CIS injector testing : any interesting DIY setup ?

[Louis-Alain Richard]

Well, it's Friday so time for a funny story.

You remember that I wanted to test my 25 or so CIS injectors (valves in
Bosch speak) to find a good set. After trying to hook up my CIS pressure
tester to a small air tank with a metallic container, I gave up and followed
captain Lazy suggestion : find a good shop and have them tested. I then
found a Bosch diesel shop here in town, and they agreed to give it a go. The
next day, after testing and cleaning the first 5, only 3 were still good (it
looks that my good/bad ratio is better than Huw's ...). They had to test the
second set. Time was adding up, at 60$ an hour. 

So in a flash of genius, we, the shop owner and I, decided to call our
suppliers. What was a 60$ injector a few years ago (0 437 502 015) is now
replaced by a more common part (0 437 502 023) at 20$ each, made in Germany
by Bosch, available in 20 minutes...

Don't laugh.
At least, I know mine were not good, that's a positive point, and maybe that
was one of the cause of the head gasket failure. I also know that I will
test the CIS extensively once the engine will be running: there is too many
parameters that can affect performance/reliability to let a 25 years old
system in its juice.

So I have now brand new injectors, and the 25 old ones will go to the
trashcan. The shop owner told me that this new scheme, replace instead of
Repair/Clean/Rebuilt, is what he sees now every day. GM diesel pumps are
1100$ new from Stanadyne, while he was asking 1800$ for a rebuilt done in is
shop. Results, they are now only 3 guys working there (they used to be 10),
but the parts inventory is much bigger. At our North-American/European
hourly rate (60$ for the independents, but 115$ at BMW), replacing parts
rapidly makes more economic sense than slowly rebuilding a used unit. Sadly,
good craftsmanship is a notion that will follow the path of the commercial
sailor or the typographer...

Good week-end, don't forget to watch the F1 Grand Prix which is in Montreal
this Sunday.

Louis-Alain
1983 Quattro, nearing its restart every day now...