[Vwdiesel] Head Cracked between valves...Seeking Advice

[Doyt W. Echelberger]

Ok, that's considerable experience talking....so far it has been Val, 
Kneale, Mark, Brian, and Mike.

Val sez "pressure test it." Mechanic agrees this is a good idea and is 
talking to a machine shop that might be able to do this. This may be the 
bottom line on the whole issue. Thanks Val, that is a major guideline.

Kneale offers sources for a replacement. I'll look them over if the 
pressure test tips the scales that way.

Mark sez head is OK, common characteristic. Encouraging. Hope the pressure 
test says the same thing.

Bryan sez "....peen over the cracks and sand" and "look closely at the head 
gasket, and pressure-test the oil cooler."  Looking I can do, but having 
difficulty imagining HOW to pressure test the oil cooler. Do I take it off 
the car first? ALSO, how do I tell which openings in the old head gasket 
are coolant and which are oil supply channels? They all look pretty much 
alike to me right now. Certainly my mechanic will know.

Mike sez half the diesel VW customers of his mechanic have oil in the 
coolant, and run without problems, and his own experience was probably due 
to high pressures in the coolant channels during an over-heat. Well, I 
encountered problems trying to run it with oil in the coolant....so this 
may be a valid reason to post. MY worry, and recent experience, is that the 
oil in the coolant leads to deterioration of the rubber hoses that link the 
radiator and the heater core to the engine. It took several years, but they 
failed. I became aware of the deterioration when they got soft and rotten 
and blew many tiny pin-hole leaks which disabled the car. Some of those 
hoses were VERY expensive! And that is why I am trying to get the oil to 
stay out of the coolant.

I hope to see additional responses. But nobody said trash the head (yet).

For the record: I contacted the mechanic with info you all supplied, and he 
agreed to investigate pressure testing the head. He said what worried him 
was that the one of the valve seats might drop out of the cracked areas and 
fall into a cylinder and totally trash the engine.

I'll  let you all know what we do.

........the NA 4 cylinder diesel engine my mechanic has in his shop is from 
a 1982 Audi 4000S, engine number 068.103.373 F, showing 4 Audi rings and 
the number 70 under the motor number (larger than the numerals in the motor 
number.) Anybody know if it is a 1.6 or a 1.9? And would that head work on 
my block?


Doyt





Doyt Echelberger
Ohio, USA