip to South America with the "Caravaners" in =
the
year 2000: great mileage, great low-end torque, and (hopefully) great
reliability.
Cheers,
MJS
At 02:55 PM 6/10/99 -0400,
Fitz-Randolph, Douglas wrote:
>I'm curious too. Changing engine =
types
seems like a Very Big Deal to me -
>especially for the cost vs. =
a
rebuilt WB.
>
>Also, why is *everyone* recommending the =
5-cyl
conversion? What about the
>TDI? That would seem like the =
ultimate
engine to have in a Vanagon for those
>looking at spending =
thousands and
thousands of dollars anyhow. I've driven
>this engine in Passats =
and
also in the new Golf and it is excellent - and
>driving behind =
one you'd
hardly notice it was a diesel. Imagine getting 30
>mpg in a =
Vanagon -
that's about 500 miles per tank! (That figure was quoted
>in an =
ad for a
TDI conversion Vanagon FS in WI - YMMV). Plus, you could
>carry =
extra
fuel without breaking the law or risking your life! And =
with
>gasoline
prices and taxes sure to continue climbing, gallon for =
gallon
>diesel
might even become a cheaper alternative. And diesels last
practically
>forever.
>
>Aside from limited fuel
availability and cold weather issues in some areas,
>what are =
the
drawbacks? Lower ground clearance/engine height? =
Cost?
>Difficulty of
conversion? Is it practical only for already-diesel =
vans?
>Doesn't work
for Syncros? I know this has been discussed before, but =
I
>haven't
really found any definitive sources of information on the topic =
in
>the
archives or on personal sites. Anybody know the whole
story?
>
>Doug Fitz-Randolph
>Yarmouth,
ME
>dfrandolph@talkam.net
>'90 =
Syncro
Michael J.
Sullivan
Marshfield, MA
Tierra del Fuego 2000 or =
bust!
'87 VW
Vanagon GL Syncro Westfalia "Sunny" (soon to be TDi-powered)
'89 =
Audi 200
Turbo Quattro Wagon "Wizard" (soon to be for sale)
'96 VW Passat =
TDi
"Teddi" =
(46mpg)
*********************************************
work:
http://www.openmarket.com
my vanagon:
http://www.hsdesign.com/vanagon
scan tips:
=
http://www.hsdesign.com/scanning
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********