[Vwdiesel] '82 VW Westphalia diesel

[Doyt W. Echelberger]

Hello Gary Shea and Gary-in San Diego.  I have several diesels (3) and in
one case I had the injector pump rebuilt, not by a local mechanic but by a
company that does it for a living, mainly for 18 wheelers. Cost me $256.
But that was before I found out about Ford ATF.

The pump I was referring to in my post leaked BADLY but hasn't required a
rebuild (yet).  I tried a chemical remedy that stopped the leak. Didn't
have anything to lose....I was going to have to shell out $256 anyhow if
the leak didn't stop. That was about 3 years ago, and it is still running
just finer every day.   I poured a quart of Ford ATF into the fuel tank
when it was about a quarter full, and I ran the engine about 20 minutes on
that fuel to get the ATF into the pump, and then I shut it down overnight.
Started it the next day and the leak was gone and hasn't returned. Seems
that the ATF caused the injector pump internal seals to swell up just
enough to stop the leak.

And that's what happened to me. I still run a pint of ATF through the
engine in a tank of diesel, about once a year.

Doyt Echelberger  in Ohio


 >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
At 10:23 PM 7/15/2002 -0600, you wrote:
>Hi Doyt --
>
>I seem to have just encountered the leaking-pump syndrome, presumably
>from the front bushing.  The local Bosch tech (who seems like a decent
>enough guy) told me it would probably be $250 to $300 to put in the
>bushings because he'd have to tear down the pump, and that the internal
>'vane pump' that sucks fuel through the filter is probably mostly shot
>if the bushings are.  He said that the bushings come undersize and that
>they must be align-bored so that the shaft fits.  This all sounds pretty
>gnarly, but I know folks on this list have done it themselves... are you
>one of them?  If so, was it truly that painful?
>
>Regards,
>
>         Gary
>
>[2002-07-15 23:23 -0400] Doyt W. Echelberger (Doyt at buckeye-express.com) wrote:
> > .................Your diesel runs on a fuel that is really a light oil. If
> > the injector pump is leaking (as they eventually do) you will get a
> > dribble/drip of diesel fuel from the injector pump. In my case, it was
> > enough of a stream to leave a trail on the road behind the vehicle.
> >
> > ................I'm pointing out the possibility of your oil leak being in
> > the diesel fuel system. This does not explain the high level of oil in the
> > crankcase, but is intended to alert you to the possibility that the oil on
> > the back of the bus might be diesel oil.   Doyt Echelberger
> > .....snip..............................
> >  >Harmon Seaver
> >  >CyberShamanix
> >  >http://www.cybershamanix.com