[Vwdiesel] 1985 1.6TD Jetta recently acquired

[James Hansen]

Welcome to the diesel list Mike.
Home of the smarter and better looking.

   but the owner didn't keep any of the receipts or know for
> sure what all had been replaced, other than rings and bearings. 

then assume it got only rings and bearings. NO intermediate shaft 
bearings, no head work.  File this info in the top drawer for future 
reference if problems begin to arise later.  It will serve to make 
diagnosis easier.


It
> supposedly developed a slight exhaust leak after about 2,000 miles that 
> the rebuilder 'couldn't hear' and so wouldn't fix.

Is the underhood area and backside of head covered in soot, or clean? 
If clean, it was only leaking a tad, and someone was going to fix it, 
started, and gave up.  If covered in black soot, it was driven like that 
for some time.


> 
> 1).  I found a half container of Valvoline 10W-30 oil in the trunk, it's 
> a non-diesel rated  oil;
> if this is what the PO was running in the engine for its first 2,000  
> miles, is there any thing that could or should be done to correct any 
> problems that may have caused? ( I changed the filter and put in some 
> Shell Rotella 15W-40)

Only by running the correct oil, as you have done.  Since he was running 
the cheap stuff, assume that he treated the rest of the car that way in 
your future repairs. Detergents in the shell should fix and remove any 
leftover goo from running the wrong stuff.

What really distinguishes a diesel oil from a gas oil is the soot 
handling ability.  Diesel oil can hold a lot more soot in suspension 
than a gasser oil can. So, gas oil tends to deposit soot inside the 
motor rather than keeping it suspended so it leaves when you drain the 
oil. Running the right oil will fix this, with the caveat that if it had 
tens of thousands of miles on the wrong stuff, with long drain 
intervals, the crap inside the motor gets pretty extensive...not pretty 
if you see it.

> 
> 2).  Since I don't know whether the head was ever re-torqued, would it 
> be wise to do so before I start putting any miles on it?  Could I 
> possibly cause any problems by doing so?

I would suspect it was.  He obviously had it back about the exhaust 
leak, so must have been back for that I would hope.  There's no way to 
check if it has been done or not??... unless you can get in touch with 
the original rebuilder, or the previous owner remembers.  if it hasn't 
been done, it will leak.  Then I guess, you will know for sure... :-)
Retorquing it again if it has been would run the risk of bolt breakage 
on the torque to yield fasteners.

One way to circumvent this and end the speculation would be to install 
Raceware  or ARP studs.
They can be installed by doing it one at a time, so you don't lose head 
sealing.  I would suggest this if you want to do it.  I prefer studs 
anyway... since I detest the stretchy bolts with a passion.  You should 
not lose a head sealig over a single overheating event... which you do 
with torque to yield fasteners. As soon as the motor overheats (the 
aluminum head gets hot and expands faster than the steel bolt), they get 
stretched when the force on them exceeds their elastic limit.  studs 
give you some elbow room, and you can retorque them whenever you choose 
with no damage.
> 
> 3).  Judging from the reading I've been doing, the timing belt seems to 
> be properly tensioned, and
> doesn't seem to be showing any overt signs of impending failure, 

Timing belts rarely ever do show signs of overt failure, that's why the 
maintenance interval.  They go from a nice little belt, to one that is 
good except for the missing teeth around the crank sprocket area.  It's 
quite a dramatic outcome over a few teeth.

is it
> possible that the belt could
> have 'plenty of life left in it', assuming that it was replaced during 
> the rebuild? 

Assuming, of course, that the guy that was too tight to buy the right 
diesel oil won the lottery and sprang for a belt.  I can hear it now; 
"Hell no Sam, that has plenty of life left in it, just put it back on, 
I'm selling it anyway."

  I guess there's no way to tell for sure, but thought I'd
> ask in case there actually is a way.

If the belt is new, with 2000 miles on it, it will still look new.  No, 
make that it will still look BRAND NEW.  You should be able to read the 
numbers, and manufacturer's insignia clearly, they should be hardly 
disturbed in 2000 miles at all.  If it looks worn in the slightest, 
assume it is ready to explode tomorrow.  Replace both the tensioner and 
the belt.  I would bet real money that the tensioner is OEM original to 
the car, and has spun for 190000miles.  By this time, the tensioner is 
ready to go, usually a quarter way into the belt replacement interval. 
If you don't get curious soon enough as to what the goofy noise by the 
timing belt is, the belt gets eaten, and the valves crash when the 
tensioner dies, and your next post to the list is entitled something 
like "My timing belt just died, what now?"
> 
> If you got this far, thanks for listening, and thanks in advance for any 
> insights / advice any of you may have to offer.

Friends don't let friends use *spit* Fram.
know it. live it.
-james